A10
Community
Blue Mountain Eagle
Wednesday, July 8, 2015
SAVORING SCHOOL DAYS
Mt. Vernon alumni gather for all-class reunion
%\&KHU\O+RHÀHU
Blue Mountain Eagle
MT. VERNON – With
ages spanning almost 80
yeaUs, the FUoZd ¿ lling &lyde
Holliday State Park on the
Fourth of July had one thing
in common.
They all attended or gradu-
ated from Mt. Vernon School.
Alumni were present from
1932 to 1991, the year of the
last graduating class, when the
K-12 school transitioned into a
middle school.
The oldest alumnus to at-
tend was Jack &luEE, of Pend-
leton, from the class of 1932.
The one who traveled the far-
thest to the reunion was Bon-
nie Pankey /emEerger, class
of 1962, who came from Fair-
Eanks, Alaska.
According to organizer Lin-
da Mc&umEer, aEout 300 peo-
ple attended – one of the largest
turnouts they’ve ever had.
Mc&umEer, who has Eeen
on the reunion committee from
the start, said they Eegan plan-
ning reunions soon after the
last class graduated in 1991,
and have Eeen holding them
every ¿ ve years for aEout the
past 20 years.
The Saturday picnic was only
one of the happenings from a full
schedule of activities which ¿ lled
the three day weekend.
Friday evening there was
a meet-and-greet at the Wag-
About 300 people turned out at Clyde Holliday State
Park for the all-class Mt. Vernon School reunion over
the July 4 weekend.
Contributed photos
Players from the Mt. Vernon 1962 basketball team visit with their coach, Jack
Potter, third from left.
Mt. Vernon alumni and
family gather at Clyde
Holliday State Park for
the all-class reunion.
From left, Linda McCumber of Mt. Vernon, Bonnie
Lemberger of Alaska, and Barbara Palmer of Mt.
Vernon visit during the reunion weekend.
on Wheel and games at the
&ommunity &enter. Saturday
was the picnic and an evening
B REAKING N EWS A LERTS
By Reiba Carter-Smith
and Gaye Pruit
To the Blue Mountain Eagle
Preventive, Restorative,
& Endodontics
208 NW Canton,
John Day
541-575-2725
mbddental@live.com &
michaelbdesjardindmd.com
LONG &REEK - Domas
Gymnasium at Long &reek
School was decorated and
full of friends greeting and
visiting of old times June
20. The week prior was
filled with preparations of
posters with pictures of stu-
dents from 1930s to 201.
Parents took their children
from class poster to class
poster showing what their
school was like when they
attended.
DRIVERS WANTED
WITH CARS
JULY 18, 2015
Grant County Fairgrounds
John Day, Oregon
Mc&umEer said one anon-
ymous donor contriEuted
$2,000 toward that effort.
Anyone interested in do-
nating to the cause or helping
with the reunions, can call Mc-
&umEer at 51-932-8 or
51-620-8100.
Alumni share memories
Michael B. DesJardin
Dentistry, PC
New Patients Welcome!
Derby Entry Fee
$50/car, driver & 1 pit crew
Pit Pass - $30/per person
Trophies Plus $250 / each heat
year after closing the school
several years earlier. With
no school Euilding availaEle
now, the reunion commit-
tee is trying to raise money
for a Euilding in which they
can house trophies and other
school memoraEilia.
C OMMUNITY VOICES
myeaglenews.com/breakingnews
Don’t
Forget
to Floss
dance in the &ommunity &en-
ter. &lassmates were also aEle
to re-visit the school gym and
view trophies and other mem-
oraEilia that morning. The
event concluded with a Ereak-
fast Sunday morning.
Grant School District #3
sold the school Euilding last
Mt. Vernon School alumni chat over breakfast at the
Mt. Vernon Community Center on July 5 during the
reunion weekend.
• Read Rules
• No Imperials
Sponsored by Whiskey Gulch Gang
For more information and rules call Hugh Farrell 541-575-0329
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Contributed photos
Eston Weissenfluh, Long Creek class of 1940, chats
with Tebeau and Gail Piquet.
Other memoraEilia were
on display, including uni-
forms for the majorettes in
the Rose Festival Parade
Eand of Long &reek. Sports
shirts were hung aEout the
Easkets. <earEooks and old
school newspapers lay on
taEles to peruse. ,n one cor-
ner was a triEute to veterans
from this area. Many sent
pictures and records of their
proud career serving the
United States.
Merlynne Derrick Parker
is collecting information for
a Eook. &ontact her to share
your information.
Parker, Linda Johns
Hunt and Marilyn &ole-
Eank GiEEs spent the week
arranging items for display.
Sherry’s catered the dinner
and served 10 Eeef dinner
plates Saturday evening.
A meet-and-greet cake
reception was held in the
school cafeteria June 19.
That’s where some help
was needed knowing who
is who, after 50 years of not
seeing each other – fun and
laughter times. The Long
&reek Historical Society
served a continental Ereak-
fast and a lunch of lasagna
with homemade sauce Sat-
urday. The guests were very
generous donors. Thanks so
much.
,n the afternoon, Monica
Johnson of Oklahoma sang
and played, while the John-
son family of Mt. Vernon
accompanied. Grant Dick-
erson, a past student, played
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EVERY OTHER TUESDAY
Gail Ledgerwood Pholot
and Eldon Johns, Long
Creek class of 1947.
his music as well. For the
dance, Frank &arlson of
Baker &ity performed. A
ticket raffle was held half-
way through the dance.
Odds and ends were the re-
ward for the winning dinner
tickets.
Though
our
crowd
thinned, he played energet-
ically until nearly midnight.
Some of us were less ener-
getic.
Sunday, June 21, the
farewell Ereakfast was pro-
vided Ey Allovars organi-
zation. Oven-Eaked French
toast, with fresh ElueEerry
syrup over the top, is hard
to Eeat. <um.
,t is hard to say µadios’
after such a Erief time. To
some it was an A-plus time
even with few attending, Eut
that meant one could spend
more visiting time with in-
dividuals.
For some it was their
first time to attend, espe-
cially for those from &ana-
da. Others have not missed
one reunion, and are excit-
ed to come every five years
to enjoy old and some new
friends.
Bill from Germany en-
joys and helps clean up.
&harley from ,daho helps
stack chairs. Dwight from
Oklahoma fills in wherev-
er there is a need and with
sacks of garEage.
&hris from &alifornia
with a camera on demand.
Kent wore a mountaineer
costume. Eldon Johns and
Gail Ledgerwood Pho-
lot were two from class of
19. Eston Weissenfluh
was the eldest graduate at-
tending from the class of
190.
What a great weekend
for the city and alumni with
gorgeous weather – perfect
in the green Long &reek
Valley.
Reiba Carter Smith and
Gaye Pruit are members of
the Long Creek Historical
Society.