"In 1970, just before Ruth, Elsa, and Julie left Borrego to go to Mineral Wells, TX, Jef recalls his mom mentioning a private school in AZ, and wondered if Elsa would be interested in completing her high school there, sensing she would not be happy with Texas schools, with which she had prior experience.

Bob and Elsa recall:

"Ruth’s friend and business partner, Don Lynch, had a daughter Kathy who went to a private school. It was a visit to this school to see Kathy that sparked Elsa’s interest in the school. Don, Ruth, and Elsa picked Kathy up at the end of the school year. While there, California Governor Ronald Reagan was there to give the graduation speech for the class of his daughter, Patty Reagan. The Orme School is a prep school on a 40,000 acre working cattle ranch in the mountains of northwestern Arizona."

"The school sent Ruth their advertisements, including a descriptive film narrated by actor Jimmy Stewart. The tuition was beyond our family means. Ruth filled out an application for financial aid, but Elsa was not accepted for 9th grade. Six weeks into her semester at Mineral Wells High School, someone was expelled from Orme.

"Elsa was then offered midyear entrance with the necessary financial aid. (with perhaps some negotiations by Ruth, who offered to provide Elsa's horse and perhaps donate another).

"My $75 per month child support obligation certainly fell short of the cost of her maintenance and tuition. Elsa told me that she did not mind doing the school and ranch chores expected of all students. One year, when Elsa was on vacation, I met her at the Los Angeles airport. While we were helping her pick up her luggage, her classmate and traveling companion, Carole Riordan, contemplating a Taxi ride, was offered by Leny and I a ride to her house which she accepted. We were quite flabbergasted to be directed to the sumptuous residence of her mother in Bellaire, none other than that of J. Paul Getty’s son’s widow. J. Paul was the world's richest man. We were met by a uniformed butler at the door who greeted us, saying, "Welcome home, Miss Carole" whereupon Leny and I hurriedly departed, waving Good Bye!

"Elsa was the valedictorian speaker at her graduation from Orme. The invited speaker was William F. Buckley."