RCA Photo of the Week - October 8, 2026

Did you know that there's a World Teachers' Day? Various countries celebrate this day on October 5. Although this has passed, we can still honor the teachers that have made a difference in our lives anytime.

One of them is James C. Burke - the subject of the latest Photo of the Week. He was the shop (and later blueprint) teacher at Romeo High School from 1952 to 1971 (even though his obituary mentions that his time at the school was from 1955 to 1980). James was born in Port Huron in 1923. He served in the United States Army during World War II in the 126th Ordnance Unit. Afterwards, James attended Eastern Michigan University and Wayne State University and obtained a teaching degree. He and his family moved to Romeo in 1951, and in the following year, the Romeo Community Schools hired him as a teacher in the industrial arts. His wife Elizabeth was a teaching assistant at the high school for many years as well.

James made such an impression in the Romeo area that in October 1955, local high school members of the Future Farmers of America (FFA) selected him as "Teacher of the Month." The Romeo Observer Press detailed this achievement in an article in their November 3, 1955 edition.

According to the story, the "Teacher of the Month" idea was created by the FFA "to make the every day routine of a local high school teacher more enjoyable and pleasant."

The group had a committee that made these selections each month. The criteria was based on "the instructor's helpfulness and friendliness to the students."

The full "Teacher of the Month" announcement can be seen below.

James clearly fulfilled both points since he was selected as the instructor the FFA wanted to celebrate in October 1955. One of my volunteers had Mr. Burke as his shop teacher when he was in high school in the 1950s. He remembered him as a nice man who, along with his wife, strived to bring people of many faiths together to address racial intolerance and lingering Jim Crow practices.

James continued to make a difference in the lives of others in Romeo until his death in 2009. He may be gone, but his memory still lives on.

If you had Mr. Burke as your shop teacher, feel free to share your memories.

To learn more about James Burke, you can contact the Romeo Community Archives at rca@romemodistrictlibrary.org or call (586) 690-4890. If you want to search for articles on that topic, you can find the Romeo newspapers like The Romeo Observer on the Suburban Library Cooperative's Local History Digital Collection website.

Images and sources courtesy of the Romeo Community Archives; Melvin E. and Joan D. Bleich Collection, The Romeo Observer, August 21, 1952, p.I-1, November 3, 1955, p.I-2, August 28, 1996, p.2-A, and December 16, 2009, p.2-A; 1969 Romeo High School Yearbook; and Macomb NAACP

RCA Photo of the Week - October 1, 2026

The Homecoming game for the Romeo High School (RHS) varsity football team is tomorrow, October 2nd. Let's get pumped by looking at a Homecoming game played 40 years ago this month.

On Friday, October 17, 1986, RHS held their Homecoming game, and their opponent was the Chieftains from Utica High School. At that point, RHS lost most of their games during the season, so they were looking for a win. Another thing to note is that the Cheiftains were considered a league favorite in 1986.

The Romeo Observer detailed every step in this game for their October 22, 1986 issue. According to the article, "Bulldogs win homecoming contest in final few minutes" by staff writer Jennie Hill, Romeo "scored a touchdown to defeat Utica, 7-3" in the last few minutes of the game.

How did the Bulldogs do it? Well, it wasn't easy. Hill reported that neither team could muster a convincing drive during the first half of the game. The only time someone scored in that part was when the Chieftains' Mark Langlough managed a field goal with a forty-yard kick after the Bulldogs defense prevented them from going any further.

The second half was uneventful until the very end of the fourth quarter. Hill recounts, "When the Bulldogs got possession of the ball, they consumed most of the remaining time with a thirteen play drive."

One of the plays can be seen in the photo above. Karen Hamilton took this picture of a Bulldogs player (likely wide receiver Mike McClain) holding the ball while Scott Coil (83) is about to get out of the way and another Bulldogs member fights off a Chieftain. McClain was a significant player in this game because in the most important play, Bulldogs' Mike Ganfield threw the ball 18 yards to him on third down and two. The wide receiver carried it to the two-yard line afterwards. Erik Ritchie scored a touchdown in the next play.

The Chieftains weren't ready to give up quite yet. They managed to cross the 50-yard line for the second time all night. As Hill reports, "Then, with just seconds left in the game, McClain intercepted the ball on the ten-yard line, icing the victory for Romeo."

This was the kind of game that viewers wanted to see. It had a great underdog storyline and an epic climax. After the game, RHS coach Dennis Zbozen stated, "We didn't do too badly...Utica was a pretty good team but our offense was better. We just have to stop huring ourselves."

Even though Romeo would go on to have a 3-6 season that year, the 1986 Homecoming game was a triumph. To read more about that contest, check out The Romeo Observer article, which also contains extra photos from the event, below.

In addition, to learn more about the Romeo High School football team, you can contact the Romeo Community Archives at rca@romemodistrictlibrary.org or call (586) 690-4890. If you want to search for articles on that topic, you can find the Romeo newspapers like The Romeo Observer on the Suburban Library Cooperative's Local History Digital Collection website.

Images and sources courtesy of the Romeo Community Archives; Melvin E. and Joan D. Bleich Collection, The Romeo Observer, October 22, 1986, p.2-B, Romeo High School Athletic History From Barnabo to Barr 1936-1996: 60 Years of Bulldog Records complied by Jerry Barr, 100 Years of Romeo Football: 1925-2025 complied by Jerry Fraeyman, and 1986 Romeo High School Yearbook