But, Because of Covid

Both John and I graduated from high school in 1961, John from Douglas County High School in Castle Rock and I from South High School in Denver.  That may be where the similarity ends.  My graduating class had 998 members if I remember rightly, John's had 54. One year before I graduated, the Denver school district added three new high schools to accommodate all the post World War II growth.  At that time there were 1021 students in our class. In1960, 50 of our class were transferred to Washington and 725 to Jeffersone

As of 2022, 621 of our class have been located, 205 are missing and 195 known dead.

This is a picture of South.

In 1986, we had 25-year reunions and in 2011, 50th class reunions.  I don't remember if we attended the 25-year reunions, but we attended both 50th reunions and had a good time at both.  John found another spouse to talk to while I caught up with classmates I remembered and some whose names rang a bell but I didn't remember them. In 1975 John and I had purchased the funeral home in Castle Rock, where John grew up.  I got to know many people in the town, so I could talk to people I really knew at his reunion.

Since we are all getting older and increasing numbers of our classmates have died or no one knows where they are, the South High reunion committee set out to celebrate 60 years.  "But because of Covid (how many times have we heard that phrase since 2020?) they couldn't find any facility that would schedule the gathering.

This year they were more successful and last week we gathered with about 100 of my classmates and spouses at the Wellshire Inn in south Denver. 

One of the reunion organizers was Kitty Bowman Hadji.  She lived across Corona from me in high school and we often walked to school together.  We have had sporadic contact over the years and it was good to see her and catch up.

At our 50th reunion, our gift was a long-handled shoehorn.  Both John and I thought it was a dumb gift--until we took it home and began using it.  It has been pulled out and used daily, often by both of us.

This year, our gifts were these purple wine glasses.

They will be used often, too.  

I don't know if you can tell what the emblem and words are.  Remember, we graduated before these politically correct times.  South High's mascot was the Rebel, pictured on this glass. Our newspaper was the Confederate and  the yearbook was called the Johnny Reb. For obvious reasons, both have been renamed.  

Our table. John is on the right.

Kitty is in the center in the blue dress.  The woman on the left was sitting next to me.  We found we had been involved in many of the same activities, but neither of could remember the other.  I guess that is what living in a city or being a member of a large class brings.  I know my focus was wholly on getting good grades, writing for the Confederate and participating in pep club.  Not on getting to know many classmates.

This shows most of the gathering.