Educators give back to Huntington Beach school

Angelique Flores

HUNTINGTON BEACH -- Rebbie Bates came to Sowers Middle School when it

first opened 28 years ago.

She has since helped establish Viking tradition, taught thousands of

students and even met her husband there.

This month Bates, 55, will join husband Bill Bates, 58, in retirement

to set sail up the coast.

“We’ll replace the position, but we’ll never replace Rebbie Bates,”

said Principal Paul Morrow.

As a final farewell, the couple donated $5,300 last month to the

school that meant so much to them.

“We wanted to give something back to Sowers,” Rebbie Bates said. “It

has been a huge part of our lives. It’s extra special because we met

here, but it has also been a huge part of our professional lives.”

The Bates figured out the amount by adding up their years of teaching

at the school and multiplying it by 100. The couple asked that the money

be used toward the science, math or technology programs.

“We believe in schools, public education, and our school is a top

outfit,” Bill Bates said. “It’s still our school.”

Rebbie Bates, a math teacher, spent her entire teaching career at

Sowers.

“She’s a walking calculator,” Morrow said.

Teaching a total of 33 years, she spent time in Florida, Okinawa,

Japan, and Northern California before coming to Huntington Beach.

“From the time I was in elementary school, I know that’s what I wanted

to do,” she said. “I never thought about anything else. Numbers are my

life.”

Bill Bates taught in Long Beach before coming to Dwyer Middle School.

After two years there, he was drafted to serve in the Air Force during

the Vietnam War. After his tour of duty, he returned to teaching at

Sowers where he stayed for 25 years until his retirement in 1998.

“The two of them helped make the school feel like a family,” said

Morrow who recalls how Bill Bates would cook his soup in a big Pyrex

beaker during lunch.

Married for 25 years, the Bates never had any children of their own.

“We figure we each had a 190 a day,” Rebbie Bates said.

Many of these students come back to visit, sometimes as parents of the

Bates’ students.

“It’s real exciting to watch the community growing up and see some of

the same people come back in different forms,” she said.

Bill Bates doesn’t miss Sowers much, only because he doesn’t feel like

he’s completely left. He is still involved in the community, visits with

former colleagues and students and is enjoying his retirement.

While waiting for his wife to join him, he spent a year on the Orange

County Grand Jury and has been preparing their boat for their retired

life together.

“We’ll be living the real retired life that a lot of people talk about

and never do,” he said.

The Bates, who live on a boat in Huntington Harbour, will head up the

coast in July and boat up the West Coast for the next four years. They

plan to spend time in Northern California, Washington and other ports

along the way up to Alaska.