OROVADA - Ignacio Albisu was born in Marquina, Spain, in 1881 and, for whatever reason, "chose" to leave his home land arriving in New York in 1906. Tomasa Bedarona's dad was a navigator on a ship, and though she grew up in Lequeitio, Spain, she was born during one of his journeys in Liverpool, England, in 1886. Both Ignacio and Tomasa ended up in northern Nevada and were married in Paradise in 1908. Their two oldest children, Concha (Olavarria) and Eusebio, were born while they were living in Golconda before they settled permanently in the town of McDermitt in 1910. There they owned their own sheep, grazing them on open range near Antelope Flats, Massa Canyon and Louse Canyon. The family grew to include Victor and Batista, who rode strapped on each side of a pack saddle while they accompanied their dad checking the sheep. Their siblings Mary (McGuire) and Elario joined them in the small house that was located behind the present day Say When Casino. Eventually Ignacio sold his sheep and went to work as a bartender for Andy Celutrequi. (Spirits were illegal at this time and he ended up in trouble for selling bootleg whiskey!) Later, while working for the Buckskin mine the family added Donato and Santy. By 1927, when their ninth child, Frank Edward came along, they were living in a house, (no longer there) on land they owned about a mile south of McDermitt, located on the west side of today's U.S. 95, near the old stage road. Ignacio had rejoined the livestock industry, running cattle, and as each of his large family branched out into other work and business' it was Frank who stayed on to manage the operation for many years.
Jesus Zabaljauregui was a rum merchant who fled Spain in 1898 during the Spanish American war, a conflict that began when the USS Maine, sent to Cuba to protect American interests during the Cuban revolt against Spain, was sunk in the Havana, Cuba, Harbor. Jesus settled in the Philippines, at that time a Spanish colony, and married Angeles (Martinez) in Manila. Losing her parents at a young age, their daughter Angelita "chose" to leave the Phillippines when she was 25 to live with, and work for her aunt, Candida Aboitz (called Mrs. Angel by many) who owned the Hi-Way Bar - located where the Say When is today - in McDermitt. Some years later Angelita would herself, own and operate the White Horse Café.
Frank and Angelita (Zabaljauregui) Albisu's daughter, McDermitt Combined School Alumni Patricia (Patti) Albisu, was born in 1955. Patti grew up in McDermitt and attended school there from first grade through her senior year, graduating in 1973. Her first-grade principal was Mr. Urlaub and she remembers his office was in the "old" gym. Her third-grade year was the last year that the third graders were sent to the Oregon school on the north side of McDermitt. Ernest Crutcher drove the bus, taking the kids back to the McDermitt School every day for lunch. There were two major events in Patti's life that year - her parents separated and her dad moved to Fallon where he farmed and owned the Texaco Bulk plant for many years; and she and her class mates were told in November that President Kennedy had just been assassinated in Dallas, Texas.
Patti lived with her mom in a duplex, across the street from her Aunt Concha's Ore-Vada Club, and looked forward to visits with her dad in Fallon. She remembers how excited she would get when she would see his car parked in front of Aunt Concha's, knowing she would have some special time with him.
A favorite grade school teacher was first year, sixth-grade teacher Dolores (Williams) (Armknecht) O'Neill. Patti also took piano lessons from Dolores and was honored to be a bridesmaid when Dolores married Harold Armknecht.
High school was fun and though she hasn't sewed since, Patti enjoyed Home EC teacher Liz Landis. She was on the volleyball team (they had no uniforms and played in Levi's) that history/government teacher Barb Ferguson coached. She had a soft spot for librarian Beulah Swanson, and she remembers the rotten egg smell coming from Burt Polkinghorne's Science class. Patti (who played the clarinet), Johna Reeves and Rebecca Wasson were members of the honor band and traveled to Reno to do a concert with other schools from around the state. She was year book editor her junior and senior year and, perhaps training for her chosen adult career, she held the position of Student Body Secretary. A highlight was when McDermitt's football team won the state championship in 1969, and the whole community turned out to welcome the team's bus back into town.
After graduation, Patti enrolled at Links School of Business in Boise, Idaho, finishing with an Executive Secretarial degree in June of 1974. She returned to McDermitt with plans to spend the summer working in the Snack Stop before going back to Boise, but was offered a temporary job of bookkeeping for the Say When. She "chose" to stay in her home town for good that winter when Jeanne Mentaberry called her to see if she would take an office position at the school. The rest is history! Starting work at the school in January of 1975, Patti would greet MHS students for the next 33 years until her retirement on Aug. 31, 2008. While there she did general bookkeeping for student activity funds, accounts payable and receivable, filing, purchasing, bank statements, payroll and reports for the District Office and State Department.
Over the years Patti had two superintendents that she especially liked - Bob Scott, who invited her to apply for the job of secretary to the superintendent, and Ken Lords. She turned Mr. Scott down, opting to stay in McDermitt where she could use her extra time helping her mom.
Patti worked under several principals but enjoyed Jerry Rockstead and working with John and Deena Moddrell as well as Mona Abel. She says that they made a great work team and found time for fun as well. She tells about a prank on Deena who was extremely afraid of spiders. Patti saw a spider crawling on Deena's desk so she placed Deena's cup over the top of it. The next morning when Deena picked up her cup she started screaming resulting in the office staff laughing for the rest of the day. She also remembers Pat Goff and Greg Scott inflating hundreds of balloons and stuffing them in John's office one evening after school. The next morning John had to wade through all of the balloons to get to his desk.
McDermitt residents who attended the Halloween dances that Sharon Swisher held in the back room of the Desert Inn likely remember the costumes that Patti and her friends created. One year they came as all of the Star Wars characters, and another time the six of them came as a six pack of Rainier Beer, wrapped in brown plastic with black paper plates for caps on their heads and handmade Rainier Beer labels glued on each "bottle." The six-pack carton turned out great and it was hilarious trying to dance - all six of them together in that carton!!
In August of 1991 Patti was married to Gary Wilson. Gary was from Portland and a friend of his, who had leased the Desert Inn, needed some help doing some repair work. Gary loved McDermitt and the surrounding area so stayed on to work at various jobs before hiring on as maintenance man at the school. Both retired now, Patti and Gary are self employed (G & P Water Services), and they manage the McDermitt Water System and the McDermitt Community Fund. Patti does part time bookkeeping for Oregon Energy LLC and she and Gary enjoy having free time for their recreational hobbies. They like going to smaller car shows with the Pontiac that her mom bought new in 1964 - they still have the original bill of sale for it - and they love to travel - often with friends. They recently took a trip to Yosemite and Bodie, a ghost town in California that Patti highly recommends, with Kimble and Susan Wilkinson and are looking forward to some recreation time with the Moddrells who have moved to the Spokane, Wash., area.
Patti changed her plans back in 1974 when she "chose" to stay in McDermitt but says that things happen for a reason. She's had a good job and a lot of fun. She enjoyed watching the different generations that passed through the halls of her alma mater and helping them prepare to step into futures of their own. It was fun when they ran into the office all excited as difficult obstacles were conquered. She would tell the kids today "Get involved in as many activities as you can - sports, clubs and academics - when you start looking back you will remember this as one of the best times of your life. Hard work and perseverance really pay off!"
Sharon Falen's column on McDermitt alumni appears the first Tuesday of each month in the Humboldt Sun.
[[In-content Ad]]
