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I was again am expounding the benefits of this on-line Panther Den. I wish everyone who is a member here could have been part of that special place in the basement of the "old" WLWHS on Main Street. From time to time I have heard, or read it stated, that some people feel "left out" or wonder why some of us feel the way we do about this on-line Den.

I know that, during the 50's especially, the Panther Den was a main source of gathering for all teens. After all games, both basketball and football, there were dances held. There were sock hops, proms and many other activities held there. It also had tables that folded against the wall that could be pulled down for cafeteria use. There was a stage and the bands formed by our very talented musicians would perform or maybe, for special occasions, a larger band would be brought in. For the most part though, there was a juke box that had been donated by the Baxter's when they had their music shop. There was no money involved to hear the music. Just push the buttons and all the popular songs of the day would play. The after game dances were attended by the visiting team and fans, and quite a few relationships were formed this way.

At prom time, the week before would be filled with decorating for this special occasion. Ladders, crepe paper, flowers, stars, and many other accents would be used in very imaginative ways to make the entire space look like a fantasy land. During that time nobody but the committees would be allowed to go down there so on prom night there would be lots of Ah's and Oh's. The ones I know about, would have round tables along the sides of the dance floor and on the balconies overlooking this floor. The prom I remember the most had as its theme, "Stairway to the Stars." There were silver stars hanging from a dark blue sky, clouds were hanging between the sky and the stars over the entire ceiling and in one corner, a flower bedecked ladder went up through the stars and clouds. Many of the attendees had pictures taken in from of this Ladder.

For those of you who do not remember the Panther Den, It was the gym for the high school before the big gym on the corner was built. Basketball was played there. My father played there when he was in school and I'm sure that many of your relatives did also. The fans would stand in the balconies and I guess it would become very crowded.

During my tenure in high school it was used as I have already mentioned. There were several rooms that opened from the balconies. When the Panther Den was open, there were ping pong games and pool games on the west side. I wish I could be more descriptive about those rooms but to be honest, I seldom went there. The east side had a TV and a place to play board games such as chess, checkers and Chinese checkers, etc.

There were also times this special place was used when it was not supposed to be. The band room had a door that went back to the kitchen area and from there you could go into the Den. The home ec. classes were in the basement just across the doors from the den and if one was daring, this was an easy access also. It was always necessary to make sure the doors were tightly closed. Why? If not, the sound of music would be heard drifting sweetly up stairs to the main floor.

M. A. Copeland, Mac, was principal during this time and for those of you who do not know, he walked with a pronounced limp. There was always a lookout and all in the Den could exit by the alternate route before he could get down to the basement. He would get so furious! There would be a juke box playing and not a soul in sight.

No, these antics are not the reason the Den ceased to be as it was known in the 50's. The sneaking into the room was not an everyday occurrence or even weekly. There were only a handful who did this at one time and I really think Mac was the only one who did not know about it. I remember a few times when Mr. Brugger would come in and make some of the kids return to the band room and also the home ec. and shop teachers did the same.

For the most part, sneaking into the Den (and around Mac's home, I'll have to tell about that in another story) was as daring as the people I knew would get. I suppose there were other things going on but they were not known by most of the students, I'm sure.

When those of us with these special memories read and write about them on this cyber spaceship, we are immediately transported back in time to relive them. We travel at the speed of light to become rejuvenated and ageless, we become a group of teens who are enjoying the special moments at the original Panther Den. We relive the "Happy Days." We go there in a blink and return to the land of adults that fast also. Now we can look at those days and understand why we have such a bond. Growing up in a small town helped to know each other. Going to one high school, we became acquainted with those who had gone to another grade school. Now, as we read about the memories of others, latent memories of our own come forward. Now, we can know how important those early years were to us.