Connell High School Alumni
Next Reunion Aug 14-15 2009
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 Maintained by the Connell High School Reunion Committee for CHS Alumni 1926 - 1965
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Preparing For Your High School Reunion

Some people view a class reunion as a rite of passage, while others may see it as a painful reminder of time marching on. Whatever your personal take on a class reunion, you can usually count on receiving an invitation every ten years or so. Preparing yourself for a class reunion involves a number of emotional, logistical and financial considerations you won't find on the official invitation from your high school class reunion committee.

It is not unusual to have mixed emotions about attending a class reunion. While the possibility of reconnecting with former friends can be exciting, there is also the possibility of rekindling a few not so fond memories. One way to prepare for a class reunion emotionally is to keep your expectations realistic. Thirty and forty year reunions can be especially variable, since many of the participants may be enjoying working at good jobs while others may be struggling to attain financial stability. Still others may or may not be enjoying retirement. 

Consider the bittersweet nature of a class reunion. You may discover that some classmates have passed away since graduation, while others have faced major upheavals in their lives. While the nostalgic elements of a class reunion often take center stage, it may help to view your classmates as contemporaries facing the same adult challenges you face. Try to relate to the 48, 58 or 68 year old grandmother as much as the 18-year-old classmate you remember. 

One consideration when preparing for a class reunion is logistics. The official invitation should include times and dates of the event itself, but transportation and lodging are your responsibility. You may have to request several days of vacation or personal time from your employer. Your spouse may also have to make special arrangements in order to accompany you to the class reunion. Travel could mean packing the family car or reserving tickets for the nearest airport to the venue. Some attendees contact former friends who still live in the area for overnight housing. 

Financially, the cost of a class reunion can be prohibitive. Besides the traveling expenses, the price of the tickets is often substantial. There may also be other events scheduled throughout the reunion weekend, each with their own costs. Be prepared to budget extra money for entertainment, food and beverages. 

Some things you may want to pack for a class reunion include yearbooks, photographs from high school days, current photographs of your family, and a blank scrapbook for class reunion events. The most important thing to remember is to live in the moment whenever possible. A class reunion can be a very positive and memorable milestone in any adult's life.

Top Ten Reasons for Attending Your Class Reunion

 

10. To humor the reunion committee…. Who want everyone to appreciate all their efforts.

 9. To feel better that you are not the only one to not live up to your potential.

 8. Its an opportunity to show off the BMW before the lease is up.

 7. Show everyone the 10lbs you lost by investing in the Atkins Diet, the Scarsdale Diet, Jenny Craig, Slimfast and Weight Watchers.

 6  It could be the last opportunity to see classmates before you lose the rest of your hair.

 5. Chance to prepare for your old age by telling the same story over and over again to the group who might be able to fill in the memory gaps.

 4. May be the only place left where you have a chance to be the youngest person in the room.

 3. A place where social security becomes an interesting topic of conversation.

 2. It’s the only place where everyone tells you that you look the same.

 1. Can remind you again why you only see these people every 20 years.

 

We Want More Pictures for the Web Site!

 

Do you have some interesting ones that everyone would enjoy? Email them to webmaster@connelleaglereview.com.

 

Do You Know Where They Are?
1932 - Ruby Crane Benson, Violet Cavanaugh, Marcie Johnson
1933 - Melba Kludas Elledge
1934 - Marian Cook Hammond, Marie Snook Will
1937 - Mary Ellen Ashenfelter, Gladys Wallace Keech
1939 - Harold Buchanan
1941 - Don Alfonso
1942 - Molly Norling Kleyla
1943 - Marion Wurtz Hopkins
1947 - Margaret Rogers Scott
1950 - Mary Jo Aller
1953 - Kenneth Janosky
1955 - Marlene Buck Bauer, Francis Coe, Catherine Gaffney Rice
1956 - Michael Hoffman
1958 - David Anderson, LaRae Nix
1959 - Richard Swanson
1960 - Mary Abel, John McFadden, Courtney Easterday Nelson, Jim Olsen, Bonnie Stock
1961 - Ted Coffey, Jim Kannard, Barbara Layton
1962 - Kelly Down, Pat Thibodeauz Garcia, Irene Trefethen Gatzke, Linda Gibson Luttrell, Horace Lyon, Ira Rapp
1963 - Patricia Hornbaker, Linda Palmer, Robert Roybal, Linda Tefft, Cedele Pooler, Patricia Shockey
1964 - Bill Woods, Dora Willis Damjanovich
1965

Jon Anderson, Russell Bachman, Lorraine Baker, Leslie Bray, Jeanette Haines Brasier, Cheryl Cunningham, Gary Ford, Pauline Hughes Johnson, Judy Benson Leonard, Connie Lords, Hazel Brown Mudd, Ted Sawyer, Wiley Thompson, Chryl Willis, Jeanette McCorkle Winn, Kathy Pupo Zimmerman

 

CHS YEARBOOK COLLECTION

 

High school yearbooks are traditionally a permanent record of our history of those years; a delightful way to remember the times we spent with our classmates.  The Connell Library has a public collection of Connell High School Annuals for everyone to enjoy.  Donated by classmates, their families and the High School itself, the collection has grown over time, however, is still missing several volumes for a complete set.  Annuals that are missing from our collection are the following years: 1963,1964,1967 -  1974, 1982, 1985,1986,1991,1995 and 1999.  We now have 58 (there were 11 years  with no annual) with only 16 more to acquire.

 

If you or someone you know is willing to donate one of the missing annuals, please use the Contact Tab to contact us and Danell Hudlow will let you know where to sent the annual. Your contribution to this historical collection would be much appreciated.

 

MUSEUM UPDATE

 

A few people are still working to make the museum better.  We now have a book of obituaries starting from the early 19th century to the present.  We, also, have a book listing the burials in southern Adams County and northern Franklin County.  Please consider writing your family history and adding it to our collection.  (We have a book for that, too.) There are several pioneer history books about the Connell area on display.  Our photo poster board could use your historical pictures.  We have two new display cabinets for any new articles that we may acquire.

 

The museum is now closed for the winter after being open all summer on Saturdays.  For those of you who have not yet been able to visit the Museum, photos will be added to the Reunion

Website from time to time; be sure to check it out!

 

With so few of us, we do not have enough people for a large fund raising event, so we rely on dues from people like you.  Dues for 2008 are: single-$20, couple-$30, lifetime-$500 and business-$50.  Memorials are always accepted.  Memorials go into an Endowment account to to establish funds for future projects.  Make checks payable to Connell Heritage Museum and send to Box 1185, Connell, WA 99326.

 

Current Connell, WA data......

 

 

A Funny Picture

 

 

Youtube Video of No Frills Airline Travel

 

 

 

 

 

 

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