The Roby High School graduating class of '58 had its dreams.

There were 32 graduates, and most of the 26 surviving members met at the Marriott in Abilene on Saturday. They came from as far away as New Mexico and as close as Sweetwater and Roby to see each other again and to share their memories. Pictures of children and grandchildren -- mostly grandchildren -- covered the tables.

Billy Mac Moore, retired professor at Sam Houston University, Huntsville, was president of the class.

"We did not face the problems that kids have today," he said. "We lived on a farm, worked hard, and most of us rode the bus to school."

Pat Wilburn, of Carlsbad, N.M., said that finding a parking place at school was not a problem.

"Most students didn't have a car," he said. "I not only rode the bus, I drove it. I was only 17 at the time."

Wilburn said that cell phones, text messaging, e-mails and computers were not a part of their lives.

"The principal and superintendent had a phone in their office," Moore said.

Wilburn said that he was sent off to school with just a Big Chief tablet and a pencil -- students did not have calculators.

"We could use our fingers for counting," Moore said.

Most of the men in the class played football or basketball for the Roby Lions, but there was no a baseball team.

Moore and Wilburn remember that discipline was not a problem at school.

"We could get into trouble for chewing gum, popping firecrackers or turning up our collars," Moore said. "Parents stood behind the teachers. Once I got into trouble at school, and my dad knew it before I got home.

"My mother told me if I ever refused to take a lick from a teacher, she would march me back to school and help the teacher," Wilburn said.

Janell Kemp Hausenfluck, of Eldorado, was a cheerleader for the Lions.

"We did not have a problem with drugs," she said. "There was a little alcohol, but nothing big."

She remembers the powder-puff football games where girls put on the football pads and boys dressed up as cheerleaders.

"I would advise young people today to set goals," she said. "And stick to those goals."

"Stealing watermelons, turning someone's outhouse over or running one of the two red lights in Roby could get you into trouble," Hausenfluck laughed.

"When I left Roby, I never dreamed that I would be traveling all over the world," said Joyce Farmer Howard, a Roby Lion drum major. "My husband's work has allowed us to visit Europe, South America and other parts of the world."

When asked if she could advise young people on meeting the challenges of life today, Howard said: "There is no limit to what you can do. If you want to do something, just believe in yourself, and go for it."