Class of 60 - 45th reunion

I just wanted to let you all know what a wonderful time I had last night. It was the best reunion I've attended and I don't doubt that most of the people there would have to agree with me. Those who attended for the "first time" had to be impressed. A lot of time and energy (and tears) went in to pulling it off and it was all worth it.
Looking forward to seeing you all again at the next meeting and even have an idea to bring forth for the 50th.

I have to admit that I was surprised, but the fire company was really nice. Nicer than some other places we have been and everyone that I talked too seemed to have a really good time. No one said anything negative to me. I thought the clean up went well. Don’t we all have such nice husbands too? They all worked like troopers. We should all be proud.

Thank you both for the privilege of allowing me to help during, and after, the great reunion banquet. I understand the class of '60 has the greatest reputation for reunion attendance. I now see why, and now appreciate the work behind the scenes by the committee that makes it happen, and the passion of activities during the celebration that keeps it enjoyable. Congratulations.

Please tell the reunion committee that Don and I felt they did a fabulous job. It was a fun place, lent itself easily to mingle, and the caterer was very good. You are all to be complimented. Many thanks for all the work that went into making it a success. The directory was outstanding.

Driving into work this AM I felt compelled to send this email.
What a wonderful reunion, I must share the evening with everyone.
We held this in the banquet hall of the Skippack Firehouse and it was BEAUTIFUL!
As we did not have the staff of a hotel to do the set up of the room, bar, decorate, clear dishes and at the end, tear down-----this was a very LABOR INTENSIVE reunion, for the committee. THANK YOU ALL VERY MUCH!!
We arrived early afternoon and transformed the room to one of the FINEST most beautiful places we have held a reunion in years. (NOTE: these were comments from guests, not the committee.)
The tables had white linen cloths, blue linen napkins, china and silver wear.   The centerpieces were hurricane lamps with candles surrounded with grape vine wreaths and silver and blue stars. These complemented the tiny lights which surround the ceiling of the room giving a glow and not harsh lighting.
The serving, gift, registration and memorabilia tables were skirted in our school colors.
Upon arrival, everyone received the 80 plus page, color booklet which gave pictures & bios plus up dated names, addresses, email addresses and phone numbers. There are also pages honoring the deceased.   JOB WELL DONE.
The evening started with a class picture-------how everyone fit into one camera lens, David is the only one who will know. Look on the site to see US. We had a total of 150 attendees including two in wheelchairs plus 4 teachers.
Speaking about David, in one corner of the room he had a DVD projected on a floor to ceiling screen.   These were pictures and videos from past reunions. This provide great entertainment for everyone all evening. How nice seeing those who are no longer with us!
We had 12 “thinking of you cards” on a table which were designated for class members who were not able to be with us, due to health reasons. Each person was encouraged to sign and put a note on each of the multi paged cards. (By the way, if you or you know someone who may fall under this category, do let one of the committee members know for future reunions.)   If you were missed, please forgive us, we didn’t know.
Our DOOR PRIZE table was loaded with many prizes most notable a painting donated by a class member and two baskets of cheer donated by the committee which were BEAUTIFULLY packaged with goodies in baskets. Of course the jar of St. Helena’s ash was there and the first prize winner got that along with a prize.   A PROMISE was made to bring it back to the 50th to be passes on. Our CRAZY REUNION tradition.
After a blessing tables were invited to go to the buffet table for a delicious array of delectable delights. Not a negative word was spoken only COMPLIMENTS on how DELICIOUS everything was and the BEST PART, you could have seconds!
When everyone was finished a table full of HOMEMADE desserts appeared and there were so many that these took everyone through the evening and were there for an evening snack.
At 7 PM the DJ began. He was a member of the GUY GRECO’s Band and knew exactly the music we love.   I must say, we have some REALLY GREAT DANCERS.
During the evening people came up to me and asked that I pass on to the committee their thanks for a JOB WELL DONE.
There were many but the two which stand out in my mind the most were:   One woman had just lost a family member, she said the warmth poured out to her that evening was overwhelming. People she didn’t know well even came up to her. She could not get over how much everyone interacted throughout the evening.
A WIFE came up to me and said she didn’t care if her husband (class member) came or not for the 50th she was coming!!

The following are just a few emails I’ve received to date, I’m sure more to come:

Dear Suzanne,
I want to thank you and the members of the committee who put together that absolutely splendid evening on Saturday.
For us who cared very much for Sherry, nothing, of course, will ever make up for her not being a part of our world any more; my longer-term reaction to her death seems to be as much a feeling of loneliness as one of sadness. I suppose that, with the exception of the passage of time, there is little to dispel the sadness; but the opportunity on Saturday to experience the warmth of speaking with and hugging so many dear people who cherish the time we once spent together went a long way to wipe out the feeling of loneliness. Indeed, I feel as if I have regained a piece of my past
Suzanne, I am looking forward eagerly to the 50th reunion.
Again, thank you for such a marvelous time on Saturday. It has made this year feel a heck of a lot better than it started out!

just wanted to let you all know what a wonderful time I had last night. It was the best reunion I've attended and I don't doubt that most of the people there would have to agree with me. Those who attended for the "first time" had to be impressed. A lot of time and energy (and tears) went in to pulling it off and it was all worth it.
Looking forward to seeing you all again at the next meeting and even have an idea to bring forth for the 50th.

Wow!!! We did it!! What a wonderful reunion!! Kudos to all who worked so very hard to make it a success, especially David, Alice and Suzanne. David, I just spent the last few hours reading our wonderful “memory book”!! You did a phenomenal job-Thank you for all you do to make things happen for our class. Alice, you too. We certainly have a diverse group of classmates. You all make me proud to be a part of the Class of 1960, and especially to be a part of this great committee. Thank you for the fun!

Looking forward to helping with the “50th”. Let’s all stay healthy, happy and in touch. See you soon.

Thoughts for the 50th are VERY IMPORTANT to the committee. PLEASE REMEMBER, we are not able to do everything that is suggested. What we are doing is tallying what is being suggested and the MAJORITY will rule.

On OCTOBER 24th we are having our “clean up” meeting and STARTING to talk about our 50th. If you wish to be part of the great committee, please get in touch with Alice, David or myself for more information-------YOU ALL ARE WELCOME.

I want to thank all of you who attended and encourage everyone to attend the 50th. This will be our last BIG event as we will do what classes before us have done, we will do luncheons each year.

Suzanne......you and the entire staff deserve all this praise! I had the BEST time.....the food WAS delicious....the DJ was great...and the company (my classmates)...made for a memorable reunion! And YES, the Skippack fire hall was LOVELY!!!! Many thanks to ALL who were involved in this great evening of "catching up"!

Hello Alice,

It is almost impossible for me to convey my thanks for your gracious invitation to your delightful reunion on Saturday night. You may not know how really thrilled I was to see so many of my former students, to be remembered by them, and to learn of how successful and wonderful so many of you have become. You were a wonderful class then, and I am really not at all surprised that you all appear to be so successful and delightful men and women now. You have brought back many nostalgic moments for me, and at this stage of my life and under my present circumstances those nostalgic moments go a long way to buoy my spirits.

I hope you will feel comfortable keeping in touch from time to time, either by visiting me here at Freedom village, or by e-mail or by note. You are just such a delightful, vibrant group of young people; I'd love to hear of your further adventures and activities.

Thank you again for a wonderful evening and for remembering.

Henrietta M. Campitell

While I have not attended a majority of the reunions, I have to say thank you to you and the rest of the committee for making this the best one I have attended and the most memorable. I attended the 5th and 35th before this and didn't particularly feel comfortable (my fault). In any case, this time it was casual, the food was delicious, the set up was great and everyone seem to mingle more and were much more "friendly". I enjoyed it so much that I am actually looking forward to the 50th.

Dear Suzanne, What an evening!!! You are ALL to be commended, it was wonderful. In fact it was so wonderful I totally missed the call to dinner. Didn't eat a thing I was so busy talking to old friends and had to be taken home by my two guardian angels, Bobbie Woelfle and Obie O'Brian. Otherwise it was really fun. It amazes me that our class still gets such a great turn out as I have spoken to folks from other classes who are amazed we have such great times and really great turnouts an they do not! Anyway, thanks again, see you at the next one, God willing and the creek don't rise!

That was the best reunion yet! It was just right! All of the details were taken care of, the food was decent, David's visuals were excellent, the booklet was great, the DJ was fun. It was just a good time. Thank you for all of the work you go to each time!!!

Suzanne,

Thought the reunion was great. Thanks for all your hard work.

I have to admit that I was surprised, but the fire company was really nice. Nicer than some other places we have been and everyone that I talked too seemed to have a really good time. No one said anything negative to me. I thought the clean up went well, but I messed up when I got home. Forgot to put the horns in the refrigerator and Rich was not happy with me. Don’t we all have such nice husbands too? They all worked like troopers. We should all be proud. Rich said he went to the car because he thought everything was done and his feet were killing him. I understand. Mine are still hurting today. I am not used to wearing shoes. I cannot imagine how women wear heels all day, every day. God bless them. I am going to write to David also. I did write to Alice, Eva, Claudia. I will get to everyone eventually.

I love the picture and was so surprised to get it. It looks beautiful on our fireplace. I will be writing Stephanie also. She was delighted to be there and it was great to see her. She had a good time.

Thanks again for everything Suzanne. Luv, Jackie

Yes, it was wonderful! I felt like Cinderella! And it was fun to help a little with the set-up. Although my husband didn't attend, I really enjoyed this event more than the 35th and 25th reunions I attended. The mood was perfect, the food delicious and the company...the best of all! I would love to help with the next reunion and would be willing to come in for a meeting or two and arrive early to help. I have extensive experience working with hotels and caterers in planning lovely events for 150 to 1000 attendees, and I can design and print as that's what I do for a living. So, if I can be of service, please utilize me. I also thought I might be able to take on several classmates who have never returned - emailing them over the next 5 years and encouraging them to attend. I think a personal invitation like that is invaluable. I'm not sure I would have come if I hadn't had a lot of encouragement from Frannie, Alice and Sam. They were great! I especially appreciate the website and booklet as they have helped me find several classmates who were "lost" to me. Again, all my thanks to the Committee! You all did a fabulous job in the planning and execution - but, best of all, in the way you all made us feel welcome.

I cannot tell you how much I enjoyed (and needed) to see old friends and reconnect with past classmates. You could have any of our reunions in an outhouse and everyone would still have a wonderful time, being together and remembering our wonderful high school years. I wish I was able to stay for the dancing and more chat but it was necessary for me to come home to Butch.

Just wanted to tell you how much we're enjoying the class directory. We have thoroughly enjoyed the autobiographies and have laughed heartily at a few! Many thanks for all your effort at making our reunion a very special affair.

Having traveled back to my home in Minneapolis, I've had time to reflect on the Reunion and I simply wanted to thank all of you for the tremendous effort that you put into this terrific event. I am so glad that I made a somewhat last minute effort to attend. Having not attended any prior reunions nor been in Norristown since 1988, it was even more surreal for me to reconnect with both the area and many of my classmates. I know a bit about organizing and heading up volunteer events (and otherwise herding cats), and I think this event was marvelously planned and executed. With the caveat that geography may be a limiting factor, I would like to help in the effort for the next reunion..maybe I can be the out-of-state coordinator to encourage others at a distance to do themselves a favor by attending... or whatever, just keep me in mind. As we all must feel, my only regret was there was not enough time to catch up with all the folks for as long as I would have liked..and I know there are some I just flat out did not get a chance to chat with..but email works and I intend to follow-up with many. It was also considerate for you all to have arranged the perfect weather for those of us flying in and out. Thanks for a wonderful evening.

Please let me add my many thanks to all of the committee who made this year's reunion such a wonderful success! I had so much fun especially finally admitting Judy Hartenstine and I are cousins (not that we kept it a secret all those years ago) but it never came out to very many people I guess.

To all the committee and especially Suzanne, Alice and David, WOW!!! Thank you for a wonderful evening. I didn't hear one negative comment from anyone. We had a delightful evening. Everything was so well planned and we appreciate all the time and effort you all put into making the evening a success. All of the committee worked so hard Saturday evening to make our time memorable and I can't imagine how much time you spent through the last five years preparing for this event. It was great to see so many people that we only see at the reunions and it was special to see some people who have not attended reunions in the past. Not having seen some of them for 45 years I probably wouldn't have known who they were if I bumped into them at the supermarket. Good thing we had our yearbook pictures on our name tags. I was sorry that some of the people I expected to see were not able to make it but hope they will be at the big 50th. I have not heard of any other class who has had such a dedicated reunion committee. Some classes don't even have reunions. We are very fortunate to have a group of people who have been willing to work at it for so many years and have organized so many memorable reunions. Thank you all for all you have done. I know Jane Willard Kuneck and her son Joseph had a good time. It is a real highlight for Jane to be able to attend the reunions since her advanced MS limits her activities and she doesn't get to see old friends very often. She really appreciated having so many friends stop by to spend time with her. I won a basket of cheer and gave it to Jane for which she was thrilled as was her son. I was rewarded because my husband won the center piece on our table and I got to take home something to remember the wonderful evening. David, thank you so much for the spectacular job you did will all the pictures and the web pages and for all the e-mail messages you send about class members. Going through the web pages makes me feel like I just visited with everyone in the class. The booklet was a great idea so everyone has a copy to keep of all the information you put together. I can truly say, "Thanks for the memories". Suzanne and Alice, your hard work paid off. Thank you for getting it all together. Without your time, energy and hard work this event could not have happened. Please thank the entire committee for us for a job well done. How did we get to this age so fast? Seems like we were all 18 years old yesterday and 1960 was just the other day. I am very happy that I was able to attend the 45th reunion and hope we have as much fun at the 50th.
Gratefully,
Gloria Rich

Hannelore and myself want to express to both of you, the excellent work you did for the reunion. It was perhaps the best reunion to date. We have only attended three reunions, but everyone commented that this was the best one yet. Having it banquet style and at that fire house was the best set-up for us older citizens. Jobs well done. Thanks.

May I add that I too thought the committee did an excellent job in all aspects of the reunion. I had a fabulous time. If there were any suggestions, I would only state that maybe because I was sitting in the last row of tables and people continued to talk, I was not able to hear what was being said on the microphone, so if that can be improved in the future..... next one and last one is that I was completely unaware that our teachers had actually come. I did not see them or hear them introduced which would have been nice to see them in front of the group with a few words to say. I had tried to bring Mr. Bill McCain, but he was not able to come but he did want me to send the class his best wishes. I did not do that because I did not see a time when that would have been appropriate - remember I thought that no other teachers had come. I did visit him on Monday after the reunion. He is still living down from the new high school but he and his wife are in the process of moving to an assisted living development. He is 83 and looks great. Suzanne, you certainly did a wonderful job. I did not know how much work the committee did that night just prior and after the event. I am glad you all have that much energy. Maybe at the 50th we should hire some high school kids to help us. Just a thought. Now that I am retired (Aug. 19) and Dad is leaving the nursing home and returning to his home, I hope to be a part of the class committee. I am going to see Nancy Peters next week so I will talk with her about helping.

Congratulations to you and your committee on a wonderful reunion! I know a lot of work went into the planning and executing . It paid off! The room and the tables looked great, the food was delicious, the music wonderful but who were all those old people there? ;-) Just kidding. It was great to see so many friends I haven't seen since the 10th year reunion. Now I wish I hadn't missed all the others. For many reasons the others were missed .....but that is past and we will try like the dickens to get to the remaining.

I arrived back in Alaska last night at 10:30 PM after a short visit with my brother Dave down in Brunswick GA. Just now getting around to two weeks of mail. I wanted you and the gang that put this gathering together how much I enjoyed it. You folks never cease to amaze me with what you do. It has to be a labor of love! I also wanted the committee to know that Mt St Helen's ash now resides in Chugiak AK. I will attempt to insure that it does not cohabit with any of our many volcano's emissions. It is my intent to return again in 2010 for the 50th and should that not be possible, ship the urn South to PA for whatever happens next. The TSA inspectors did not question it's presence in my luggage as far as I am aware, and it did not open. Again thank you all for a wonderful time (again) and I shall see you in 5 years.

A special thanks on a tremendous effort for our 45^th Reunion. Having chaired several of my college class reunions, I can appreciate the enormous amount of time and effort that takes place long before the event as well as the day of the reunion. The many compliments that I viewed on the web site are most richly deserved. I must admit I was not enthusiastic with the location when I first heard of Skippack Fire Hall as the selected site. Needless to say, this was a gross misjudgment on my part; the number of our classmates that returned for the event is a testament to your good choice. Thanking you and the committee for the opportunity to enjoy a special evening!

Just wanted to tell you how much we're enjoying the class directory. We have thoroughly enjoyed the autobiographies and have laughed heartily at a few! Many thanks for all your effort at making our reunion a very special affair.

Hi Alice,
I am sorry that I did not get a chance to talk to you at the reunion. you seem to be so busy every time I saw you. I hope you also enjoyed yourself . It sure was a great event with everyone interacting and at a nicely decorated room, delicious food and good friends. All the photos and the book were great.
Once again thanks for all you do to make our class keep in touch and have so much fun.

Hi Alice!
I just had to tell you how much I appreciate the work that you and the committee did to arrange a wonderful evening for the members of our class. I have not stopped thinking about the old friends I saw there. I am so glad to have that nice book to refer to when wondering about people who couldn't attend. It's so interesting to see where they have been and what they have done in the years since we were in high school.

I can't explain how much it meant to me to receive the 1960 class reunion book. I enjoyed reading the updates on our classmates and also enjoyed looking back at the way we looked then and now. The special note inside just for me touched my heart in a very special way. My M.S. is progressing to the point that I can no longer write. My friend is writing this for me. If you can, please pass this note to any of the other committee memebers, please do.

The reunion really was all we could have hoped for and worked for all. All good comments. Monday I was on the phone constantly talking to classmates. Part of Tuesday also. Jean Oeste said she'd leave the decisions for the next one to the committee. Maureen Huxley had a lot to say. It's too bad we can't have fancier place and us doing nothing toward food and drink - but still that casual feeling. Depends on the tally Charlie gets from the questionnaires.

To: " the committee"
    Thanks so much for planning the reunion. It was great. Everything was well organized and fun. The food was good and the choices perfect.
    I especially want to thank you for the gift basket that I won. It was such a surprise since I never win at raffles. Whoever put the basket together did a wonderful job of providing a great variety of items. We will enjoy it!
    Thanks again. Your attention to detail made it a very successful and enjoyable event.

Dear Suzanne,
    As the official spokesperson for the Committee that planned the 45th reunion of the Class of 1960 of Norristown (A. D. Eisenhower) High School, I am writing to you to express my thanks for giving me the opportunity to reconnect with former students, now very respectable adults, who played such an important part in my early career in teaching.
    Not only did I enjoy seeing and speaking with them, but it was something of an ego booster to be told how much they remember their high school days and how meaningful those days were and how much they are prized.
    Please convey my thanks to all your fellow committee members and count me in on your 50th!!!