Jim Pierce's Event Summary

CHS-65 the Fiftieth Reunion

August 7-8-9, 2015

The reunion is over.  We are still basking in the afterglow!  It was a FUN time.  It was so good to see smiles … some not seen for fifty years.  We think everyone had a good time and found more to talk about than they even imagined.  Your smiles and conversations floated through the air as we each paused for a moment and gazed across the room and we slid back in time.  Ah, we still cherish those classmates.  We were a remarkable class.  It seems to be common knowledge around Corvallis that we were special then, and we still are. 

The main reason that the reunion was a smashing success was that YOU attended. 

Overall, there were 216 attendees over the three organized gatherings.  There were 146 classmates in addition to their spouses, friends, siblings or other guests.  And I gathered that all of them had a wonderful time.

We were also blessed to include five teachers and four of their wives to remind us of our days at CHS.  The teachers who honored us with their presence were Joe Malango, Steve Rasmusson, Wes Ediger, Homer Twedt, and Jay Kilbourne.  It was good to see and chat with them.  Thanks to the teacher gathering team for contacting our teachers. Seeking out those teachers is a story in itself and we hope to post it under the 50th Reunion Revisited Category.

The Friday evening gathering was at the newly renovated Old School at the old Children's Farm Home.  It was a great place for 180-190 of us to gather and gab.  Every nook and cranny of each room was filled with chatter and shared memories.  Thanks to Cathy Ingalls, Sandy Withrow Whiting, the many greeters and decorators, and the clean up crew.

The Saturday Brunch was at Avery Park.  There were about 170-180 of us enjoying the sunshine before it got warm.  Healthy treats and recycling were the order of the day. It was truly a “green event, as there was an 80% waste reduction for the picnic.

 The Saturday Brunch Committee was chaired by Jane Schneider assisted by Bob Hansen, Lois Finnell Shatzer, John McAllister and an army of helpers.  The memorabilia along the 85 foot long table was a special hit.

The Saturday Evening Extravaganza was the creation of Sharon Ehrichs Edwards and Nancy Strange Harris.  The CH2M Alumni Center at OSU was a big enough place for the 180 of us to gather and talk and talk … and eat the scrumptious catered dinner.  Roger Aikin entertained us with his summary of the last fifty years from the surveys we filled out.

A big Thank you to Valley Catering and to New Morning Bakery for the scrumptious treats for all events. These companies went out of their way to make everything perfect for us.

Alice Rampton arranged informative tours of the  Benton County Historical Museum(formerly the Horner Museum) and Whiteside Theater on Sunday.

There are a couple of ladies who were the grease for the Reunion activities.   Judy Hennings Butler was the local point person.  She took on the monumental task of coordinating everything from venue acquisition to last minute preparations.  Susan de Meules maintains the class website and all its postings.  Sue also took care of the notification process resulting in record breaking attendance.  Our special thanks to both of them. Kate McDonald worked long distance to prepare our superior “Gone Too Soon” powerpoint. However without the many volunteers and classmates who stepped up at the last minute. this event would have been impossible to pull off. Many thanks to each and every one of you.

The reunion events provided a fabulous face-to-face for all of us.  We will still use phone, email and the class website for communications.  But the smiles are hard to convey over the miles.  There were nearly 300 pictures taken at the events. so your smiles will be captured for all to share.  Roger's talk and the stories of several of the teachers are also posted on the website.

Jim Pierce

aka Class Ambassador