6 ■ The <strong>Almanac</strong> ■ September 19, 2007 ALBERTO ONCE HELD BACK BY WEIGHT CURRENTLY: DIVES RIGHT IN JUST ANOTHER REMARKABLE DAY IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD. At 13 years old, Alberto was one of more than 2 million overweight kids in this country. The good news is, he chose to do something about it. Since he enrolled in the Packard Pedi<strong>at</strong>ric Weight Control Program last year, Alberto has lost over 30 pounds and is now an active and healthy kid. R<strong>at</strong>her than focus solely on calorie intake and weight loss, our program helps families maintain lifelong healthy e<strong>at</strong>ing and exercise habits. In fact, Alberto’s mom was so inspired, she lost 12 pounds herself. Alberto is still headed toward his weight goals. The way we see it, his loss is truly his gain. To find out more about the Packard Pedi<strong>at</strong>ric Weight Control Program call 650 -725 - 4424 or visit pedi<strong>at</strong>ricweightcontrol.lpch.org. © 2007 Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital AT STANFORD
By Marion Softky <strong>Almanac</strong> Staff Writer Jim Rapley, who died peacefully on Aug. 31 <strong>at</strong> 105, was a legend in his time. A third-gener<strong>at</strong>ion rancher on Skyline, he ran c<strong>at</strong>tle on Langley Hill for 55 years. And he had a special talent for spinning tales about the old days, back to the times when both sets of grandparents ranched the Peninsula hills. With a slow, down-home twang, “Jimmy” would lean back in his chair, and tell about the time his f<strong>at</strong>her was a kid and met two grizzly cubs and their mother near La Honda; or his first drunk with the hermit of Jasper Ridge; or the lady from the stagecoach who passed out <strong>at</strong> The Landings, his grandparents’ stage stop where Skyline Boulevard now meets Old La Honda Road; or the last c<strong>at</strong>tle drive, when all the cows got loose. And on and on. “He listened very, very intensely,” recalls Hildegard Jackson, a Skyline neighbor and close friend for more than 40 years. “He could tell the story of the past in the finest detail — which made the past so much more alive. I always admired th<strong>at</strong>.” Jimmy Rapley was born on July 29, 1902, the fourth of nine children. He actually grew up living on Cedar Street (now Buckthorn Way) in Menlo Park. His mother had had enough of the hassle of raising children in the mountains, he said in a 1982 interview, “so th<strong>at</strong>’s how we moved to the lowlands.” Jimmy <strong>at</strong>tended the old St. Joseph School before it was torn down. He also remembered the 1906 earthquake, not the earthquake itself as much as the excitement it caused. “At nighttime, you could stand in the yard, and you could see the sky was red,” he said. “These people were coming wanting to sleep in the barn, carrying a parrot, or pushing a baby buggy.” Jimmy loved riding with his f<strong>at</strong>her, who hauled logs and hay and grain, and also drove the local w<strong>at</strong>er tank truck to PEOPLE Jim Rapley, last of the Skyline cowboys, <strong>dies</strong> <strong>at</strong> 105 deliver w<strong>at</strong>er. On these trips he absorbed stories of the land and its people. He remembered his f<strong>at</strong>her pointing out “a whole family buried under th<strong>at</strong> oak tree, a guy hung under th<strong>at</strong> other oak tree down by Searsville.” In those days kids worked the old-fashioned way. Jimmy put in time working <strong>at</strong> Duff and Doyle, the old general store in Menlo Park; caddying “for two bits” <strong>at</strong> the Menlo Golf and Country Club; dismantling Rancher Jim Rapley was known for his yarns of the old days — c<strong>at</strong>tle drives, stagecoaches, grizzlies, the 1906 earthquake, moonshine, and colorful characters who roamed the hills. 1982 photo by Marion Softky buildings from Camp Fremont after World War I; and working as a dairyman <strong>at</strong> the old Diamond Ranch above Searsville. When he was 15, Jimmy passed up Central High School to rent some land on Skyline and start his first herd of cows. “It was not a very big herd, but it was a beginning,” he said. By the 1930s, he bought the family ranch off Rapley Ranch Road from his parents. Through many years, he tended c<strong>at</strong>tle, his own and others’, for me<strong>at</strong> and milk products. “We worked around the clock. No one was in bed <strong>at</strong> daylight,” he said. Mr. Rapley built a reput<strong>at</strong>ion for being able to handle horses — and mules. For a while he drove teams of mules with a “reput<strong>at</strong>ion,” hauling dirt from the construction of the pipelines bringing w<strong>at</strong>er from the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir in Yosemite to the Pulgas W<strong>at</strong>er Temple. Jimmy also trained an untrainable Morgan stallion for a colorful character named Charlie McGonical, an amputee with hooks for hands. The trick for training horses, Jimmy Rapley said, was to tre<strong>at</strong> them just like kids. “You don’t ■ MORE ON JIM RAPLEY try to work with the backside; you work with the head.” While Jimmy was still a bachelor in the shack he built, lots of rel<strong>at</strong>ives would drop off their kids to stay with him during the summer for wholesome work and play. In 1946 he married Anne Foley, the sister of one of those kids. She still lives in Redwood City. In those days, the ranching families on Skyline were close. They worked and played together and helped each other out. Ami Jacqua, daughter of neighboring ranchers Rudolph and Gerda Isenberg,remembers Jimmy Rapley fondly. He helped her f<strong>at</strong>her with their c<strong>at</strong>tle, fed their family big ranch breakfasts, taught the kids about horses and cows, and sang for them while they were riding. “He was wonderful with children, He was a wonderful neighbor and teacher and mentor,” says Ms. Jacqua, who still lives down Langley Hill Road. “He had no kids of his own, so we were his family.” Seven years ago, Jim and Anne Rapley’s peaceful aging was horribly interrupted when their house caught fire and burned during a January storm. They were rescued and taken in by neighbors Bruce and Hildegard Jackson. They stayed with the Jacksons for six weeks before moving off the hill to a rest home in Redwood City. The Jacksons have been visiting them almost daily ever since. His de<strong>at</strong>h will leave a huge void in our life, says Ms. Jackson. “With each individual — friends, family, neighbors — he had an individual rel<strong>at</strong>ionship. It was absolutely amazing.” Mr. Rapley is survived by his wife, Anne, of Redwood City, and a sister, Pauline Murphy of Los Altos. A celebr<strong>at</strong>ion of Mr. Rapley’s life is being planned. A ■ To read the 2002 cover story, “Jim Rapley turns 100,” go to: http://www.almanacnews.com/morgue/2002/2002_07_31.rapley.html ■ To read six of “Jim Rapley’s yarns on the old days,” go to: http://www.almanacnews.com/morgue/2002/2002_07_31.rapleyyarns.html REAL ESTATE Q&A by Monica Corman Looking for Shifts in the Market Q: I am in the market to buy a house but want to see if the downward trend in real est<strong>at</strong>e prices in other parts of the country is affecting the market here. Do you see a shift from a sellers’ market to a buyers’ market happening here? A: Many buyers are asking the same question as you are. Based on activity from the first weeks in September, the answer is no. Well-priced properties in prime loc<strong>at</strong>ions continue to get multiple offers, although perhaps fewer offers than there were earlier this year. In the past few weeks I have observed th<strong>at</strong> buyers are more hesitant to say th<strong>at</strong> they want to make an offer. They seem to be waiting to see if there will be an opportunity to get a “deal” if the property doesn’t get any other offers. But as soon as they realize th<strong>at</strong> the property is going to sell and th<strong>at</strong> if they want a chance to buy it they had better make an offer, they step forward and the market continues much as it has been all year long. Why is the market strong here? There is still very low inventory for the numbers of buyers in the market. And this is likely to continue for the foreseeable future. Most homeowners aren’t selling unless they have a place to move to. If they are planning to stay in the area, it is not easy to find the right property in such a tight market. So they stay put. My advice to you is not to sit on the sidelines but to prudently look for the right property and if you find it, don’t hesit<strong>at</strong>e to make a strong offer. This will get you the house you want. For answers to any questions you may have on real est<strong>at</strong>e, you may e-mail me <strong>at</strong> mcorman@apr.com or call 462-1111, Alain Pinel Realtors. I also offer a free market analysis of your property. JACK J PIERCE LANDSCAPE INC Let me bid your design • Local References Website www.piercelandscape.com Cell 387. 3436 • Lic# C27588335 LANDSCAPE SERVICES IRRIGATION SYSTEMS PLANTING STONE WORK LIGHTING The Bowman program builds confidence, cre<strong>at</strong>ivity and academic excellence. Lower School - Grades K - 5 Middle School - Grades 6 - 8 Individualized, self-directed program Rich intern<strong>at</strong>ional and cultural stu<strong>dies</strong> Proven, Montessori approach St<strong>at</strong>e-of-the-art facility Low student-teacher r<strong>at</strong>io www.bowmanschool.org 4000 Terman Drive � Palo Alto, CA � Tel: 650-813-9131 September 19, 2007 ■ The <strong>Almanac</strong> ■ 7
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