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Alumni of Paola High School meet for 120th reunion
By Terrie Cole
Saturday in Paola was a time for reminiscing, eating and recreation during the 120th annual Paola High School reunion with activities that included members from at least 14 classes.
Official activities started with a welcome coffee and doughnut reception from 9 to 11 a.m. at the Paola Senior Center. At noon, in the high school gymnasium, class members and their guests attended the alumni luncheon, catered by Price Chopper. A program and meeting followed the meal.
During the business meeting, the honored class of 1958, celebrating their 50th reunion, was represented by class member Lynn Martin, who gave the response. Katrine Copeland of the class of 2008 gave the response from this year’s graduating class.
Retired and current teachers were recognized at the meeting.
A special treat for those in attendance was provided by four alumni from the Class of 1953 who were members of the original Madrigals singing group. Paul Johnson, David Orr, Jean Mooney Dell and Clarene Lyon Prothe led the singing of the PHS school song.
Alumni also gathered for the 38th annual tea from 2 to 4 p.m.
The names of alumni who died in the past year were recorded by Vera Minden Kaiser, Class of 1945, and Nina Peterson Gerken, Class of 1951.
The names of the deceased alumni, dates of death and the year each graduated are:
Ethel M. Hornbuckle Smith, June 4, 2007, Class of 1927; Ada Lorene Bricker Coltrane, Oct. 15, 2007, Class of 1932; Josephine E. Smith Wilson, Oct. 18, 2007, Class of 1935; Nina F. Morris Pattimore, Nov. 5, 2007, Class of 1935;
Bernadene Mayes Guge, Feb. 11, 2007, Class of 1937; Edward W. Kaiser Jr., Feb. 18, 2008, Class of 1937; V. Lucille McDonald Bowman, March 6, 2008, Class of 1940; Wanda I. Schall Clark, Oct 8, 2007, Class of 1942; Byron Manchester, Dec. 17, 2007, Class of 1943;
Josephine Cavaness Pearson, June 7, 2007, Class of 1943; Betty Rawlings Darner, Aug. 4, 2007, Class of 1944; Eldon F. Darner, Oct. 15, 2007, Class of 1944; Donald R. Greenawalt, Jan. 17, 2008, Class of 1945;
Delores D. Wilson Van Treece, Aug. 16, 2007, Class of 1946; Nadine Kresin Vest, Feb. 18, 2008, Class of 1947; D. Lorene Prothe Debrick, Nov. 2, 2007, Class of 1948; Robert G. Frye, Aug. 29, 2008, Class of 1949; Jane Anne Miller, March 22, 2008, Class of 1949;
Rex Whitaker, Feb. 24, 2008, Class of 1950; Mary Lou Delaney Walter, March 2, 2008, Class of 1952; Shirley A. Minden Windler, Sept. 24, 2007, Class of 1953; Mary K. Russell Spurrier, Jan. 20, 2008, Class of 1953; Darla Jo Smith Goodwin, Aug. 8, 2008, Class of 1957;
Tanya June Henson, Jan. 25, 2008, Class of 1961; John A. Koelsch, June 6, 2007, Class of 1964; Frank H. Kittrell, March 9, 2008, Class of 1965; David L. Stephens, May 20, 2007, Class of 1966;
Robert L. Mooney, Nov. 15, 2007, Class of 1966; Dan J. Scherman, Feb. 26, 2008, Class of 1968; Ronald E. Heckman, April 20, 2008, Class of 1968; John L. Dillard, April 17, 2008, Class of 1971;
Ronald D. Ames, April 1, 2008, Class of 1974; Terry E. Deuthman, Sept. 29, 2007, Class of 1976; Kirk E. Wilson, April 7, 2008, Class of 1977; Mark A. Thomas, Dec. 23, 2007, Class of 1983; and James M. Whitaker, April 6, 2007, Class of 1993.
Class activities throughout the weekend included:
Class of 1940
The Class of 1940 had its annual get-together at 1:30 p.m. Sunday at the Whistle Stop Café in Osawatomie. There were 10 classmates and eight spouses and friends in attendance. Fred Masters offered a prayer before dinner.
Each, year Maxine Viets Deckard prints out sheets for each class member of letters and phone calls that have been sent to her from classmates that could not attend the meeting.
Earline Little won the drawing for the ladies and Oscar Durland won the drawing for men. Plans are to meet again June 7, 2009, in Osawatomie at the Whistle Stop Café.
Class of 1943
Members of the 65th anniversary Class of 1943 met at the Paola Senior Center on Saturday morning at the welcome reception. They later went to the high school for lunch and activities there. They spent time in a classroom talking and reminiscing.
Class of 1948
Sharing memories of 60 years took place when the Class of 1948 got together for their reunion. Starting Friday evening, class members met at the Cross Point Assembly of God Church Youth Center for a meal prepared by local classmates. Some members attended the welcome coffee at the Paola Senior Center and lunch at the high school.
Saturday evening, dinner at El Tapatio was the main gathering time for the class.
Class of 1953
The reunion of the Class of 1953 began Friday evening when classmates gathered at K&M Barbecue in Spring Hill for dinner. A memorial was given by Wayne Cohoon for the six deceased class members in the past five years.
On Saturday, the class met at PHS for the alumni luncheon, and pictures were taken. Four class members who were in the original Madrigal Singers 55 years ago were present and introduced. They were Paul Johnson, David Orr, Jean Mooney Dell and Clarene Lyon Prothe.
Saturday afternoon, Ron and Phyllis Hollinger invited classmates, spouses and friends for a gathering at their home in Paola. Time was spent reminiscing, sharing pictures, eating and visiting.
Eighteen classmates were present from California, Colorado, Nebraska, Arkansas, Texas and Kansas.
Class of 1958
The Paola High Class of 1958 celebrated the 50th anniversary of their graduation Friday and Saturday.
Lynn Martin hosted a party at his Paola home Friday evening with more than 40 in attendance, including spouses.
Roger Shipman presented a video depicting before and after photos of each class member. The video included images from other reunions as well as class photos from kindergarten through graduation.
Saturday at noon, class member Gerry Sue Billam Law led the invocation at the 120th Alumni Reunion. The Class of 1958 was the “Honored Class” with 39 members and their spouses attending the luncheon. Lynn Martin, “Class President for Life,” gave the class response with many jokes and stories. He made comments on the many and varied accomplishments of the class, one of which was that none of them had served prison time.
In closing, Martin asked all present for a few minutes of silent prayer for the 12 members of the 1958 Class that had died.
The class was blessed with the attendance of two honorary PHS classmates. Mary A. Poff Almond left Paola High during her freshmen year. She has returned for every reunion for the last 25 years.
Ruby Bacon Bell, who grew up in Paola, came back for her first time since leaving to get married during her senior year. She donated a red, white and blue crocheted afghan to the class. It was decided that there would be a drawing for it at the Saturday night meeting at the American Legion Hall. Martin was the lucky winner. Shipman donated two Class of ’58 scrapbooks for the drawing. The winners of those were Bonnie Brocker Debrick and Charles Matteson.
Class of 1963
The Class of 1963 started their activities with a golf game on Saturday morning at the Paola Country Club.
Later the class gathered at the fairgrounds for barbecue cooked by Daryl Kaiser and a potluck lunch. Time was spent looking at old pictures and visiting.
Class of 1968
At least two members of the Class of 1968 returned for their first reunion since graduation.Mike Kice of Tennessee and Fred Meisel of La Cygne were among 40-year class members who met at the VFW for a potluck meal. A memory board was on display as a memorial to classmates who are no longer living. Also on display was a trivia board from their school days.
Class of 1973
The Class of 1973 met Friday evening at Kent and Glenna Murray’s Paola home to meet with class members who had come from out of town.
On Saturday, the group met at the rural Paola home of Maggie and Ron Doherty for barbecue and potluck side dishes. Classmates were surprised at the presence of Kevin Ore who came from Las Vegas for the 35th reunion. Joe Coddington traveled from South Carolina. Also traveling from out of town were Pam Waite from Texas and Sharon Weaver Vitter from Indiana.
Additionally, five members who had attended grade school at Holy Trinity met with Sister Kathleen Dueber for lunch and a tour of the Ursuline facility.
Class of 1978
The 30-year class reunion of 1978 was held at 1708 Industrial Drive in Paola. Approximately 45 classmates returned to attend the reunion.
Jolinda Kramer and Jeff Kraft traveled from California to attend, and Scott Wurtz traveled from Philadelphia.
Classmates voted Kevin Collins and Jeff Kraft the most changed class members.. Least changed classmates were Bill Randle and Kelly Boydston Smith. Calvin Rosey won the award for the most children, and Belinda Wolff-Whitaker won for most grandchildren.
The married high school sweethearts award went to Randy Moser and Hilde Guenther Moser.
A prayer was recited by Mark McMahon remembering all of the classmates who have passed away.
A catered barbecue meal was provided by the BBQ Shack in Paola.
Class of 1983
Members of the 25-year class met at El Tapatio for lunch at 11 a.m. on Saturday and ended up staying until evening. Classmates then went to the Paola home of Shannon and Kevin Barbour to continue reminiscing. Several class members traveled from out-of-town. Nick Wilson came from Oregon, Randy McCool came from California, and Angela Powell came from New Jersey.
Class of 1988
Thirty-four members of the PHS 100th graduating class, 1988, met for their 20th reunion. Festivities began Friday evening at classmate Hugo Carrete’s restaurant, El Tapatio.
On Saturday, class members and their families gathered at the home of John and Susan Prothe Henry, south of Paola. Those attending from long distances included Eric Vaubel, who rode his motorcycle from Virginia Beach, Va., Jeff Jeck from Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., and Debra McClanahan Guzman from Carrollton, Texas.
Class of 1993
The Class of 1993 celebrated their 15-year reunion at the home of classmate Jessica Doherty Duncan and her husband Chad in Somerset. The classmates and their families enjoyed a picnic, games and reminiscing well into the evening hours.
Class of 1998
The 10-year reunion of the Class of 1998 was celebrated at the home of Justin Fulk’s parents north of Paola. Classmates and their families enjoyed barbecue, played games, and spent time visiting with each other.
Class of 2003
At least 28 members of the 5-year Class of 2003 met at Hillsdale Lake for a barbecue meal catered by Price Chopper. They had a good time catching up with one another.
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Official activities started with a welcome coffee and doughnut reception from 9 to 11 a.m. at the Paola Senior Center. At noon, in the high school gymnasium, class members and their guests attended the alumni luncheon, catered by Price Chopper. A program and meeting followed the meal.
During the business meeting, the honored class of 1958, celebrating their 50th reunion, was represented by class member Lynn Martin, who gave the response. Katrine Copeland of the class of 2008 gave the response from this year’s graduating class.
Retired and current teachers were recognized at the meeting.
A special treat for those in attendance was provided by four alumni from the Class of 1953 who were members of the original Madrigals singing group. Paul Johnson, David Orr, Jean Mooney Dell and Clarene Lyon Prothe led the singing of the PHS school song.
Alumni also gathered for the 38th annual tea from 2 to 4 p.m.
The names of alumni who died in the past year were recorded by Vera Minden Kaiser, Class of 1945, and Nina Peterson Gerken, Class of 1951.
The names of the deceased alumni, dates of death and the year each graduated are:
Ethel M. Hornbuckle Smith, June 4, 2007, Class of 1927; Ada Lorene Bricker Coltrane, Oct. 15, 2007, Class of 1932; Josephine E. Smith Wilson, Oct. 18, 2007, Class of 1935; Nina F. Morris Pattimore, Nov. 5, 2007, Class of 1935;
Bernadene Mayes Guge, Feb. 11, 2007, Class of 1937; Edward W. Kaiser Jr., Feb. 18, 2008, Class of 1937; V. Lucille McDonald Bowman, March 6, 2008, Class of 1940; Wanda I. Schall Clark, Oct 8, 2007, Class of 1942; Byron Manchester, Dec. 17, 2007, Class of 1943;
Josephine Cavaness Pearson, June 7, 2007, Class of 1943; Betty Rawlings Darner, Aug. 4, 2007, Class of 1944; Eldon F. Darner, Oct. 15, 2007, Class of 1944; Donald R. Greenawalt, Jan. 17, 2008, Class of 1945;
Delores D. Wilson Van Treece, Aug. 16, 2007, Class of 1946; Nadine Kresin Vest, Feb. 18, 2008, Class of 1947; D. Lorene Prothe Debrick, Nov. 2, 2007, Class of 1948; Robert G. Frye, Aug. 29, 2008, Class of 1949; Jane Anne Miller, March 22, 2008, Class of 1949;
Rex Whitaker, Feb. 24, 2008, Class of 1950; Mary Lou Delaney Walter, March 2, 2008, Class of 1952; Shirley A. Minden Windler, Sept. 24, 2007, Class of 1953; Mary K. Russell Spurrier, Jan. 20, 2008, Class of 1953; Darla Jo Smith Goodwin, Aug. 8, 2008, Class of 1957;
Tanya June Henson, Jan. 25, 2008, Class of 1961; John A. Koelsch, June 6, 2007, Class of 1964; Frank H. Kittrell, March 9, 2008, Class of 1965; David L. Stephens, May 20, 2007, Class of 1966;
Robert L. Mooney, Nov. 15, 2007, Class of 1966; Dan J. Scherman, Feb. 26, 2008, Class of 1968; Ronald E. Heckman, April 20, 2008, Class of 1968; John L. Dillard, April 17, 2008, Class of 1971;
Ronald D. Ames, April 1, 2008, Class of 1974; Terry E. Deuthman, Sept. 29, 2007, Class of 1976; Kirk E. Wilson, April 7, 2008, Class of 1977; Mark A. Thomas, Dec. 23, 2007, Class of 1983; and James M. Whitaker, April 6, 2007, Class of 1993.
Class activities throughout the weekend included:
Class of 1940
The Class of 1940 had its annual get-together at 1:30 p.m. Sunday at the Whistle Stop Café in Osawatomie. There were 10 classmates and eight spouses and friends in attendance. Fred Masters offered a prayer before dinner.
Each, year Maxine Viets Deckard prints out sheets for each class member of letters and phone calls that have been sent to her from classmates that could not attend the meeting.
Earline Little won the drawing for the ladies and Oscar Durland won the drawing for men. Plans are to meet again June 7, 2009, in Osawatomie at the Whistle Stop Café.
Class of 1943
Members of the 65th anniversary Class of 1943 met at the Paola Senior Center on Saturday morning at the welcome reception. They later went to the high school for lunch and activities there. They spent time in a classroom talking and reminiscing.
Class of 1948
Sharing memories of 60 years took place when the Class of 1948 got together for their reunion. Starting Friday evening, class members met at the Cross Point Assembly of God Church Youth Center for a meal prepared by local classmates. Some members attended the welcome coffee at the Paola Senior Center and lunch at the high school.
Saturday evening, dinner at El Tapatio was the main gathering time for the class.
Class of 1953
The reunion of the Class of 1953 began Friday evening when classmates gathered at K&M Barbecue in Spring Hill for dinner. A memorial was given by Wayne Cohoon for the six deceased class members in the past five years.
On Saturday, the class met at PHS for the alumni luncheon, and pictures were taken. Four class members who were in the original Madrigal Singers 55 years ago were present and introduced. They were Paul Johnson, David Orr, Jean Mooney Dell and Clarene Lyon Prothe.
Saturday afternoon, Ron and Phyllis Hollinger invited classmates, spouses and friends for a gathering at their home in Paola. Time was spent reminiscing, sharing pictures, eating and visiting.
Eighteen classmates were present from California, Colorado, Nebraska, Arkansas, Texas and Kansas.
Class of 1958
The Paola High Class of 1958 celebrated the 50th anniversary of their graduation Friday and Saturday.
Lynn Martin hosted a party at his Paola home Friday evening with more than 40 in attendance, including spouses.
Roger Shipman presented a video depicting before and after photos of each class member. The video included images from other reunions as well as class photos from kindergarten through graduation.
Saturday at noon, class member Gerry Sue Billam Law led the invocation at the 120th Alumni Reunion. The Class of 1958 was the “Honored Class” with 39 members and their spouses attending the luncheon. Lynn Martin, “Class President for Life,” gave the class response with many jokes and stories. He made comments on the many and varied accomplishments of the class, one of which was that none of them had served prison time.
In closing, Martin asked all present for a few minutes of silent prayer for the 12 members of the 1958 Class that had died.
The class was blessed with the attendance of two honorary PHS classmates. Mary A. Poff Almond left Paola High during her freshmen year. She has returned for every reunion for the last 25 years.
Ruby Bacon Bell, who grew up in Paola, came back for her first time since leaving to get married during her senior year. She donated a red, white and blue crocheted afghan to the class. It was decided that there would be a drawing for it at the Saturday night meeting at the American Legion Hall. Martin was the lucky winner. Shipman donated two Class of ’58 scrapbooks for the drawing. The winners of those were Bonnie Brocker Debrick and Charles Matteson.
Class of 1963
The Class of 1963 started their activities with a golf game on Saturday morning at the Paola Country Club.
Later the class gathered at the fairgrounds for barbecue cooked by Daryl Kaiser and a potluck lunch. Time was spent looking at old pictures and visiting.
Class of 1968
At least two members of the Class of 1968 returned for their first reunion since graduation.Mike Kice of Tennessee and Fred Meisel of La Cygne were among 40-year class members who met at the VFW for a potluck meal. A memory board was on display as a memorial to classmates who are no longer living. Also on display was a trivia board from their school days.
Class of 1973
The Class of 1973 met Friday evening at Kent and Glenna Murray’s Paola home to meet with class members who had come from out of town.
On Saturday, the group met at the rural Paola home of Maggie and Ron Doherty for barbecue and potluck side dishes. Classmates were surprised at the presence of Kevin Ore who came from Las Vegas for the 35th reunion. Joe Coddington traveled from South Carolina. Also traveling from out of town were Pam Waite from Texas and Sharon Weaver Vitter from Indiana.
Additionally, five members who had attended grade school at Holy Trinity met with Sister Kathleen Dueber for lunch and a tour of the Ursuline facility.
Class of 1978
The 30-year class reunion of 1978 was held at 1708 Industrial Drive in Paola. Approximately 45 classmates returned to attend the reunion.
Jolinda Kramer and Jeff Kraft traveled from California to attend, and Scott Wurtz traveled from Philadelphia.
Classmates voted Kevin Collins and Jeff Kraft the most changed class members.. Least changed classmates were Bill Randle and Kelly Boydston Smith. Calvin Rosey won the award for the most children, and Belinda Wolff-Whitaker won for most grandchildren.
The married high school sweethearts award went to Randy Moser and Hilde Guenther Moser.
A prayer was recited by Mark McMahon remembering all of the classmates who have passed away.
A catered barbecue meal was provided by the BBQ Shack in Paola.
Class of 1983
Members of the 25-year class met at El Tapatio for lunch at 11 a.m. on Saturday and ended up staying until evening. Classmates then went to the Paola home of Shannon and Kevin Barbour to continue reminiscing. Several class members traveled from out-of-town. Nick Wilson came from Oregon, Randy McCool came from California, and Angela Powell came from New Jersey.
Class of 1988
Thirty-four members of the PHS 100th graduating class, 1988, met for their 20th reunion. Festivities began Friday evening at classmate Hugo Carrete’s restaurant, El Tapatio.
On Saturday, class members and their families gathered at the home of John and Susan Prothe Henry, south of Paola. Those attending from long distances included Eric Vaubel, who rode his motorcycle from Virginia Beach, Va., Jeff Jeck from Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., and Debra McClanahan Guzman from Carrollton, Texas.
Class of 1993
The Class of 1993 celebrated their 15-year reunion at the home of classmate Jessica Doherty Duncan and her husband Chad in Somerset. The classmates and their families enjoyed a picnic, games and reminiscing well into the evening hours.
Class of 1998
The 10-year reunion of the Class of 1998 was celebrated at the home of Justin Fulk’s parents north of Paola. Classmates and their families enjoyed barbecue, played games, and spent time visiting with each other.
Class of 2003
At least 28 members of the 5-year Class of 2003 met at Hillsdale Lake for a barbecue meal catered by Price Chopper. They had a good time catching up with one another.
Comments on "Alumni of Paola High School meet for 120th reunion"
Comments are limited to 200 words or less.Georgia Powell Madison wrote on Jun 18, 2008 3:57 PM:
" Next year will be the 60th Anniversary for my class of 1949. My husband and I now live in Winona Lake, IN and it's doubtful that I would be able to attend, but I will plan to read about it in the Miami County Republic Newspaper on the Internet. Anyone from my class may e-mail me at georgiaEmadison@gmail.com "