Author: Nancy

Congratulations to the team that’s been working hard to track down our classmates, particularly Sharon Wherry who’s been reaching out to folks who said they are coming but haven’t registered and Jeff Weisser who’s using some mad people finding skills.

Here’s the current list as of 6 pm, Wednesday, April 11.

What you’ll notice is we’ve got five categories:

• Deceased – the classmates we’ll remember at the reunion
• Registered – those who have signed up to attend.
• Will be in the  next directory – those who have filled out the form we started using about a year ago.
• Some contact – we have some confidence that these people have heard about the dates of the reunion. If they are marked “yes/no/maybe” you can be sure they know about it. But we do not have enough info to list them in the directory.
• No contact – these people are still “missing”.

So what list are you on? If Registered/Responded, you’ll be listed in the directory we’ll prepare in late spring (except for a couple of folks who weren’t sure that they wanted that). For the others please do consider giving us your contact information. The form is easiest for us, but we’ll consider email to info@longmeadow1967.org or comments on this post as well.

Over on Facebook, we’re seeing people post photos, tell stories, and more.

But if you don’t “do” Facebook, or if you’d like to post your story in a way that  would be easier to assemble into a class “memory book,” feel free to share your story here.

Note that you must first give us your full contact information by registering for the reunion or completing the contact form before we’ll publish your story here.  We’ll use that to confirm your submission.

Mark Levy and Sharon Nuger Levy are inviting reunion attendees to gather at their home,

Sunday, April 15
189 Ardsley Rd., Longmeadow
10:00 – 12:00
Coffee, donuts, and a tour of the 100 outdoor sculptures in Mark’s collection

If there’s pouring rain, the event will be rescheduled for our next reunion.

No need to RSVP. Just show up!

If you’re coming into town for the first time in years, or if you’re looking for somewhere to go with classmates you haven’t seen in awhile, check out our

• list of area attractions.

If you just want a place to hang out with classmates, see this

• list of restaurants

Scheduled gatherings

Sue Guertin Devick has arranged for the Longmeadow Historical Society (which isn’t generally open to the public) to give us a tour at 2 pm on Saturday. She MUST have some confirmed interest by April 6 so she can notify the volunteers. The tour is limited to 12 people.

Marcia Hennick Strange and Mary Jane Dyson Disco are hosting a gathering the class musicians over lunch on Saturday at Mary Jane’s daughter’s home, not far from where we’ll be having dinner on Saturday. Update 3/30 – this event is now open to all.

Sharon Black Wherry is coordinating another Saturday lunch gathering for those who remember working at Friendly’s. Will meet at the East Longmeadow Friendly’s, 562 North Main Street .

Bill Squires is the contact for a Lyrics rehearsal Friday morning, 10:48-11:44.  Kayla Werlin, LHS music department chair  has invited us but she will need advanced notice from us.

Sue Guertin Devick will also be exploring the Fannie Stebbins Wildlife Refuge and will send an update on what she finds. Any group walk would be dependent on the weather, so let us know you’re interested and we’ll be back in touch.

Other activities

If you’re planning to attend the 4 pm Friday tour of the High School or the 11 am Saturday tour of the Library, please do mark that on your registration.

Sharon Nuger Levy has invited everyone to tour her husband’s sculpture garden Sunday at 10. (More details.)

If you want to schedule another activity, send details to reunion@longmeadow1967.org and it can be added to this page.

Some have asked about a “dress code” .There are no rules imposed by the Twin Hills Country Club, and the committee wants you to know that “comfortable” (e.g. business casual) is fine for Saturday night, but you’re welcome to “dress up” if you’d rather. The men wore enough ties 1963-1967 that we really don’t expect them this year!

Remember there will be pictures — like this one from our 40th:

The online registration form is live:

• Sign up for the reunion, and reserve your spot at the dinners.

A few notes

• The confirmation page will have instructions for sending a check and a button to click to “Pay Online” (through PayPal or with a credit card).
• You can register online and pay with a check sent to Bob. You’ll get an email with his USMail address (if you list a good email address). But registering online (instead of with the paper form) will save him entering your data into the system.
• If you want to add tickets for either dinner (or if you get interrupted after registering and before you complete online payment) you can use the “shopping cart” page.

Here’s the information you need to reserve your spot at the reunion:

• Registration form

The dinner on Friday night is $20, and the Saturday evening event is $60.

We’ve scheduled a couple of specific free events — tour of the high school and a tour of the library — for folks to meet up and decide where to gather to catch up!

• More info about reunion schedule and logistics – including the hotel

We’re also asking for an optional donation in lieu of a fixed registration fee.  We’re hoping those who can will be generous so that not only will we cover expenses and seed money for our next gathering, but we’ll have enough for a significant gift in the name of the class to Longmeadow Educational Excellence Foundation, goleef.org.

Expect online registration (enter your choices then pay online or send a check, but save Bob the data entry) soon.

If you are lucky enough to see some classmates “in real life” or haven’t finished writing those holiday letters, here’s an information sheet to pass along to anyone who might not have heard about the event.

• LHS ’67 Reunion Overview (Jan. 31)

Mary Jane DysonDisco has volunteered to collect photos from classmates and produce a video to be shown at the reunion (and perhaps posted here).  Even if you’re not coming back for the reunion, please consider participating in this project.

• Send JPG files to Mary Jane at photos@longmeadow1967.org
• Deadline: March 30
• If you’d rather send snapshots by USMail the deadline is earlier: March 15.  Contact Mary Jane or reunion@longmeadow1967.org to get the address.

What to send?

• Reminders of our high school days – “party pics” (Jennifer Daley’s pool party, Bev Grzywacz’s Halloween Party, the Lyrics trip to Puerto Rico, ball games, good friends, etc).
• More recent pictures (you with the grandkids? you on stage?  you in your garden?), especially if you’re not going to be able to make it back for the reunion.
• Pictures of those in the class who are no longer with us to be included in an In Memoriam section
• Names of your favorite songs to be included as background music

Thanks so much to Mary Jane and KMJ Videography for providing this service to the class.

Credit: Mark Vecchiarelli

Credit: Mark Vecchiarelli

Credit: Mark Vecchiarelli

Credit: Mark Vecchiarelli

Credit: Mark Vecchiarelli

Has it been awhile since you’ve been back? Here are some things to check out, maybe with a group of your classmates.

• Springfield Museums  (Smithsonian Affiliate)
  • Dr Suess Museum
  • Museum of Springfield History
• The Springfield Armory Museum (National Historic site)
• Basketball Hall of Fame
  Shoot some hoops! ….check out Wilt Chamberlin’s shoe size!
  ( next door is Max’s Tavern – great food! )
• New England Air Museum, adjacent to the airport
• Storrs House Museum (Longmeadow Historical Society)
• Fannie Stebbins Wildlife Refuge (MassLive, Allen Bird Club)
• Union Station (Wikipedia, MassLive)

There are, obviously, many other attractions in Western Mass for those who are taking more time to explore.  Deerfield, Amherst, and Stockbridge have been mentioned as worthwhile destinations.  Watch  this space for recommendations.

Thanks to Mark for those pictures of the Springfield Museums!