Jackson High School graduates gather for first all-school reunion

Jackson High School graduating classes from through 2008 gathered Saturday afternoon for the first Jackson High School all-school reunion at the multipurpose gym on the high school campus.

Sam Duncan, co-chairman of the gathering, said planning for the event began in April and that calls had been received from as far away as Minnesota and Texas.

By 4:30 p.m. the expected attendance of 500 had been surpassed, and the mingling room in the multipurpose gym was quickly diminishing. The final attendance count for the reunion was between 775 and 800 people.

Fifteen display tables were set up, and a formal program with remarks by retired Jackson principal and teacher James Nelson and state Rep. Scott Lipke. Tables of band and athletic memorabilia and corners dedicated to the 1950s and 1960s surrounded tables set for class decades.

Graduates attending the reunion signed a signature quilt that will later be finished and hung in the high school. Its bold letters spelled out "One Heartbeat."

Adelaide Parsons, a 1965 Jackson graduate and alumni panel member said she got the idea from her husband's 50th reunion in Saline, Mich., where they had his class reunion followed by an all-school reunion. "But it wasn't like this," she said. "We planned for it to coincide with the anniversary of Jackson Homecomers' 100th anniversary."

Morgan Lake, a 1987 Jackson graduate who regularly attends her high school reunions, said she was impressed with the turnout. "The highlight for me was seeing Patsy Johnson."

Johnson was a physical education teacher from 1954 to 1989. Her dedication was evident in the collection of memorabilia she saved over the years: wooden hockey sticks she had made for her classes, a tomahawk someone had made her, a whistle signed by students given to her as a gift — even a Jeannie C. Riley album. Riley was known for the recording of "Harper Valley PTA." Johnson's note attached to the album explained that she and another teacher got the record and approved it for high school students even though children in Jackson were told not to listen to it because it was objectionable.

A handout accompanying student-led tours of the school's new areas also talked about the school's history and school growth ranging from the first small log schoolhouse in 1817 to the Jackson School Board's authorization of construction of a new school for black children in 1944 to photos of the current construction.

Tour guides Marcus Harris and Erin Steffens said it was the first time they had seen the new band and choir rooms. Enthusiasm from Harris may have stemmed from his choir involvement, but Steffens seemed equally impressed as she told the group there would be new band practice rooms and that students would no longer have to practice in the bathrooms.

The steps closest to the new main parking lot lead into the commons area, where a cafe setting, cafeteria and kitchen will be.

Steffens said the new setup will accommodate 420 students at a time. Big screen TVs will be installed in the area for announcements and watching football.

The new gym, near the commons area, will have seating and a track along the top. It had water on the floor because of weather damage to the building but was still viewable.

Other highlights of the tour were the expanded trophy area across from the art courtyard used for outdoor sketching. The new art classrooms have windows from floor to ceiling.

The buildings will be connected, unlike the old high school.

The Trail of Honor between the high school gymnasium and the new event center will be paved with standard and double-sized clay bricks that can be purchased to benefit the Jackson High School Foundation. The brick campaign enables families and friends to honor loved ones and family legacies while supporting Jackson teachers and students.

"It is a way for people to connect to the district," Duncan said.

For more information, visit www.jacksonschoolfoundation.org.

cpagano@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 133

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