Ekalaka! A Bear Educational Reunion by Dick Jones, Ed.D. '66

The '60s at Berkeley were a turbulent and definitive time for many people. For seven educators, the '60s started them toward careers in educational leadership. Jack Martin, Ed.D. '67; Troy McKelvey, Ed.D. '66; Bob Sarvis, Ed.D. '68; Dick Jones, Ed.D. '66; Hig Bailey, Ed.D. '67; Jerry Rider, Ed.D. '67, and Ray McGuire, Ed.D. '65 all completed doctoral degrees in Educational Administration in the '60s and established lasting friendships in the process.

In August 1998, at Fort Worden Park in Port Townsend WA, these men and their wives gathered for the third EKALAKA reunion, as they had done in 1993 and in 1988. Ekalaka is a small town in Montana, but Hig Bailey, a Montanan, began using the term to describe the gathering whenever the group got together for relaxation and a glass of inexpensive (cheap?) wine during their student days at Albany Village. As a result, 'Ekalaka' became the term to describe the group's reunions over the years.

The last Ekalaka was a special memorial to Troy's wife, Alice McKelvey, who passed away in the spring of 1998. Alice was special to the group since during the '60s she was the mole in the University Housing Office who identified the new doctoral candidates in Ed Ad, greeted the families when they arrived at Albany Village, and organized many of the activities the group enjoyed.

After careers in the public schools, colleges, and universities; and in state offices and private businesses, all the men have now retired. They agreed to have the next Ekalaka at Priest Lake, Idaho where the Jack Martins have a lake home. These Bears came together in the '60s, and through the years they have maintained the close ties they developed at Tolman Hall and in Albany Village. That, perhaps, is a special outcome of their education at Berkeley.

UC Berkeley Ekalaka reunion at Port Townsend, WA. From Left to Right: Bob Sarvis, Dick Jones, Jerry Rider, Troy McKelvey, and Jack Martin. (Missing from photo: Hig Bailey, and Ray McGuire who had to rush to the airport.)