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The Wheat Ridge High School Band Reunion
The Idea
The idea for the Wheat Ridge High School Band Reunion was born in August of 1992 at the 20th Reunion of the Wheat Ridge High School Class of 1972. At the reunion, Kristin Bright noticed that all of the former band members were grouping together, talking, and looking at scrapbooks. After all, they were part of the band "family". She also realized that her close friends from the classes graduating before and after 1972 were missing. She mentioned her thoughts to Chuck Angerman and he agreed that one of the main reasons for attending the reunion was to see friends from the band.
The idea was born! Obviously, Larry Wallace and his music program at Wheat Ridge High School had a tremendous influence on our lives. So why not put together a band reunion? Talk of a possible band reunion spread among the band alumni at the reunion and everyone thought it was a great idea.
The Organization
Nothing happened until May of 1993. At that time, Kristin decided to organize a small reunion involving the classes of 1970 through 1974. She called people she knew in the area, picked a date for a meeting, and asked those interested to attend. She also spoke with Terry Smith about the idea of a band reunion. Terry wanted to include the years around his graduating class of 1970 (the reunion starts to grow!). He also volunteered to talk to Mr. Wallace about the idea. Mr. Wallace called Kristin back the next day feeling a little overwhelmed. "Are you sure you want to do this?", he asked. He then agreed to give it a try. He volunteered to provide phone lists for his early years at Wheat Ridge and asked if he could spread the word and invite people to the initial meeting. The initial meeting took place in June of 1993.
At the first meeting, the group decided to become a nonprofit organization and to begin meeting regularly. By September of 1993, officers had been elected and some preliminary ideas for reunion activities had been discussed. At this point, the major task of finding band/orchestra alumni was in full swing. Each person was assigned one or more class years to research in order to find former band/orchestra members. Rick Wilmot and Kristin went through band lists, yearbooks, and concert programs compiling names. Rick maintained the data base and was the key to keeping all of the information organized and available. He and Kristin also spent many hours researching addresses at the library.
After the first meeting, lists of names and information began flowing to the organizers. News of the reunion spread by word-of-mouth to former band members throughout the nation and even to international locations. All of the responses were positive. Hours of hard work and monthly meetings produced lists of band members and information that required constant updating. Lauren Livo and Ed Post produced the first letter to former band members about the reunion. The letter contained lists of people not yet located (lost sheep) and a postcard to indicate interest in attending the reunion. All of the members of the reunion organizing committee contributed a tremendous amount of time and effort to the reunion. Many also contributed generously to the reunion fund to make mailings possible and to cover other organization expenses.
The Decisions
Originally, the reunion was planned for the summer of 1994. However, because of the planned remodeling at Wheat Ridge High School scheduled for that summer, the reunion was delayed until the summer of 1995. This decision proved to be a wise one since it took two years to organize the event.
In April of 1994, the reunion organizing committee received some unexpected news. The renovation of the front portion of the high school had been rescheduled for the summer of 1995, making a reunion at the school impossible. This news created some difficult moments for the reunion committee. Should the reunion be postponed until the summer of 1996? If so, could we maintain momentum until then? Should the reunion be changed to more of a social event with no rehearsals or concerts? Where could the reunion be held since the school was no longer an option? The reunion committee was very divided at this point about how to proceed. However, after much discussion, several votes, and a few tense moments, the committee pulled together and decided to proceed with the reunion as scheduled for the summer of 1995 at locations away from the high school.
The Event
The dinner reception on Friday night was a wonderful way to start the weekend, with lots of hugging, laughing, and reminiscing. The only real problem was getting people through the food line because everyone wanted to stop and talk to Mr. Wallace. Oh well, that's why we had the reunion!
The Saturday rehearsal and concert that night were very emotional and very impressive. Mr. Wallace touched our lives in many ways and this day gave us a chance to feel again the pride and share in the joy of being a member of his organization. The feelings and memories each of us experienced will always be special. Mr. Wallace said after the concert that the reunion was one of the most important things that ever happened in his life. Most of us can say the same thing about our experiences as members of his bands/orchestras.
The Sunday picnic was a chance for the survivors of Saturday night to relax and enjoy some quiet conversations with Mr. Wallace and their friends. It was hard to believe that the weekend and the reunion were over. But the memories will live on for years to come.
During the 1995 Reunion, we asked the participants two questions: 1) Should we do this again? 2) Should we open up the reunion to the entire instrumental music program at WRHS? The answers we got were: yes, and yes. Therefore, each year since the 1995 reunion we've been holding a summer Band reunion picnic; we're deep in the planning stages for another large reunion, with the usual dining, picnicing, and performing, during the summer of 2000. Check the "Reunion 2000" page for details.
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