Pearch High School Class of 1974 50th Reunion
Saturday October 19, 2024
Saturday kicked off with a “Ladies Luncheon.” (There was also a golf tournament and a pickleball option.) The weather was perfect for a meal on the patio. The food was yummy, the service amazing, and the memories conjured up in conversations were the best.
(Info is from Theresa's Facebook posts.)
Friday October 18, 2024
My closer circle of HS friends that have stayed in touch had our own reunion at Leslie’s home at noon before the tour of the school. We poured through the annual, told great stories, shared photos, and laughed a lot. These women were in band, drill team, Girl Scouts, and of course classes together where we forged those bonds that last a lifetime.
The 50th Reunion Committee arranged a tour of the school building. About the only recognizable part was the school seal in the hallway floor. Building additions expanded the campus and some parts of the building were gone. Where two distinct floors had been, there was now an atrium. Band and orchestra each had their own rooms for rehearsals; the new storage room dedicated to percussion instruments was as large as a whole classroom. We never had a theater, pool, or indoor practice field. In a two-hour tour led by students, we didn’t even see it all!
Friday Night Lights! Oh yes, everything you’ve heard about football being king in Texas is true and has been true for decades. This has not changed in 50 years. We had a reserve section in the stadium to watch the biggest rivalry in town—our HS versus Richardson High School. The band and drill team had their places in the stand. Our drum major was wearing (and still fits in) his letter jacket. The only change appeared to be the fancy Mustang tunnel the team ran through to get on the field.
Some changes since football games in our day: a giant color scoreboard that shows instant replay has replaced our little scoreboard with light bulbs displaying the pertinent numbers of the game, the band now sports drum and bugle corps-style uniforms and halftime show, and the cheerleaders do cheer stunts. The biggest change over time—we trounced the opponent with a score that looks more like basketball than football numbers.
Sunday October 20, 2024
We added Karen and Leslie (who weren’t part of the 50th reunion gang since they graduated the year after us) to our mini-reunion gang. We went to brunch together the morning after the big reunion was officially over. After brunch at La Madeline, we walked over to Braum’s for some ice cream and for a good excuse to extend the celebration and postpone, for at least a few more minutes, the inevitable goodbyes. But we also started planning our next mini-reunion. Colorado here we come!
The big reunion event was Saturday night. It was held at an event center so we had lots of space and had the room to ourselves. Over 100 were in attendance (some were spouses; our class had just over 500). Dinner was catered; they served really tasty TexMex. You know that made me happy. Carol Robertson, one of our classmates, made these incredible cakes for our celebration. Not only did they look amazing but they were delicious!!
Those organizers were terrific! There was a photo shoot area. Decorations were festive but not over the top and really set the mood. One audiophile classmate put together a terrific playlist from our era that played in the background and wasn’t too loud.
After the dinner, we did the coolest thing. We each had a randomly assigned “schedule” on the back of our name tags. Period 1 English, Period 2 Social Studies, etc. Around the room were clusters of tables and chairs with a trifold board on each table that had the name of a subject and pics (from the annual) of the faculty who taught those subjects. A bell was rung and we had a 5-minute passing period to get to our first period class. There were ~15 people in the class and we had 20 minutes to chat with that group. Then the bell rang and we had another 5 minute passing period. The tardy bell rang and the next “class” began. What you did in class was informal. In some classes we went around the circle and said what we’d done since graduation. In some, we talked about the teachers on the board—what did we remember about them and their classes. In others, we just chatted in small groups. By the end of six periods, we had been given a chance to spend time with almost everyone who was at the event. It was brilliant!
Some Memories...
Thursday, October 17, 2024
I’m not sure how it’s already been 50 years since I graduated from J. J. Pearce High School in Richardson, Texas. Fortunately, some amazing classmates organized a wonderful celebration weekend to commemorate the big 5-0.
We kicked off the 50th HS Reunion with a “welcome party.” I spent time friends I’ve kept in touch with in person (Marilyn), friends I’ve caught up with over Facebook (Leslie) and fabulous people I haven’t seen since graduation (Victoria and Barbara). What a trip down memory lane!