Tall, with never a wavy hair out of place, Willard Ellis was the principal we all loved to hate in high school (as only HS students can) and hated to love after we graduated. He was wrangler, disciplinarian, educator and father-figure all in one to the hundreds of students who arrived at Central every morning -- some to eagerly attend class and others to see what they could get away with.
He had to contain all of that pent up teenage energy and hormones. We're sure it wasn't as easy as he made it look. We can still hear his melodious voice coming over the intercom twice a day during homeroom gatherings. He told us about President Kennedy's assassination and about which scofflaws were to report to the office. (Evan Dickhaut, we hear him calling your name.)
Some of us thought he was a tyrant, but in hindsight he handled all of the shenanigans a lot more gracefully and understandingly than many other administrators did.
Most of us made friends with Mr. Ellis after we graduated, and at our request, he came to our 10-year reunion to help celebrate the fact that we were not in jail and were on our way to successful careers.
We know that you all have stories about your encounters with Willard. Please share them below or on our Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/CHS1966reunion .
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