Class of 66 - 45 Reunion 2011

True to our long time plan of a reunion every 5 years, we started planning the 45th Reunion right after we finished the 40th, by remembering what we did and didn't want to do again. The so-called "Robinson Weekend" - last weekend in September was chosen again for the convenience of the other alumni and community events. This time we got our reservations in early and returned to one of our favorite tried and true locations; Rolling Hills Country Club. The fact that many of our class mates are members there also made the process easier.

We had also found that nice but casual worked best. And a DJ and dancing one more time before we moved on to the wheelchair races. Our lunch bunch regulars handled the planning and decorations coordinated by Room Mother Diana. Many thanks to Diana, Bobby, Brenda and David, CC and Larry, Maxine and Tommy, Nancy and Reva for all the hard work.

And so the weekend started on Friday September 23rd with the 8th annual John Robinson Golf Tournament. Many of our class play in the event and even more came for the LOHS Alumni Association lunch and just to visit. We didn't plan a specific event for Friday night knowing many would be tired from the day of golf, but we did pass the word that everyone was invited for 9pm desert at Parker's Drive-In in Lone Oak. At 9 o'clock, a small crowd gathered at the 50s style diner to quite literally pig out in ice cream and conversation. We kept Parkers open well past their usual hours.

Next on the agenda, for Saturday morning, was the 9th annual Lone Oak Community Breakfast held at the high school cafeteria. This event had also become a magnet for reunions, this year Classes of 59, 61, 66 and 71 planned gatherings. Beyond the reunions, class mates from all years along with teachers, community leaders, friends and family just come to visit. Some get so busy visiting they even forget to eat breakfast - right Diane?

Saturday afternoon, as if anyone needed more food, Paducah's BBQ-on-the-River was available and, from reports, many took advantage of it. One of the drawbacks of this weekend is the number of classmates who work booths in the festival and can't attend the reunion. For those from out of town, it is a great time to visit the historic downtown Paducah area and riverfront.

Saturday evening brought the big event at Rolling Hills, with a total of 48 class mates and spouses enjoying dinner - catered also by Parker's Drive-In - drinks and dancing. Not as many attended as we had hoped, but not bad for an "off" year. Dianne Lewis Royer would have won the longest distance award, if we had one, all the way from Utah along with her sister Patty ('71) from Colorado. It was great to see them, Glenda, Jeanne and other we hadn't seen in several reunions. We viewed a slide show of previous reunions while we ate. Then a short program of recognitions and also remembrance of our deceased classmates. In the years since our 40th, we lost five classmates; Gail Gamble Coffenberry, Randal Sherron, Lanny Thompson, Bobbie Gatlin Cruz and Don Leeper.

After a quick clearing of the dance floor, we then moved to the picture taking ceremony... or so it seemed. Our resident hotographer, Larry Heavrin, lined us up so that proof of attendance could be made. The Rolling Hills ball room never had made a good studio for our previous class pictures and this time was even worse with a perfectly horrible background. But Larry got several good shots that provided excellent material for a modern "edited" magazine cover. The picture on the right is what we started with.

The rest of the evening was an enjoyment of conversation, music and dancing, including renditions by our resident Rightious Brothers and some rather... uh, interesting dance moves. With an obvious preference to the slower songs, we still had the rhythm. Thanks to DJ Joe Weitlauf, we had an excellent mix to remeniesce by. Wheelchair and walker races will have to wait.

Thanks to Larry & Cheryl Heavrin, Charlie Hamlin, Donna Hamlin Hunt, Dave & Brenda Osborne, Jeanie Rose Perry and Jean Marie & Jim Russell for sharing their pictures of the weekend. Pictures for the events are divided into 3 pages and can be accessed from the menu above. We hope you enjoy the memories from Reunion Weekend 2011. They have all been edited so those of us that attended won't be too embarrassed.