he newest addition to the Udhailiyah community is the Al-Ghawar Tent which is situated off of the Jebel Perimeter Road near the old Communication Tower No. 2. This location was always a favorite retreat for the returning students mainly because of its isolation.
This year has been a special year for Mom, Janny Slotboom. I took her to the 23rd Aramco Reunion that was held in San Diego California, August 31st through September 3rd, and she had a fantastic time as I expect we all did who attended.
Dhahran now has a new 24-hour Mini-Market located at Mango M-317 operated by Arabian Food Supplies. It opened Friday, October 7th, and carries a full range of convenience items and staples.
On April 23rd, 2002 twenty-two members of the Udhailiyah Women’s Group were honoured to be invited to visit a private camel herd outside of Hofuf.
Douglas J. Eboch, author of the original screenplay for the upcoming feature film Sweet Home Alabama starring Reese Witherspoon, lived in the Aramco Dhahran camp with his parents where he attended 1st through 6th grades (1973 - 1980). The film is scheduled for release by Touchstone Pictures on September 27th.
The Aramco Annuitant's Reunion was held from August 31 - September 2 in San Diego, California. California Days – Arabian Nights was attended by approximately 650 ExPats.
It is Thursday, August 22, 2002, there is no humidity and a great day for golf. I had just returned from the States the previous Monday and Rich Crum had e-mailed me to play golf on the weekend. I would be subbing for Gary Propernick in their regular foursome on Thursday and Friday. The starting time of 5:15 was not inviting, but with jet-lag, I figured I would be awake early anyway.
The mystery beckons. Clues appear then contradict each other and often themselves. Somewhere beneath the sands of Saudi Arabia's Eastern Province lie the remains of the fabled city of Gerrha. For Rami Kamal, determining their location has been both a dream and source of intellectual stimulation for several years.
George Warren Blakslee was born July 1921 in Pennsylvania and earned a BA in geology from Penn State University. In 1943, he entered the Army Air Corps and was commission bombardier in 1944. After getting his wings, George's first assignment was to train two squadrons of Chinese cadets at Kirkland Air Base, Albuquerque, New Mexico. Later, he trained for combat in B-17's and B-29's.
Vic and TJ Friedmann and son, Alexander, joined Aramco in 1974. Vic, a geophysicist in the Exploration Department, and family were initially assigned to the Croydon, England office in October 1974. Alexander attended the local school there.
When I first got turned on to your new site, I thought it looked like another site for mostly the ones who came to the field after 1960, and so, thought it might be another waste of my "Valuable" time.
Libby and Norm Murrell Open Sierra House Bed and Breakfast. Libby and Norm Murrell retired in 1986 after working for Aramco for 22 years. Norm came to Arabia as a teacher; after eight years of teaching, he transferred to Personnel.
Bill Argo Develops Homeward Bound
My wife Ruth and I retired from Saudi Aramco in 1995. Ruth worked for Aramco as a British nurse starting in 1974. I joined the company in 1975 and we were married in 1980. I was an engineer from California and had the good fortune to work on all 5 of Saudi Aramco sulfur plants at Shedgum, Uthmaniyah, Berri, Ras Tanura, and Jubail.
Think You Know Everything?
We do not have Bed and Breakfast guests constantly, a good thing, since we devote so much time to each person or group. Our main business is the woodshop and then the farm.
I taught at the Dhahran schools from Dec. '79 through August '86. During that time I taught music and chorus in grades K-5, first at the Central School and later at the Hills School. I was also involved in the community chorus, community band (percussion), ANHA, and the square and round dance clubs.
Former Aramcons, Edgar and Brenda Dewar lived and worked in Arabia from October 1981 until July 1986. Edgar worked for Aramco as a chemical engineer, corrosion specialist, out of Udhailiyah and Mubarraz. Brenda taught in the Udhailiyah Schools for one year.
Linwood Thompson graduated from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst and was commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant, United States Air Force on May 25, 2002. In June, Woody will report for active duty at Randolph Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas where he will start navigator training.
It doesn’t rain very much in Dhahran does it! However, as summer approaches some days are just too hot to go out and if you’re anything like me you really appreciate a day in the house, just as you do on a rainy day at home. But, what to do if you really don’t feel like reading, watching television, or sorting out that cupboard you promised yourself you’d do weeks ago?