50 YEARS AGO: June 14, 1969

Delores Conners, an 8th-grader from Philadelphia won the spelling bee, and David Smith, a high school student from McSherrystown won the oratorical prize, at the Catholic War Veterans oratorical and spelling finals held at the Penn Alto Hotel, Altoona. Leslie Holcomb of Bishop Carroll High in Cresson won second in the oratorical, the only local winner.

25 YEARS AGO: June 14, 1994

Doug Sipes, Altoona Area High School applied academics teacher, led 70 sophomores on a tour of the Conrail Juniata Locomotive Shop, where 1,120 workers overhauled 600 locomotives a year, Ron Osmolinski general superintendent.

10 YEARS AGO: June 14, 2009

Radio personality Bill Dann of Howard, formerly of Tyrone and Bellefonte, and Jack Servello of Altoona, wrote a song called “Heroes Close to Home” dedicated to disabled Marine Corps veteran David Emery of Bellefonte and other disabled veterans, that was getting a lot of airplay.

–Compiled by Tim Doyle