all 102 of us, the 54 classmates who made it and the spouses and significant others present at Gala Night! |
brunch at Corner Bistro |
Organizing Meetings
Bill and I were so lucky to have been able to attend one
organizing committee meeting and to help in the last stage of preparations. He
even volunteered me to craft the message to be wrapped with the magnifiers, a
surprise gift in each souvenir bag which also included ‘bucket list’ note pads
and a gold plated and engraved letter opener, pens, and other goodies . Not to
be outdone, I volunteered Bill to make the ‘Thinking of You’ cards for those
who wanted to come but couldn’t. In the end, however, I ended up designing the
card, too. Fun!
busy, busy, busy |
The real planners had been meeting for months to make this
50th reunion special. Carolyn Lamborn, Sandy Myers, and Joyce
Cunningham were busy reporting on the progress of the preparations. Carol
Gorenc was arriving the following day to make a final check of all payments
received. Sandy’s report on her campaign
for updated info for a new Directory brought a mix of emotions, happy conversations
with those who are excited to see or connect with everyone, and the sad (and
some bizarre) talks with those who cannot or will not. The meeting was well run
and Kenny Waltrip made notes as program MC while Leslie Luttrell, Gary
Cunningham, Dan Edwards, Larry Fite, George McAdams, Charlie Simpson and Ron
and Sharon Strahan all made their contributions.
finnally, the hellos at Chicken Annie! |
Thursday Cocktail
Reception at Chicken Annie
Chicken Annie is the nationally famous chicken place that
was featured on Food Network. It was born out of a miner’s wife’s desire to
augment their family income. As a matter of fact, right beside it is Chicken
Mary, founded by a sister, another miner’s wife. Equally famous, it was also
featured in the documentary. Of course this became the first meeting place,
as it was a common catchment area for the boys and girls of PHS around the
1960s. The mood was electric but there was silence and oohs and aahs as each
one introduced himself or herself and his or her present spouse. It was a roaring
start.
part of the Strahan Garden at the back of their 6-acre property |
the bbq chatter at the Strahans |
Friday BBQ at the Strahan
Garden
Then Ron and Sharon Strahan opened their lovely home to the
brood for Friday lunch while the golfers did a round of 18 holes at the Countryside
Golf Club. The pulled pork barbecue sandwiches (HUGE), fried chicken, baked
beans, and another side of pasta, gave everyone a hefty lunch. But the real show that afternoon was Sharon’s
garden with watermelons, apples, pears, and grapes growing amid the flowers and
the bottle tree! Not to be outdone, Ron’s two planes occupied his two big
barns! Such hospitality was generously returned with a lot of baked homemade
goodies for a dessert table that filled us for hours!
gift bag with some of the goodies! |
Friday Night Dinner
at Parrott Bay
The formal registration began right before the Friday night
dinner at Parrott Bey, a lovely event place in downtown Pittsburg. Purple and
white bags of goodies, magnifier, engraved pens, and an engraved letter opener with special sleeve made by Joyce, were given each classmate attendee. The magnifier tag reads: 'Here’s the 50th
reunion gift you have dreamed of getting..a magnifier, Sherlock
Holme’s secret weapon! You don’t have to wonder
why we are giving you one! Age brings some wisdom,
but it takes away vision.’
'Thinking of You' card |
There were prayers offered to those who have passed on,
around 35 of them, according to Don Bunnell’s count. Huge cards were also at
the bar for signing by each classmate present to be sent to other classmates
who were not able to make it. The card reads:
‘Since you are not able to
join us at our reunion;
Let us bring our fun 50th
reunion to you!’
The buffet dinner of three pastas, Italian sausages, and
salads was spread out so two queues easily made their way back to their tables
which were buzzing with reminiscing talks. And the coup de gras was the
dessert: cookies to die for, each with any one of the following ‘sweet’ words:
PHS, 50, 1962-2012!
the special 50th reunion cookies! |
Saturday Lunch at
Chatters
lunch at Chatters! |
The lunches were always optional but around 70 joined the
chatter and ordered wonderful lunches at a place near the PSU campus called…Chatters! I
had lettuce wraps and peeked at the US Open semifinal match of Murray and
Berdych from one of a dozen or more flat panels hung around the walls. You
could hardly hear anyone except for the one right beside you! The place was
bustling with youthful energy and joie de vivre! What a joy reunions are!
champagne toast at Gala Night! |
Saturday Night Gala
at Parrott Bey
But the Saturday night event is the one usually eagerly
awaited by everyone. Bill chose a special dress for me and indeed the ladies
all looked even lovelier that night. Before dinner the classmates posed for a
class picture with Michele, a professional photographer and daughter-in-law of
Leslie and Gerard Luttrell. Finally, 10
minutes after the scheduled time, 6 shots were taken to remember this special
occasion, when 54 classmates gathered together on their 50th and
golden anniversary of high school graduation! And for the first time, a nearly
impossible mission, the spouses and significant others were included in a
literally HUGE photo…all 102 of us!
the purple dragon cake! |
The buffet dinner was sumptuous with beef brisket barbecue,
glazed ham with pineapple, and grilled chicken breast with mashed potatoes and
potatoes au gratin and salads as sides. Kenny Waltrip wowed everyone with humor
of the best kind…a bit of self-deprecation from high school days. Jack Mackie
taught a bit of geography when he asked everyone
to stand and successively asked classmates to sit down, starting with
those from Pittsburg and expanding the circle until only Darwin Zellmer
remained standing. He and his wife Nancy came
all the way from Anchorage, Alaska! Jack also congratulated the organizing
committee for such an excellent reunion, a much deserved thanks! Then Kenny led
everyone to a champagne toast. The surprise of the night was a young magician,
Jake Temate, who brought the house down with his original and inexplicable antics!
Vicky C, Olson helping the magician to levitate the table! |
Becky Stratton-Deal's nails were painted purple and white with the letters PHS inscribed! |