10 Year Reunion Recap

I came. I saw. I was home by 8:30 p.m. that night.

To say the reunion was bad is too harsh... but to say it was good is an overstatement. Here's the scoop, from my perspective:

The positives:

-A great turn-out! There were more people there than I anticipated and a lot of people came from afar, which was awesome. We had two classmates come all the way from Hawaii, among other places. Out of a class of 65, I believe we had 25 classmates, which seems pretty legit for a 10 year reunion. Plus, most brought a "plus 1" so we had quite the group.

-Good location: we had more than enough room to mingle, which was great. And there was alcohol, which, in my situation, was a necessity in this situation.

-The people: with the exception of a couple people, everyone appeared to be genuinely happy to be there, were nice to everyone, and friendly. I didn't see a lot of cattiness, awkwardness, or weirdness, which was a pleasant surprise.

(Pre-Party shots. Mandatory for the 10 year reunion. You never know what to expect!)

The negatives:

-Lack of time: there was not enough time to really have a conversation with anyone. I know that I tried to catch every person and at least spend a couple minutes with each person. But there's not a lot of details you can get into in two short minutes. I wish we would have either had more time that night together or had another activity the day after.

-Lack of activities: we had a three hour block for drinks, dinner, and mingling-- adults only. That's it. It seems like a lot of time, but it wasn't near enough. I am definitely hosting a family BBQ at my house with the next reunion to try to give people more opportunity to catch up and meet each other's kids.
-No teachers invited. A lot of classmates actually mentioned wanting to see specific teachers.
-No school tour. Classmates who have not been here since high school wanted to walk the hallways again.
-No awards, no year books passed around to look and laugh at, no speeches or guest speakers, etc. It was a "fend for yourself" and make your own fun during the three-hour block period. I brought 10 year goals we each wrote as seniors in high school that a wonderful teacher saved for us and passed them around, which were a hit. I think we would have had more fun with more things like that at the dinner.

-Not enough food! I talked to quite a few people that were starving and wanted more food. My husband was one of them :)

-Group photo: we had several people missing from the photo, which sucks, because people are still being "left out" 10 years later.

(Top: Keely Koda Davison, Darci Camp, Lacie Norton Jenkins, Kacie Recla Shaffer, Neaomy Lovelady, Nicki Sappe, Rachel McPheeters Dees, Clayton Dauwalder, Ashley Robertson, Jacob Torrey, Cody Bates, Matt Johnson. Bottom: Logan Keller, Eric Saunders, Mike Larcade, Ryan Hicks, Mike Dentinger, Kyle Barton, Chance Skerjanec.)

The best part of the night was being able to see faces I hadn't seen in a long time. Getting a hug and spending a few moments with everyone was awesome. I will forever be happy that I went to the reunion if for nothing else but for those moments. I learned that one of my classmates served overseas and is now flying helicopters-- it's a good thing I save his life back in high school (No joke. I really did save his life.) Another classmate is having some adventures in the medicinal marijuana growing, harvesting, and selling business. We have teachers, truck drivers, an onion sales rep, a BLM fire fighter, and more. Some classmates already have established careers and some are plugging away at school. One classmate was passionate about her studies in physical therapy while a couple others talked hair color because they are both in cosmetology school-- it's actually pretty scientific stuff! I learned how couples met-- one couple at a party (I thought I heard the husband say, "I threw up on her at a party" when he actually said, "I met her through a party" so that was funny.) Another couple met online. We have a set of classmates that went to school together since middle school and are now married with four beautiful kiddos. There were classmates who recently had babies and some who recently became engaged. Classmates who overcame addiction. Classmates who stayed here... and some who are bonafied gypsies. And one classmate who is an MMA fighter! We are an eclectic group!!!

(Top: Matt Johnson. Middle: Logan Keller, Keely Koda Davison, Rachel McPheeters Dees, Nicki Sappe, Kacie Recla Shaffer, Darci Camp, Clayton Dauwalder, Ashley Robertson, Jacob Torrey, Cody Bates. Bottom: Mike Jenkins, Eric Saunders, Ryan Hicks, Kyle Wilson, Mike Dentinger, Kyle Barton, Chance Skerjanec. Missing: Lacie Norton Jenkins, Neaomy Lovelady, Francis Dyas, Jess Tolman, Luke Braniff, Amanda Johnson, Kelli Dixon Miller, Josh Hathaway, Evan Haley, Chelsie Bishop Bates, Mike Larcade, Fitzpatrick Kennedy)

Despite the negatives, I am really happy I went. I was on the fence for a long time. Even that day I contemplated faking sick. But I went, and I'm glad I did. I am glad that even for a few moments, I got to see everyone-- that far outweighs the negatives. The classmates are talking about having a 15 year reunion, and I hope it happens. Since we have one under our belts, we now know that we need more time together and more fun stuff to do as a group. Here's to the class of 2003! I hope all of my classmates stay happy, healthy, and safe until I see them again. PS: We're old farts.

("Shit, I'm old! Give me a drink!")