Bill Myers Reunion Report

The BCHS Class of ‘55 50th Reunion Weekend

Friday, August 12, 2005

Saturday, August 13, 2005

Saturday morning we went down to the motel lounge for breakfast, found several classmates and companions again, and spent an hour or more reminiscing and planning and just plain enjoying the people.

We went with Bo Miller and Nancy for a ride around town and our old neighborhoods. It was a nostalgia trip for me and Bo and an education for Mary Jo and Nancy. It was good to do this together because Bo remembers his way around much better than I do and much more than I do about where people lived. Together, we remembered a lot of things that we used to do and a lot of things about other people and places, things we’d probably not have remembered without the interaction. That was a fun tour.

Sunday, August 15, 2005

We had breakfast with several of the classmates and spouses again in the motel lounge, and a couple of hours more of camaraderie. We made tentative plans to see people in Florida, and invited a couple of couples that showed interest to visit us at Drummond. People drifted off to begin their trips home. Mary and I started back north a few minutes before noon.

Monday - afterthoughts the next day:

Most of the people on the current committee are burned out and don’t want to do any more. The same people have done all the work for (I think) all of the reunions to date, and they have done well. Their fatigue, their attitude, is easily understood. But ..

So many people had such a good time and so many people said we should have another and maybe another reunion, that I am very likely to go active again to keep track of all the classmates. Several people said that they were willing to work on a reunion. We just need the (maybe small) focus group in Battle Creek.*

*Editor's Note:
This will be the topic of a future publication.

We got checked into the motel (Hampton Inn) and found several of the classmates and wives congregated in the lounge, many of whom we already knew, some of whom we see every year or so. We joined them for a while, then many of us left to go to the high school for a reception and a tour conducted by the reigning principal. I was very (positively) impressed by the many physical improvements and the learning programs and methods they have and plan to implement.

The reunion bash at the Battle Creek Country Club started with a happy hour and reception at 4:30 and continued with a very nice sit down dinner at 6:00. Joe (Doctor Schwarz, class president, former BC mayor, former state senator, now US representative) conducted a brief memorial and acknowledgments program, and then we had more mixing, some too loud live music, dancing for those that wanted and more drinking and talking for the rest of us. It was a great good party. Six of our teachers were able to attend. At least 137 of the classmates, with spouses or companions, were there, more than 37% of the living and not lost (five are still lost) classmates. Mary and I were not the first, by far, and not the last to leave. Several people went to Blair’s to continue until after midnight.

After the tour we went to the Friday night "mixer" at a restaurant (and bar) on the north end of Goguac Lake. The mixer was a great good party with lots of free goodies that were paid for by an anonymous classmate (Thanks, Joe). It was well attended and a whole lot of fun. It was a second first chance to see a lot of the people, and there were many more delightful people that I hadn’t seen for the whole 50 years. I’ve been communicating with everybody the last several years by phone and email, and it was good to have faces and figures to associate with the notes and voices. I had such a good time that Mary insisted on driving back to the motel.