Classes of 1950s to reunite at Arena

Every five years Mary Spell and six to eight of her girlfriends from the former May Greene Elementary School get together to catch up with one another about their lives. The women come from Cape Girardeau and from out of town. They always take a picture, and this year she's looking forward to doing it during the "1950s Still Rockin' and Rollin' Reunion."

Spell said she's amazed how strong the thread is that runs through the 1950s. "The friendships and the things we have in common keep us together."

The event will begin with registration at 10 a.m. Friday at the Arena Building and continue through Sunday.

More than 800 graduates from Cape Girardeau Central High School from 1950 to 1959 are expected to attend the reunion.

Individual class reunions will occur throughout the day Saturday, when, for example, the class of '52 will meet at Dexter Bar-B-Que for lunch and the class of '56 will meet at Cape County Park for a picnic. Antique cars will be displayed at the Arena building and horse and buggy rides will be available.

"But we didn't have those back then," Spell said with a laugh.

Spell believes the 1950s in Cape Girardeau contained a culture that didn't worry about much.

"Life was stable," Spell said. "There weren't any wars going on, and most of the boys in military were in the Reserves. This was also the very beginning of rock 'n' roll, and we put a lot of energy into our dances."

Spell said she only worried about getting to youth group meeting and band practices and that she was used to doing without many things.

"We only had a few changes of clothes, and shopping wasn't a big deal for most of us," she said.

Many things have changed for Spell.

One thing that hasn't changed has been the community atmosphere of Cape Girardeau, Spell said. In the early 1970s, after traveling with her husband during the 1960s, she came back to Cape Girardeau to raise her family. She said the city was a safe place where there were good people, a place to get an education and a church atmosphere.

Spell said there have also been some bad things the community has developed.

"The worst thing our kids did was run in the hallways or stick gum underneath the desk," Spell said. "There wasn't crime or drug busts."

Spell expects many of the guests from out of town to feel at home when they come back to Cape Girardeau.

"It's not a reunion," she said. "It's a homecoming."

adohogne@semissourian.com

335-6611