School is Out for Spade

Jordan Williams, staff writer

After 77 Years a Historical School System Bids Farewell

On May 28, 2004, I walked across the stage to accept my high school diploma. Five people graduated from Spade School that night, the smallest class in the 75-year existence of the Spade Independent School.

My fellow classmates and I all got along great. To this day, I remain in contact with all but one person. I spent two years at Spade, and my classmates will forever be in my memories. Everybody remembers their high school, and whether or not they enjoyed it, they will always have the memories. Although my memories will always exist, the school itself will cease to exist.

In May, after 77 years, Spade Independent School District will close its doors forever. No longer will you be able to hear the sounds of laughter, or inhale the permanent smells of paint and French fries that permeate the air. There will not be any more fans cheering for their beloved Longhorns.

Lining the walls in the hallway when you enter the front doors of the school are group pictures of every single class and person that has ever graduated from Spade. There is 77 years of history lining the walls, and it is present in the trophy cases.

Right now, there are 18 high school students at Spade, and 61 students overall. That is counting kindergarten to seniors. As of this moment, there are no juniors and five seniors. There has been a rumor surfacing around that if the enrollment drops below 50 students, the school will close at the end of the semester. When those five people walk across the stage to accept their diplomas, the lights will shut off and the doors will be locked forever.

The problem that now exists is where do my fellow classmates and I get together in the year 2014 for our 10-year anniversary? Will we meet at the Holiday Inn and have dinner in one of the banquet rooms? Will we mention that time we snuck into the concession stand and stole drinks that belonged to us? What about the mention of that basketball game that we actually won? How boring is that?

I want to be able to go back and walk the halls, sit in the bleachers on the football field and watch the Longhorns lose a close game one more time. I want to play with the animals at the Ag farm, shoot a few hoops in the gym and remember those many games we played in. I want to sit in the cafeteria and relive our many debates and discussions. We need to finish that discussion about which drink is better, Dr. Pepper or Coke.

I, along with countless others, will never get that chance.

Another question that exists is where will all of the pictures, trophies, plaques, and other memorabilia go? I hope they do not get destroyed or thrown away. That is 77 years of history, and it deserves to be taken care of. If the administration cared, it would all go to responsible people within the small community of Spade.

But that is the problem. In my mind, the administration does not care. When I was a junior, there were 12 people in my class and more than 150 students enrolled at Spade. There was one teacher for every class, and there was even a football team, two high school basketball teams, a high school track team, and a tennis team. There also was One-Act play, UIL academic teams, and Ag members who would go and participate in major stock shows in Houston, San Antonio and San Angelo.

Today, there is only one athletic team, varsity girls basketball. But that team’s existence also is questionable. The members of FFA have joined 4-H and will not show through the school system. UIL academic teams are questionable, and so are the other organizations in the school.       

How can a school system decline so quickly? Is it the administration’s fault? Are the teachers or students who have left to blame? Can the state of Texas be to blame? Of course, there is no one person to blame for the closing of this school district. It could be many factors. But the one thing that will be certain is that Spade will be missed, by at least one person.

I will forever be grateful for the time that I have spent in Spade, and that time in my life will not go unnoticed.

To the younger students who have called Spade their school for so many years and will begin their next school year at a new and unfamiliar place, you will not go unnoticed.

To the teachers who have spent countless hours and years teaching and molding young people to become leaders of tomorrow, those who have made the impact on my life to make me the person that I am today, you will not go unnoticed.

As the clock ticks and time dwindles away at the existence of this fine, historical school system, I bid Spade Independent School District one final farewell.