Campbell High School 1974 Alumni

The CHS Class of 1974 held its 35th Reunion the weekend of July 24-26, 2009 in Smyrna, Ga.  There was an entire weekend of events that were well attended.  Based on feedback from many classmates, the weekend was a huge success.!!

On Friday night, July 24, there was an informal "come as you are" gathering for dinner and drinks held at Varner's Restaurant and Tavern on Concord Road.  Classmates began arriving as early as 6:30 or 6:45 and met on the outside patio.  Shout-outs to old friends and laughter rang out all through the evening as old friends re-introduced themselves to one another.....my, how some people have changed!  Especially the men!  Thankfully, the ladies know all about hair color and make-up!  People mingled all through the evening chatting and talking with as many people as possible.  It's estimated that there around 40 alumni and their guests who attended this event. 

On Saturday morning, July 25th, some of the guys along with Robyn Ennis Mann and spouses of some of the gals, had their own golf tournament at Bentwater Country Club in Acworth.  According to Bart, "Golf was a blast! And the best part was the breakfast beforehand. Quite an eye-opener when Robbie DeHaas blessed the meal. Who would have thought! And the stories. Greg Raley kept me in stitches all day."  There was alot of friendly competition and again, a lot of laughter, throughout the extremely hot day.  Not sure who "won" but some were quite surprised that Hal Reeves just wasn't up to par!  LOL!  

 The "main event" was held on Saturday evening at Maggiano's Little Italy at Cumberland Mall.  This was a well-attended event also with approximately 85-90 alumni and their guests in attendance.  There were also 3 former teachers who attended:  Janice Traylor (whose leg/foot was in a cast!), Pam Gardner Maga and Coach Charlie Kessler.  There were tables set up throughout the banquet room to allow classmates to sit, talk and reunite.   There were also two tables set up with memorabalia from 35+ years ago that included old yearbooks, copies of Panther Tracks, uniforms from Pep Club, Drill Team and Cheerleaders, an old megaphone and set of pom-poms, newspaper clippings, a basketball schedule from 73-74, and many, many other items that brought back a rash or memories!!  There were two cash bars available (but man, those drinks were high!) along with buffet and dessert bars.  Background music from the late 60's and early to mid 70's played throughout the evening.  Thanks to Becky Ellis' Lallerstedt's husband, Sonny, for providing the sound system and keeping the music playing.  A wonderful slideshow ran on a huge screen throughout the evening that included many, many old pictures from days gone by.  Thanks to Pam Norton Waggoner for putting this together (and this is avaialable for purchase on your own DVD).  At one point during the evening, our own Master of Ceremonies, Bart Watts, handed out some special awards.  Among some of the awards given were:  Most Changed:  Maynard Hurst; Least Changed: Kathy Ray Smith; Cougar Award (for youngest spouse):  Bart Watts; Married the Longest:  Pam Davis Arendall (38 years!  Gee she got married young!); Most Grandchildren:  Tie between Tim Harbin and Kay Bellinger Harbin (who have 9 grandchildren!); Youngest Child:  Pam Davis Arendall (who has 3 year old adopted twins!).  The dance floor got hot as the evening went on and Sonny cranked up the music!  At 11pm, it was time to wind down the evening.  There was just not enough time to visit and chat with everyone!!!!

On Sunday afternoon, July 26th, there was a picnic held at Tolleson Park on McCauley Road.  Although there were not as many who attended this event, those who did had a wonderful time!  Plus, there were some who came to teh picnic who had not been able to get to the other events during the weekend. It was reported that George Andrews made a brief appearance early in the afternoon.  Bob Mainor was another one who had not been to any other events who was able to attend the picnic.  Bart and Maurice brought their families----man, that son of Bart's (Taylor) is the spitting image of Bart!  Horseshoes and kicking around a soccer ball along with some great food and fellowship were the highlights of the afternoon.

Below are a few of the comments and feedback that were sent 

to the Reunion Committee following the reunion:   

Thanks so much for all your hard work on the reunion.  It was great fun!  And it was amazing how many people were there!  My only regret is that I didn't get to talk with everyone.  So, we don't need to wait too long before we have another one :-) You can definitely pat yourselves on the back when a real wall-flower can't wait to for the next reunion.

Great seeing you and everyone this past weekend.  I had a blast.

I know it was a lot of hard work and focus, and the rest of us continued on our daily lives and schedules and then just showed up. It was fabulous! I plan to stay in touch with so many people I saw and spoke to. Thank you for all of your efforts. I can't wait to see you again!

Dear Pamela and the reunion committee,
 I just wanted to tell you how much I enjoyed the reunion of Maynard's graduating class.
Maynard does not get home often, so it was a joy to me that he invited me to go along.
I liked being able to see how much all you youngun's had turned into wonderful responsible adults.  I thought that it was most apporpriate that Maynard got the reward for being the most
changed!   He had a great time too.
Thanks for allowing me to be a part of it.  
Rachel Hurst,  Maynard's mother

You all did an amazing job!  Everything was just perfect.  Thank you and each member of the

committee for creating an event with an inviting and warm atmosphere. 
Just a note:  I loved the way you put as many people as possible at each table.  It was easier to include everyone.  Hopefully, no one felt left out.  You could see how hard you worked to prevent that.  Thank you!

There have been several requests/questions about when the next event is scheduled.  The Reunion Committee will be getting together for a post-reunion meeting on August 29th.  If you have any ideas/suggestions/thoughts about future gatherings, please contact any member of the Reunion Commitee.  Robbie DeHaas was the first to come up with a suggestion and has already volunteered the use of a commercial pull behind smoker-grill that will do anything from smoked turkey to beef wellington, to hamburgers to hot dogs.  He suggsted an informal park type get together { family affair} in the fall when it gets cooler. That is an option that will be discussed at the meeting on Aug. 29th.