The graduating class of '61 held the AHS 45th High School Reunion Dinner at the Sheraton Anchorage Hotel on August 19, 2006. It was an enjoyable night for all, with higher-than-expected attendance.

Have a look at some photos from the 45th reunion on the Photo Gallery page.

Hi Kids,

We included a lot of names in the notice for the April 19th reunion meeting, and we had one new classmate attend, John Stoehner, and one lost reunion member, Pat (Norton) Jensen attend. Carol (Bennett) Eaton had the flu, Bill and Nancy (Steadman) Nigh had other obligations, as did Mary Ann (Randall) Curtis. Averill (Roberts) Horvath is out-of-state, and Carroll (Madden) Knutson was unavailable. Our hostess Sigi (Strand) Bryant allowed us to use her home for our meeting, she had just returned from wintering on the west coast in their motor home. Also attending was Lori (Ramstad) Homan, Dean Geisert, Diane (Imlach) Owens, Marianne (Keenan) Berus, Ann (Seamands) Kocur, Ron Thorne and Ken Odsather.

Sigi gave a report on her trip visiting with classmates from Washington to Arizona and back. She took the quilt so that our classmates could sign it. It sounded as though she had a wonderful time seeing everyone along the way and promoting the 50th reunion.

Accolades were given to Lori for her research and locating a lot of our classmates. We also owe a big thanks to Frank Morton in Washington for locating several of our classmates, and to Doug Dunham for notifying us of Julie Case's passing.

We revisited the date that we had originally chosen for our 2011 reunion, which was May 13 - 15. Our Washington classmates thought that the date was too early and suggested June 17 – 19. For those of us here in Alaska, the June date is fine. We had chosen the May date because we were concerned about the increased prices for everyone scheduling the reunion during tourist season, but we have made the decision to go forward with the recommended date of June 17 – 19, 2011, so please put that date on your calendars.

We still agree that the reunion should be a 3-day event:

• The first evening is for classmates only, planned as a get-reacquainted party, with hors d'oeuvres and non-hosted bar.
• The second day is still under discussion.
• The second evening is planned to be a dinner and a prom, open to all.
• The third day is planned to be a picnic, open to all.

There is discussion about a cruise to Alaska out of the Seattle/Vancouver area to Seward. There was a suggestion that for those who will not be taking the cruise, we arrange for a train trip to meet the boat in Seward and all ride back on the train together to Anchorage. We need to find out if the cruise includes a bus or train back to Anchorage.

It was suggested that we take a bus to a destination out of Anchorage for the picnic — a place such as Big Lake, Whittier, etc. It would give those people who spent a lot of money to come to Alaska a chance to see a little of the state while they are here.

We are giving thought to having a special lapel pin made up just for our class, a token of remembrance for our class and our classmates. T-shirts are also being considered.

Our website, www.AHS61.com, is an ongoing project, and we need you to look at the website and give us some ideas for future improvements. Our www.AHS61.com webmaster, Justin Thorne, has set up this website and maintains it free of charge. Justin is the son of our classmate Ron Thorne. One of the things that many people may not know about is that when you go the Found Classmates section, in addition to the alphabetic (by last/maiden name) listings, there is a "View by State" option, which allows you to survey the same list of found classmates, sorted by where they live today. Also, look at the sites listed on the Links page. In particular, visit the Class of '58 site, and see what they have planned for their reunion this year. Look at the registration form for some ideas toward what you would like to consider doing for our reunion. For those of you with computer skills, check around for what other classes throughout the country are doing, and think about how those activities may fit in with what we are planning.

We encourage each and every one of you to search by whatever means you have to find our classmates. When you find one, please put them in contact with us to add them to the list of found classmates, encourage them to participate in reunion planning, and help us put on a reunion that all of our classmates will enjoy. If you learn of any classmates who have passed away, please be sure to share that information, as well. We would really like to reduce the number of missing classmates (those whose whereabouts are unknown) to as close to zero as possible, and be fully up-to-date at all times. We also need classmates in each state to look at list of found classmates for their state and contact them, get together, chat, do what it takes to keep them informed about our 50th reunion.

Though we have decided on the date of the reunion, there is so much left to do. It is up to you decide what you would like to experience for your reunion. You are automatically on the Reunion Committee with all of us. The responsibility for the success of the reunion depends on all of us, as no one person can make the reunion happen on his/her own. It takes all of us. Even if you do not live in the Anchorage area, you still have the phone, e-mail and USPS to get your ideas and suggestions to us. If you leave all it up to a few of us here in Anchorage, you may not enjoy yourself as much. And more importantly, you won't be able to enjoy the personal satisfaction resulting from being directly involved in its success!

If you move, change your e-mail address or phone number, let us know so that we do not lose track of you. If we have your current information, but you haven't sent us your e-mail address, please send it to us. Please be assured that our website has several layers of security, and your contact information remains confidential. We will not make the information publicly available in any way, with the exception of the city/state/country of your residence. Any requests to contact you that come through our website will be forwarded to you, and it is your choice as to how to respond.

The bottom line for a successful reunion is to make sure that those of you who will be spending a lot of money to make it up to Anchorage have an enjoyable, relaxing and beneficial experience. For those of you who live in the Anchorage area, while your travel costs will be much less expensive, your enjoyment is equally important, and this will be a great opportunity for you to help ensure the 50th reunion is a success. We will be looking for places to host the events, endeavor to provide transportation to those that do not have transportation, select a hotel with reasonable rates and comfortable accommodations, locate and suggest B&B's, and do whatever we can to make this a successful reunion. Please make yourselves available in whatever ways you can to help in this effort.

Your participation, ideas and suggestions are most important. Please be in touch.

Thank you,

Your Class of '61 Reunion Committee