Well, I went to my HS class's 51 year reunion last night. The pandemic stopped us from having one last year. Today we had a multi-class/school reunion. One of the highlights as we relayed various memories was one classmate who said he and several others played hooky and left school and went to our local gravel lakes and they stripped naked and went swimming. What they did not notice was the truant officer had followed them and he collected their clothes and left with them. :embarassed: The classmate said they could not leave the water and people came down to fish and were mad because they would not leave the water not knowing they could not. :( Around 2:30 pm the truant officer brought back their clothes so they could still get back in time for the bus ride home. The old truant officer showed up at today's event and another classmate asked if he remembered taking their clothes and he laughed and said he well remembered but did not remember any more problems out of them skipping school. :D
We had a good time and I am glad I made the trip.
We had one in 2016, it was ok but probably my last. The old cliques resurfaced several classmates wouldn't even acknowledge a friendly hello after 50 years.
I went to one several years back. A few pleasant meetings. But like sawguy said too many cliques and apparent jealousy from some.
High school class of 28, but 9 have passed away, and of the 19 remaining there are 13-14 that make it back to our reunion which now we have every year. Four we lost track of, soon after graduation.
But no cliques any more. We mellow with age and enjoy a reunion. Better than going to a funeral to see them. 8)
Don't really get involved. Never heard tell of all of them for years. Wouldn't know of any funerals anyway. :D When we amalgamated a lot of schools, what tended to happen is cliques formed between classmates from former schools. And then furthermore between college prep, industrial, business students. Never seen them for years, wouldn't even recognize them now. In fact had one fellow introduce himself in a Walmart, never remembered him at all, complete stranger. :D I did come across an old college classmate who was studying forestry, but dropped out. Looked like he did 34 years ago. He works at a hardware store. And had been working at a grocery store, where I first ran into him.
I was sent a facebook post about our class reunion this summer . it too was postponed due to covid . 'they' are planning a golf outing and then a dinner , as soon as I read the words 'golf outing' , that turned me off . i am not sure , but i wood say only about 15% or less golf , so the class reunion is just for them ......
I helped with 3 of our class reunions. Its pretty hard to gather information on people, but the internet had been a lot of help. We never would have tried a golf outing, as its too much to set up. We just had a shindig at some local hall where we could get together. We get about a 20% class turnout.
High school was pretty much like Swamp Donkey said. We had a bunch of rural townships that went in with a local town to form a bigger high school. Cliques pretty much followed your major, or the twp you came from. Some of the friendships last, some don't.
I've been to all of ours. There are those that won't attend, and offered the excuse that those that attend try to relive their HS days. There are those that complain about the cost and don't realize how much things actually cost to pull something of this size off. But, of the ones that attend, its usually having memories of our joint experience and catching up with how life has treated us. We stopped having reunions at the 50th.
I went to my 20th in 2000. Our class was 240 and about 100 attended. Those of us who moved away found that those who remained still hang out, golf, go to ball games etc together. The rest of us enjoyed a little time reconnecting.
I did see that the star athletes and most of the star students turned out to be everyday people with everyday lives. Many of the rest of us "exceeded" expectations.
I won't be going to another one. I stay in touch with those few who I want to anyway
I went to my 35th.
I had moved away soon after high school and had gone to VoTech the last 2 years so I had lost track of all of them.
As I said to one person, its meeting a bunch of strangers I knew 35 years ago. I won't go to another.
I do keep up with a couple on Facebook now
I went to my 30th last night. It was a great time and great to see friends from so long ago. We were a class of 68. 5 have passed away since 1992. I did not experience any old teenage angst issues. We had it in the gym of our old school. Sadly the school closed in 2008, but the building is still being used by the church parish as a civic center. It was definitely nice to have it there. Brought back lots of good memories.
They can be interesting at times depending how you look at things .My HS class graduated in 1966 and some of the locals with county roads with their family names on them are just the same .People such as myself who have been at least half way around the world and we obviously most of the time have different out looks on life .There was a thing called Viet Nam that forever set the stage for the rest of some of our lives .
It amuses me ,the one who acted like James Dean in "Rebel without a cause ".myself probably was thought to be the least successful in life became one of the most .Then hand in hand with the class sweet heart ,the blonde cheer leader is by my side .--Never judge a book by it's cover--- :) BTW her hair is still blonde with no dye although a tad bit lighter .My coal black hair however has tinges of frost or something and is a tad thinner in places .Falling off my head and growing wild on my ears ,go figure .
Interesting observations from all. We only had a couple dozen show up with about half the spouses. We met at a Historical society building one of the members and my SIL is involved with. Two of her brothers, including one who was our class president, both were in our class as were their wives. We had no expenses other than travel and lodging to get here.
I did not see any cliques but yes the stars of the class often stayed here and worked the local bank or grocery store or opened a beauty shop while many of the more middle of the pack got out and traveled and did more. I know I traveled more than anyone else.
Our school integrated when I was in 8th grade the races did not socialize then. We tried to contact our Black classmates but the few we had or could contact did not come. I truly believe they would have been warmly welcomed. I know I would have as we all have lots more in common than we did back then.
A few of the local residents brought a covered dish or picked up a few pizzas and it was very low key but we had a real good time. Many local members did not show up due to health or simple lack of interest. I was very happy to see them all even ones I had no association with back then and the spouses were all very nice and interesting and I had no problem chastising the one with the Alabama jersey on an he bickered right back and we hope to see each other again.
At the multi-class school reunion my SIL and her sister coordinate that so she tasked me to fry 50 lbs of catfish so I and a couple of other derelicts cut up and fried the fish and burned the hushpuppies. When someone sent a pan of undercooked fish back we let it sit a few minutes and sent it back and the word came back it was now perfect.
I hope to attend more but time, health and economics will decide that. As to the funerals, Dad once told someone "I only have to go to one more funeral and I'd just as soon someone else go in my place to it."
We had a fairly nice 25th reunion, but that was it.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/20011/3613/DSCN0557.JPG?easyrotate_cache=1318713613)
We tried for a 50th but: LINK (https://forestryforum.com/board/index.php?topic=53527.msg772379#msg772379)
I know where 2 of my classmates live but other than that we are blowing in the breeze. ::)
Neither my wife nor I really enjoyed high school. More like we endured it. She did go to one of her reunions, she was one year behind me, and likely won't go to another.
Ive never been to one of mine. Just not interested.
Quote from: beenthere on May 01, 2022, 01:49:50 AM
High school class of 28, but 9 have passed away, and of the 19 remaining there are 13-14 that make it back to our reunion which now we have every year. Four we lost track of, soon after graduation.
But no cliques any more. We mellow with age and enjoy a reunion. Better than going to a funeral to see them. 8)
Dear beenthere:
If I am reading and ciphering correctly [many graduate the year they turn 18] you are 111 or 112 years old.
Congratulations, and could you share your formula for longevity.
GAB
:D
GAB
:D
Read that as 28 people in our class of '57, not the class of '28. ;)
Well, Kane Tanaka of Japan, recently died at age 119. ;D
Quote from: beenthere on May 01, 2022, 04:18:20 PM
GAB
:D
Read that as 28 people in our class of '57, not the class of '28. ;)
Boy oh boy did I read that wrong.
Sorry I gave you toooooo many.
GAB
Our school was consolidated 2 years before I graduated, don't think of those people as friends. Do see quite a few obits from my class. I went to a couple reunions, wasn't all that much fun, so don't bother. Our class president died 5 years ago, he was a career IRS agent. Haven't gotten a notice since then.
I have been reading along since this thread started. I figured most folks would not understand why I would have practically zero interest in my high school reunion. But I was wrong.
I had an oddball experience. I went to a technical AND vocational high school that also had an academic track (the minority of students). It was one of the best best High Schools with such programs on the east coast. One other was Brooklyn Tech. The folks in vocational programs in my school were actually recruited directly by businesses and hired right into good jobs on graduation. The folks in the technical programs pretty much all went to college for their chosen program. I was in Mechanical Tech, college prep for engineering and manufacturing work. We also had Machine shop (voc), Beauty Culture (voc), Horticulture (tech), Auto mechanics (voc), automotive tech (tech), Instrumentation and automation (tech), and Ornamental Horticulture (voc and tech). My brother graduated from the same school in '63 in the last graduating class of Agricultural tech (tech) before they changed it to horticulture. The school has a campus of about 60 acres with working farm fields, a radio station, and observatory, many shop buildings, etc. I tell you all this to explain that the people in the school were largely fragmented by fields of study and our 'contact group' was mostly those 25 or so folks in our own grade and filed of study. I think there were 350 in my graduating class and I knew maybe 40 of them.
Just a couple remained lifelong friends, one was my best man. The rest I don't hardly know. Add to that the fact that I never was comfortable living in a suburban environment and in fact hated it. Most of my classmates remained in that lifestyle even if they moved away. They got good jobs, entered the rat race and set about earning more money than the guy next door. They retired and moved to FL In fact I saw on FB that a bunch of them have get togethers in FL all the time because they live in the same retirement communities. Not for me. I got out of there by the time I was 30 and never looked back. None of them would understand the way I live or why I prefer this way of life. Money was never a draw for me. Raising my kids in a good place was the priority and money came in abut 3rd or lower.
I don't really know any of those folks who are still talking about their own high school sports accomplishments. We did loose a bunch of classmates in 9/11 because many worked at the WTC and one of my still close childhood and HS friends was a Medic with FDNY responding to the Towers. Another Worked in the towers, but was delayed on his trip to work that day and survived. He watched the Towers come down from the ferry he was on in the river. I spent 5 years thinking he was dead. I cried most of that night when I thought he was 'gone'. We've since made and kept in contact.
I have no idea, if I was at a reunion, what I could talk about. We have nothing in common and they can't begin to understand me. It's a 2 hour drive, plus a motel room. I really just have no interest. I am surprised and pleased to see that I am not alone. Life is in front of me (what's left anyway), not behind me. At least that's how I see it.
I'll save that money for a pig roast in MI or a project in GA. :D :) That's where my heart and head are now.
Quote from: Old Greenhorn on May 01, 2022, 08:55:01 PM
I have been reading along since this thread started. I figured most folks would not understand why I would have practically zero interest in my high school reunion. But I was wrong.
I had an oddball experience. I went to a technical AND vocational high school that also had an academic track (the minority of students). It was one of the best best High Schools with such programs on the east coast. One other was Brooklyn Tech. The folks in vocational programs in my school were actually recruited directly by businesses and hired right into good jobs on graduation. The folks in the technical programs pretty much all went to college for their chosen program. I was in Mechanical Tech, college prep for engineering and manufacturing work. We also had Machine shop (voc), Beauty Culture (voc), Horticulture (tech), Auto mechanics (voc), automotive tech (tech), Instrumentation and automation (tech), and Ornamental Horticulture (voc and tech). My brother graduated from the same school in '63 in the last graduating class of Agricultural tech (tech) before they changed it to horticulture. The school has a campus of about 60 acres with working farm fields, a radio station, and observatory, many shop buildings, etc. I tell you all this to explain that the people in the school were largely fragmented by fields of study and our 'contact group' was mostly those 25 or so folks in our own grade and filed of study. I think there were 350 in my graduating class and I knew maybe 40 of them.
Just a couple remained lifelong friends, one was my best man. The rest I don't hardly know. Add to that the fact that I never was comfortable living in a suburban environment and in fact hated it. Most of my classmates remained in that lifestyle even if they moved away. They got good jobs, entered the rat race and set about earning more money than the guy next door. They retired and moved to FL In fact I saw on FB that a bunch of them have get togethers in FL all the time because they live in the same retirement communities. Not for me. I got out of there by the time I was 30 and never looked back. None of them would understand the way I live or why I prefer this way of life. Money was never a draw for me. Raising my kids in a good place was the priority and money came in abut 3rd or lower.
I don't really know any of those folks who are still talking about their own high school sports accomplishments. We did loose a bunch of classmates in 9/11 because many worked at the WTC and one of my still close childhood and HS friends was a Medic with FDNY responding to the Towers. Another Worked in the towers, but was delayed on his trip to work that day and survived. He watched the Towers come down from the ferry he was on in the river. I spent 5 years thinking he was dead. I cried most of that night when I thought he was 'gone'. We've since made and kept in contact.
I have no idea, if I was at a reunion, what I could talk about. We have nothing in common and they can't begin to understand me. It's a 2 hour drive, plus a motel room. I really just have no interest. I am surprised and pleased to see that I am not alone. Life is in front of me (what's left anyway), not behind me. At least that's how I see it.
I'll save that money for a pig roast in MI or a project in GA. :D :) That's where my heart and head are now.
Where was the school OGH?
D
Sewhanaka HS, Floral Park, NY
What to talk about at your 50+ year class reunion? What you did after you left school, who you married, kids and now grandkids. We talked about the funny things we remembered in school.
I know what some of you mean about HS being the peak of performance for many and those who were high school stars did not always go much further while some of the more mundane students actually did very well for themselves and I find them much more interesting today. In some cases it was the spouses I met who had more in common and enjoyed meeting them.
I did not hate high school, I was in the upper tier academically but not a Rhodes scholar or such. I was more socially awkward in HS and my two brothers and I worked after school and weekends on the family business. I met my wife in college when she moved next door and we were friends for 2 years or so but I did not date her then. I joined the USMC and stopped by to see her on my way back to base, immediately fell in love with her as soon as I saw her again (January 2nd, 1977) and we were married 6 months later (July 2nd, 1977) and life for me was much more enjoyable and memorable from that point on.
I have enjoyed these 2 reunions, enjoyed a couple of my wife's that we attended (10 & 45 I think) and will try to attend more in the future but many of my classmates are much more interesting to me now than during my HS days. I would not want to go through HS again. I found many years ago I was a much better student at 30-35 than I was at 16-18 y/o and had no fear stopping the instructor if I was not grasping what he was presenting. I felt we were equals then and I was not a bottom of the barrel student while he was on a HS or College pedestal. As I result I learned more that way although some of the instructors had to scramble a little to explain themselves and their topic better.
Our reunions have been very low-key events and not fancy catered affairs that matched my personality more so I enjoyed them very much and regret some of you folks had less memorable/enjoyable experiences.
My 70th will be coming up next year. We have them every 5 years and I have made them all back to Yooper land since 1953, but don't know if I will be able to make the trip back for this next one. We have lost about 5 more since the last reunion, so the size is getting down to only one dinner table from an original class of 89.
Ron, were you a Hilltopper or a Redskin. :)
Besides sports , I hated high school . I saw it as such a huge waste of time . my senior year i missed 128 days of school . I had a note from my dad to the school that I had permission to come to school when i came and leave school when i wanted too , as he wasn't writing any more 'excuse' notes . The kids had to park in the school parking lot at the back of the school and couldn't take their car out of the parking lot until school was done . Since I had to leave for farm related reasons (most of the time) , I was leaving the school parking lot during school hours and coming back . The principle read me the riot act and was going to have the police take my keys when i arrived and not give them back until school was done if i left the school parking lot again . I calmly told him if it was such a problem , i'd just park on the street in front of his office . His face got so red , didn't figure a face could get so red . after that he never said a thing
I felt mostly what was taught was just more detail over what we were taught in the lower grades . i found school fairly easy , so it was boring . Out of a class of 92 i graduated 88th . plus we had a dairy farm and up @ 5 before school and chores after school , so no time for homework . i had to finish it all at school . My daily work suffered , but my test scores were usually very high . I kept getting 'you're not working up to your potential' bs (when I joined the military my asfab test was one of the highest in the country at that time)
since I was a farm kid , i didn't really fit in at school . There were the 'jocks' , while i did very well in sports , i never really fit in , as i couldn't hangout with them after school etc , plus they were into not treating the high school girls with respect , so i was always at odds with them over that . Then there was the farm kids . here too i didn't fit in , we had one of the highest producing farms in the country , so i don't know if it was jealously or what , but just didn't click . Then there were the 'nerds' , my best friend in HS was in this category , but after he started college , never really heard from him again
One thing I had forgotten was one of our classmates commented about how a bunch of us used to hunt before and after school and our guns would be in the gun racks in the back window of our trucks and another said "Yeah, and nobody ever locked their car doors."
I remember picking up a couple of new hire teachers (Freshly graduated from UWF and probably 21-22 y/o) who drove/car pooled from Pensacola every day. They had a flat tire and I took them to the neighborhood garage and he found and mounted them an old used tire to get them home. I don't remember if he charged them or not. They were a pretty forlorn looking bunch when I first pulled up as they did not know anybody except their students in the community. I was on my way to afternoon duck shooting and I am not sure they were reassured to see me stop with Dad's old double barrel Parker beside me. They were pretty liberal for our part of the country.
I have gone to most. I usually know some of my close friends will be there and get reacquainted with others. It works well as our small town of Concordia, Ks, has a fall fest and all the classes have a reunion every five years, that weekend. makes it harder to find a spot to get together. we ride in the parade and can see others from nearby classes as some come home every year for the weekend. Can see a game, tour the High School to see what is new. We are losing more and more each year. class of 78. usually, a little drama and most folks are the same person on the inside.
I did a little bit of everything in HS. 3 sports a year, band and choir. part time jobs. scouts. I was officially in 9 clubs my freshman year. As seniors, most of my buddies were friends with or dating a few sophomores, and we are still close between the years. My best friend Greg and I are still close. We had a group of about 6 of us that hung out, and we are planning a get together in Aug. in Colorado. Out next reunion is next September. Class of 220 and the largest ever in CHS history. I go to my wifes and she goes to mine. At the last one, a former homecoming queen must have referred to her spouse as her "X-husband" 2 dozen times. :o I found my stride in college.
I thought I typed in a reply this morning but since I don't see it >:( I'll try again. My class of 1969 quit having reunions 30+ years ago due to poor attendance, they were formal affairs with the guys wearing suits, that's not for me, if they restart with a more casual get-together I'll go. I do like my Navy ships reunion, USS O'Brien DD725, I was a teenager on the last cruise she made to Vietnam and she was decommissioned in Feb 1972, 50 years ago. Other than 2 years halted due to covid we meet every year in different spots all over the country. It's mostly enlisted guys but when one of the officers shows up they are now just one of the gang, works well.
gspren
Organize a reunion for your class. Likely others didn't like the formality either.
I attended my 50th class HS reunion in 2013. With a class of 60, about 30 came. We had already lost 15 members. After a meal, the speeches started, first by the class "leaders" and then by the two teachers that came. When the long talks finally ended, we had a short period where we were able to mill around and meet people we hadn't seen in 50 years. Our school was intergraded and 100 percent of the black students came to the reunion, Shirley. She asked if I remembered her and I replied yes, since she was unique in our class. She laughed and said I suppose I did stand out. We then got together for a group picture. By then it was getting late and I had to get home to check on my very sick wife. We had a 55th reunion planed by my current wife and a couple of other non class leaders and we all had a ball. One of our members had a small singing group and sang a few old songs, we had a couple shorts skits with people acting the parts of our old teachers. We had plenty of time to meet and discuss our lives. Our HS was about even divided between country and small town kids. Everyone seemed to get along for the most part.
My dad was born in 1935. his catholic school had one black student in 30 total. They all got along. and my dad had handwritten letters that this gentleman wrote almost every year after the reunions. my dad and mom kept them. he would summarize and talk about how good it was to see everyone. there are many who never come. I wish they knew how people they may have never thought gave a hoot, ask around about how they are doing.
I was the perpetual new kid in all school, but more so in high school, we moved around a lot, mostly in Cincinnati, but all over the place. I ended up going to 4 different high schools in my freshman and sophomore years, it was rough and I was shy and weird, so I didn't make friends easily.
I graduated from Lebanon High School (same school as Woody Harrelson) in 1995 and I've never heard a thing from them regarding any reunions and I haven't missed any really either. I ended up with one friend who stayed a friend for several years after school but then he got burnt out on some drugs so we faded away from each other.
It'd be interesting to see some of the folks from those times but I was another one that really did not like school and I was the kind that just squeaked by. Even though I'm not hugely successful I do have it made with a beautiful life. It'd be neat to see who else did the same, though I doubt I'd remember many names.
I think some of it is just the nature of people .Some prefer a tight circle and some are friendly to all .Of course you have the country club set but can't afford a hamburger sandwich.
A couple times each year a small group of Georgia's HS buds come over and sit around the fire ring .Sip wine or iced tea and roast hot dogs just like they were teen agers while being very classy grand mothers .Of whom I might add were kind of hoity toits some decades back .This is not the mid 60's any more .
Now of course as being a cohost in these events it's my duty to entertain them with stories of my antics from when I wore a younger mans clothes .It' a lot of fun being the class clown once again 8)
Was in the top ten of 1953 NMHS graduating class!!!!
Question: How many in your class?
Answer: Nine😏
My dad was an itinerant preacher -aka Methodist minister. We moved between my 8th grade and freshman year. I was new at the high school. Seemed like everyone else grew up together. I was also the second youngest person in our class. So on a lot of counts I was sort of on the fringe.
Some how I got hooked up with the Civil Air Patrol. I have had way more lasting memories from that than high school, except for the girls, I clearly remember the girls. Seems like they remember me too. 8)
My "glory days" weren't high school at least not as a student, maybe when I was teaching high school.
Quote from: chet on May 01, 2022, 11:54:02 PM
Ron, were you a Hilltopper or a Redskin. :)
A Redskin! The Hilltoppers were our rivals!
Although I graduated early with a GED, I have bunches of friends on FB that I grew up with and get invited to the reunions every time, but haven't made it yet because of my job and needing to be here. They generally have it at fair time for that county, then kind of take over every bar in town.
It's nice that the cliques during HS have seemed to disappeared and we're all just enjoying life the best we can. I will say that I'm amazed that I have as many "friends" from school that remember me at all, as I was never there.
I may go to one someday, but can't guarantee it. 8)
Yeah, I hope you make it and have a great time. I like the idea of the multi-class school reunion too because we all had friends in the grades ahead of and behind us too. Heck, after 50+ years the ones 5-10 years different now have lots in common with us.
We made it back home this afternoon just in time to get to the bank before it closed and to the court house for the last day of early voting. Stopped at a Flea Market with a big farmers market on Hwy 421 near Exit 73 off I-77 in NC and made a real haul from the Amigo running the place. He was stocking for tomorrow and Sunday but happy to make a sale. Now just to get the grass mowed and catch up on some sawing work and hope the next reunion works out well too.