Letters to the editor

Tuesday, September 26, 2006 12:39 PM CDT

Reunited

To the editor:

On Sept. 8-9, I attended my 35th PCHS Class reunion. I have been away from Pekin now for almost 19 years but it is still good to go back and see family and friends at least once a year.

They say you can never go home but this reunion was about going home. It was about going home to see old friends and finally making new ones of those who always seemed to hang with their own little group.

It has taken nearly 35 years but I finally believe that most of us have finally grown up and realize it's what's on the inside that counts. Of course there will always be a few who will never grow up and always believe that their popularity in high school should rank them above everyone else.

For the most part I believe that everyone attending had a wonderful time.

I would really like to give a big thank you to those who worked on the Class of '71 reunion committee - Dan Rose, Rosie Tebben, Mary Ann Godby, Ray Gordon, Lynn Franz, Bill Clark and Roger Stein, because they truly did a wonderful job.

With a graduating class of nearly 800 kids it's amazing that only six did so much to affect the lives of so many.

My only disappointment was the fact that so many of the Class of '71, who still live in the area, didn't bother to attend. I assume they must see each often and didn't care to allow us the opportunity to see them also.

It was quite disappointing to have traveled so far and see so few.

I hope that in another five years they will rethink their attendance and grace us with their presence. For those who have passed on, we will miss them dearly and remember them in our thoughts. Though it is now not acceptable to say we will always be “Pekin Chinks” and “Son of a gun we are the Class of '71.”

That's exactly the way I felt then and will always remember my time at Pekin Community High School.

Barbara Clark Franz

Lynchburg, Va.