1977 - From my Journal

1977

                 Half-way through my sophomore year (January 1977), I just kind of pooped out of everything!  I dropped choir, and even though I was still in drill-team, me and Joan Adams (my cousin) and Cindy Nelson were the rebels.  I did try out for Varsity Cheerleader for the next year, (my Junior year) and made it, along with Debi Ball, Kaley Jensen, Marci Peterson, Susan Burraston, and Pauline Preece.     

               

                I went to an L.D.S. Youth Conference in Provo the first week of June, and missed my first period.  I just KNEW that I was pregnant.  I was 16 years old.  Boy was I scared to tell my parents!!  Roger told his sister Lynette, and she arranged for me to take a pregnancy test at the hospital.  Sure enough, it was positive.  Roger was working at Hobart at the Freeport Center at this time.  He was doing sheet-metal work, making dishwashers, refrigerators, etc.  I drove over from Lynette's to tell him.  We were both pretty scared, and decided we would tell our parents that night.  Of course, we both told our mothers, I didn't dare tell  my dad!  You can imagine they were pretty upset about it, more so than either Rog or myself.  As kids, you just don't realize what you are getting into.  You paint the world rosy, and think everything will work out just beautifully.  I ended up quitting cheerleading of course, and was replaced by another girl.

               

                We were married on July 14, 1977  and had our reception one week later on July 22nd.  Bishop Francis Webster married us on my mom and dad's back patio.  The next week when we were supposed to have the reception in my mom and dad's yard, it poured down rain.  We had the wedding line in the carport (with the grease stains and all) and  the presents were in the living room, and the refreshments were downstairs.  I guess it worked out all right.  I wasn't bothered at the time, but looking back on it, it was kind of a mess I guess.

               

                The summer I HAD to get married (That was the way you phrased it in those days) there were also a bunch of other girls in the same predicament.  7 of us total.  We all married the dad's, because this is what you did in 1977.

               

                 As of this date, (2002 - when I compiled this), only 3 of the 7 couples are still married.    Thank goodness Rog and I are still together.  It has been a rocky 25 years together.  It is true what they say about young marriages being hard, and the divorce rate high.

                Roger and I lived in a basement apartment on about 40th and Madison in Ogden for the first 3 weeks of our married life.  We both hated it.    We moved back to Morgan in August, and stayed at my mom's house while they were on vacation to California. We were waiting until an upstairs apartment was ready.  It was located in a house that was at 10 S. 200 E.  This house was made into 3 apartments.  We lived in the top one.  This house is no longer standing.  It was torn down to make way for a parking lot for Bob Walker's 8-plex's.  This little apartment will always be special to me.  It had slanted ceilings, and the stove was a little two burner that needed to be lighted with a match each time it was used.  It had one bedroom in the apartment, and another across the hall at the top of the stairs that we used for storage.  This is the home we brought Ambure home to.  

                Our first year of married life was ROCKY.  I look back now, and can't believe we made it.  There is NO WAY I would do it over again.  When we got married, my mom and dad gave us their old dark green Ford Galaxy 500.  That fall, I had driven over to mom's to get some bottled fruit.  I stacked the jars on the floor of the car, and as I pulled out of their driveway, they tipped over.  I bent down to straighten them, while still driving down the road.  I looked up just in time to see the car hit a telephone pole right on their street.  It broke the pole right in half, and it was boinging up and down. I hit my lip on the steering wheel, and it was bleeding.  I was okay.  Verl Mecham had been driving down Young Street at the exact moment that I hit the pole, and he came back to see if I was okay.  I was bawling, and he called the police and took me home to Roger.  Me and Roger drove back over to get things straightened out. My mom and dad were over to a football game, and Verl went and got them. We had to pay $100.00 to the city for a new telephone pole, and the damage it did to the car was about $200 or $300 dollars.  It was the pits.  We gave the car to Barclay Earl the next summer, and he drove it in the demolition derby. 

                I worked at Jay's Drive Inn (now Steph's) during the days.  This helped to bring in some extra money, but I sure put on the pounds eating fries, etc.  I worked there until about a month before Ambure was born.

1976 - From my Journal

1976

                I turned 15 on January 9, 1976.   Roger had his Aunt Clara Beth make me a birthday cake.   Roger was wrestling at this time, and was having a hard time enjoying it.  He had wrestled all through high school, but now with a new coach, Louie Molen, he HATED IT.   Roger quit the team, and all of the players quit with him.   He was having a hard time all-around, and we broke up during February and March.  

                After wrestling was over,  we got back together, and  we ended up going to the Junior Prom together.  It was neither of our's Junior Prom.  My mom made me a beautiful blue dress with lace sleeves.  We had fun, but I really don't remember too much about it. 

                Roger went on work release at Schumacher's wood plant the rest of the school year, and I hardly ever saw him.  I do remember that we were together at the State Games for basketball that year in Salt Lake City.  A whole bunch of kids from Morgan stayed in the same hotel together.  I stayed with the Debi Ball, Deanne Christensen, and Marci Peterson, ( I think).  Roger stayed with Haz (Rodney Haslam) and some others.  At first we stayed at the Royal Inn, next to Subway on 300 West and North Temple.  Then, some of the Morgan boys got kicked out of their rooms, and moved to what is now the Shilo Inn on 2nd South and West Temple.  We moved too, of course. 

                Roger graduated in May, and it was really hard to think of going to school without him being there.  I can't remember too much about that summer.  I do know that it just wasn't the same as the summer before.  When you are hooked up with ONE guy, things are allot different.

                When school started, I was a sophomore!!  I had made the drillteam, and was performing at half-time during football season.  I remember we went to the State games and the University of Utah Rice Stadium, and performed there.   Rog took me to the girl's dance that year, but we didn't go to the Junior Prom this time. We also went down to Provo to the Basketball State games this year. Roger and I were pretty close during my sophomore year and I wasn't doing my best in school, and my whole set of friends had changed.  I hung out with Cindy Nelson (from the drill-team) and Noreen and Doreen Wynn (twins) and Tami Carter.  We were kind of rebels I guess.  I was really fighting with my mom and dad allot, my dad especially!! .  I was in the "Music Man" production in the fall, because I was in the Accapella Choir.  I had made one of the four high sopranos chosen.

1975 - The Beginning of OUR STORY

1975

                Roger was ending his Junior year at Morgan High School, and Gwen was finishing up  the 8th grade.  Roger was 16, soon to be 17 in  July, and Gwen had turned 14 years old the previous January.  The first memory Gwen had of Roger was on the last day of school, in May of 1975 .  She was with her friends, getting everyone's autograph in her yearbook.  We were getting ALL of the cute boys to sign our books, and I must have known who Roger Rich was, at least by name.  He was standing by the office and I asked him to sign my yearbook.  He looked at me, kind of surprised, and then he grinned and signed it.   Here it is in Gwen's words:   I remember saying "Thanks", and then walking across the hall and sitting down on the floor with my friends.  I remember looking back over at him, and he was staring at me!

                That summer, the summer of 1975, was probably the best, most fun and exciting summer of my life.   I had been kind of shy in 8th grade, and wanted to be popular SO bad, but just was SO awkward around boys.  Something happened the last part of 8th grade, I don't know what, but I gained allot of self confidence, tried out for Junior Varsity Cheerleader, (and made it!) and started being allot more comfortable around guys.  Me and all of my friends, Stephanie Preece, Christine Nelson, and Lesli Nance spent all of our afternoons  the summer of 1975 at Como Springs.  I had this CUTE TINY yellow bikini with pink polka dots, and I looked pretty good in it.   Como was a blast!  We would lay out on the cement by the 10 ft., and look at all the gorgeous boys and slather ourselves and THEM with suntan oil.  The jukebox would be blaring music, and we would flirt and laugh, and it was fantastic!!   We would also take turns walking around the pool, being substitute life-guards.  We thought we were so cool!  Looking back on it now, we were SO naive!!  Marcella Dahlquist, a girl whose dad lived in one of the cabins at Como, was there for the summer, and we all hung out together.

                Roger and Layne (his brother) and Lorin Brumley, Myron & David Kippen, and allot of other boys would come up to Como about 2 or 3 o'clock in the afternoon.  In the morning they worked for Kippen's hauling hay, but they would always show up to Como when they were through.  I got to know Rog, along with allot of other boys that summer.  I had been elected Junior Varsity Cheerleader at the end of my 8th grade year, and would be cheerleading when school started in the fall.  I'm sure me being cheerleader had something to do with my appeal.  It was a great summer!  Besides going to Como everyday, we also had Morgala Days Rodeo, and the Fair and Rodeo, and the Demolition Derby that were allot of fun.  Marcella had a birthday party at the Como Roller Rink also, and she invited a bunch of guys and us girls.  I was so teeny and cute, and had the cutest pair of brown checked Wranglers and brown moccasins. 

                This is also the summer that my brother Mark and Roger's brother Kelly turned eight.  Their birthdays were one day apart in July, and so they were baptized the first Saturday in August.  I can remember that I didn't want to go to Mark's baptism, because I wanted to go up to Como.  Mom and Dad made me go, and low and behold, Rog and Layne were there too, to see Kelly!! Boy was I glad I went!  Also, during this summer, my little sister Tonya who was almost 5 years old, would jump off the high dive, and I can remember all the boys being so impressed at her daring to do this! 

                I also remember a stomp (dance) that the school had that summer.  It was held in the old high school gym, which is now the middle school gym.  It was great!!  I had dance after dance with allot of different boys. After that dance, Layne took me home.  Roger was with a girl named Heidi Peterson, and we went out to Roger's old blue Falcon.  Roger drove with Heidi in the front seat, and Layne and I were in the back seat.  

                When school started that fall, Roger was a Senior, and I was a Freshman.  He was #44 on the Morgan High School football team, and I was a Junior Varsity cheerleader.  We had allot of fun times.  We started getting to know each other better, and I can remember I gave him a victory kiss after one of the games, and that pretty much cemented our relationship.  I also played in the band, and we had a band contest down at University of Utah Rice Stadium in October.  After the competition, Rog drove down with Bret Kimbal, who was going with Deann Wilde at the time.  Deann had also been a flag girl in the band.  We rode home with Rog and Bret, instead of on the bus.  That was the night that Roger gave me his school ring, and asked me to go steady with him.  I was on cloud nine!!  Never mind, that I was only 14 and couldn't date until I was sixteen!  What a dilemma!   I finally talked my mom and dad into letting me date when I turned 15  years old in January, and they even let me go to a few dances with Rog before then.  We went to the Harvest ball in November, and that Thanksgiving (1975) he came to my house for Thanksgiving Dinner.  Mom and Dad had the whole Dickson clan over to their home to celebrate Thanksgiving, and also Grandpa and Grandma Dickson's 50th wedding anniversary.  My cousin, Joan Whitaker brought her boyfriend Chet Adams, and my cousin Bret Whittier brought his girlfriend Jill Francis (now Judd), and my cousin Pauline Dickson brought her boyfriend Shane Preece, and of course I had Roger.  I can remember that Roger was scooping some mashed potatoes onto his plate, and somehow they accidentally ended up in his lap!  He could have died!!  We managed to get them back on his plate, and no one even knew!