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Show Familiar Voice Leaves Switchboard By TOM Bl'SSELBERG FARMINGTON "Davis School District. ..I'll ring for you." THOSE W ORDS have been repeated dozens of times each work day for the past 12 years by Ruth R. Brown, Davis School District's switchboard operator. Since last Friday Though, Mrs. Brown has been able to practice using her vocal chords for other pursuits day and night, after laying down the phone at the switchboard for the last time. Expressing the belief that "life is too short" not to be busy in things you enjoy, she says it's time to move on to another part of life. That will include a lot of traveling, with San Francisco and New England En-gland aieady on the dickct. BLT SHE admits that many people will be missed, from those she spoke to only over the phone to others she was able to see in person. In fact, in her years at "the board," only two people have ever really expressed ex-pressed anger. One was upset because she couldn't be connected to the correct party. But the power was out and there was no way to do it, she recalls, noting the other time a women was upset because Mrs. Brown didn't recognize the name being asked for. BIT BY and large, people are really nice, she says, noting not-ing it goes both ways. It hasn't been people who've created the real problems, prob-lems, but the phone systems they've installed. Mrs. Brown has studiously kept a green notebook since she started, logging the problems encountered. encoun-tered. WHEN SHE started in August Au-gust 1 969, she was the first employee em-ployee in the then new administration admi-nistration building. The district dis-trict had formerly been housed in the courthouse across the street and "Information" continued con-tinued to give out the courthouse court-house number. As with anything new, she recalls, there were problems from the start. The phones would ring all nighl. transfers would be cut off or phones disconnected. dis-connected. It got so bad that by September they tried a new switchboard but it was even worse. So they went back to |