My family moved to Mount Vernon because of a Bechtel refinery project. Mount Vernon was close to some of the best parts of the Great Pacific Northwest: the San Juan Islands, Puget Sound, the North Cascade Mountains and British Columbia. We had a lot of fun visiting the local points of interest and enjoying the nearby lakes. Today, the city of Mount Vernon still has an "Old Town" - it sounds just like it did when we were there!

My Dad, Jim Waste, on the job as a Bechtel estimator.	In 1957-1958, Bechtel Corporation was building this refinery out on the Puget Sound near Anacortes, Washington. In this view looking to the east, the mountains behind Mount Vernon, Mt. Shuksan and the North Cascades, can be seen.

A "Bechtel Ladies" get-together: that's my Mom seated on the left.

 

July, 1958, from the left: me, my sister Shawn and older brother Steve about to board one of the company airplanes. When it was time for my younger brother Jamie to be born, our parents arranged for a Bechtel plane to pick us up and fly us to the Waste grandparents back in California. It was hard to look cheerful because we didn't really understand what was going on. Once we were in the air, though, it was a lot of fun. The two pilots even let us "fly" the plane.

 

Click on the Living in Mount Vernon link for more pictures and stories.

 

 

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