Tokay93.com

Brian King was being his roving reporter self and got a chance to talk (via cyberspace) with Rachelle Roberts Gianelli. We can’t wait to see you tomorrow Rachelle!!!

Brian King:

Hi Rachelle. Can I interview you for class website?

Rachelle Roberts Gianelli:

Sure (I think).

Brian King:

RRG is a world traveler for humanitarian causes, a tri-athlete, local commercial star and Manager of Business. She has the unique distinction of having 900 siblings.

When you took part in that Bethel Church Musical, did you sing? If so, why did you stop singing, professionally?

(interviewer smiles)

Did you get Jenny to go to your church or vice versa?

How would your life be different if you stayed in New York. Would you be lonely? (We are all glad you came back, home). Thanks for the interview.

Rachelle Roberts Gianelli:

OMG hilarious  – after 20 yrs you know more about me than I may have said 




or remembered lol.  I did in fact sing but probably a mistake then as it would certainly be a mistake now.  Better for all I didn’t peruse that career. I dragged Jenny along with me and yes New York is a wonderful place to visit but so not like home.  You know sometimes a girl just wants to go to Target and buy a car load.  Not an option in NY.  Plus I was there on 911 and luckily on the first flight to leave JFK a few days following.  Always left some reservation in the back of my mind.  I like space…farmland & vinyards (local wine doesn’t hurt either).

Five Fun Questions with Brian King

Thanks Briano for answering our questions! We can’t wait to see you tomorrow and see if your sense of humor is the same!!! Lol.

1. Are you excited to come to our reunion? 

Yep.

2. Where will you be coming from? 

We just moved to Marina – a small town near Monterey.

3. What are you doing out there? 

Umm… My bride wanted to live here. So we live here.

4. Why are you coming?

I hope to baptize someone. If that fails, it will be enjoyable to see the people that grew me up.

5. What are your fondest memory from the Tokay Days? 

When I came back from Japan, September of Senior year, it felt like a foreign country. Lodi. Tokay. Even old pals seemed to be stuck on ‘getting out’. So I took a spot in Modesto and missed seeing what happened for the last 2 years.

Beyer High was a poor comparison to Tokay (except maybe the speech team. Wayne Reed’s jaw would have dropped).  They did not have undefeated soccer, wrestling, or track teams. They did not have the zillions of clubs that made Lodi a bit more cosmopolitan. Mostly, they were missing the diversified and capable people that are known as MEMORABLE.

You are all memorable. (But please wear a name tag, just in case).

Five Fun Questions with Joel Griffitts

Joel- we can’t wait to see you in a few days. Thank you for getting us all together and solidifying the reunion committee to get the festivities planned.

1. Are you excited to come to our reunion?

That’s an all-caps yes. Lately, I’ve been getting pretty nostalgic about the Tokay days, and I can’t wait to see everyone.

2. Where will you be coming from?

Mapleton, Utah. We’ll be driving the family out for a 4-day weekend. Scary to think that half the weekend will be spent traveling across Nevada, but this gives us plenty of time for Tokay yearbook read-aloud activities.

3. What are you doing out there?

I’m married to Heidi (a Ponderosa HS grad), and we have 5 kiddos, aged 3-15. I’m a biology professor at BYU. I love my job, but I’m not a big fan of the desert; to compensate, I’ve planted way more trees and shrubs at my house than the property can properly accommodate. Even with the government shut-down, the raspberries are producing like crazy. Mid-life crisis has me in better cardiovascular shape than before, and soccer/wrestling remain a big part of life at the Griffitts house.

4. Why are you coming?

Because Margaret Nash and Tasha Venkus contacted me back in March and told me that if I didn’t learn to use Facebook and get a reunion happening, they would come to my house in the middle of the night and cut down all my trees. Okay, to be honest, I’m coming because I’m still defined by my years at Tokay and all you great people. I’ve been a bad sport about keeping touch with classmates for the last 20 years, and this is penance.

5. What’s your fondest memory from the Tokay days?

Look, Mr. Israel worked so much magic during those years, I can’t even begin to enumerate. I mean, how in the heck did we get the Suns Gorilla to our pep rally? How on earth did we manage to turn the amphitheater into a moat, and then ignite a bonfire that melted all electrical fixtures within 50 feet? Speaking of fire, our Jr. class float was brilliant–the moment it was declared winner, it went up in flames! Easiest float clean-up ever. On a personal note, it was at Tokay that I learned to enjoy doing hard things. In a perverse way, my fondest memories at Tokay might be working my guts out on the wrestling mat all those afternoons, just to go home and write about political ideology or macroeconomics for Berkowitz. Man, those were good times.

Five Fun Questions with Hang (Nguyen) Cassens

Hang, thank you for answering our questions. We can’t wait to see you in a few days- wish you were coming in your awesome orange car from high school!

1. Are you excited to come to our reunion?  Yes, Definitely!
2. Where will you be coming from? Elk Grove
3. What are you doing out there? I am raising 3 kids (11, 8, and 2) and work as a Vendor Manager for Hewlett Packard.  I am also a Rotarian and am starting to train for the CIM Relay in December.
4. Why are you coming? I would love to see old friends and make new ones.  I was extremely shy in High School,  so I am looking forward to seeing everyone
5. What’s your fondest memory from the Tokay days? Fondest memory – gosh there are so many especially with all the extracurricular activities.  I remember being “hecka” embarrassed driving my bright orange car (don’t remember the model or year but it was a ’70-something Datsun) with a gazillion stickers in the back.  If you remembered it, I’m so sorry I had ruined your eyes.  But now looking back, I think it was the COOLEST car ever!

Five Fun Questions with Derron Lee

Derron- we can’t wait to see you and Leanne in a few weeks! Thank you for being part of the committee and keeping us entertained with your hilarious, but informative reunion committee messages.

1. Are you excited to come to our reunion?

Most definitely! Looking forward to seeing everyone who I haven’t seen in 20 years! I really hope to see a great majority of our classmates at the reunion. With everyone being busy with life,we get a chance to wind down and hang with your friends. Many of us will pick up from where we left off, and many of us will make new friends too. I’m really looking forward in seeing everyone.

2. Where will you be coming from?

Leanne and I are coming from Stockton. Ironically, we came back to the city where it all began. Bought a house less than a mile from where I grew up. Built-in babysitting!!! Score!!!

3. What are you doing out there?

Besides raising two little kids who are direct clones of Leanne and I, we fix broken eyeballs at our offices Midtown Optometry and Manteca Optometry. We also established the Manteca Vision Development Center where we diagnose and treat learning related vision problems that are often mistaken for many ADHD, Dyslexia, and other learning disabilities.

4. Why are you coming?

Looking forward to reconnect with classmates from years past. Sure we connected on Facebook, but nothing beats face-to-face interaction.

5. What’s your fondest memory from the Tokay days?

Running Cross Country/Track and meeting great friends! I didn’t fair too bad since I ended up marrying my high school sweetheart, Leanne “Ngoc Le”.