Class of 1981 Reunion

REUNITED

Don’t forget your class reunion. I am glad I did not! Do not miss those who helped sharpen you…

We graduated on June 6th, 1981. On the first weekend of this past June, 28 guys (74% of our class) in their mid (late?) 50’s revisited their mid (late?) teens as we celebrated the reunion of the Covington Latin School Class of 1981, our 40th! In many ways, it seemed like 40-years ago; in many ways, it seemed like yesterday. One of the most fun parts of organizing our class reunion was tracking everyone down. I started with the data that Covington Latin School had, then attacked Facebook, LinkedIn, WhitePages.com, etc. With the aid of a few classmates, I was able to track down 37 of 38 surviving classmates. I could not find Roy Stevens!

On Friday, June 4th, my classmates and many of our significant others met at Covington Latin School. Several in our class had not been back since graduation in 1981. Probably, most had not been back since the completion of the addition in 2011. We were updated on the current state of Covington Latin by John Kennedy, the Headmaster. We played class trivia where we were reminded of many things related to our time at Covington Latin School, e.g., Buck Buck, the bouncing of Mr. Whitehead’s keys in the hall, the melting of Alex Reyes’ pants, “jackdaws” with Dr. Tom, “Peaches”, eraser fights, dissection styli in the ceiling of the biology lab, jug, etc. Amy Darpel, the Director of Advancement, led our class on a tour of the building. We stopped at many places along the way and relived many great memories, e.g., the “old” senior lounge in the basement (now the band room), the “old” study hall (now classrooms), the “old” cafeteria (fka “The Alfred E. Packer Cafeteria’’ and now the art classroom), the “old” language/computer lab (now the Latin classroom), the “old” biology and chemistry labs (now classrooms), and the “old” library (still the “old” library!). We were then shown the new senior lounge (conveniently around the corner from the Dean of Students!), the new, state-ofthe-art labs, the new cafeteria, the Forum, the Chapel, etc. Following our time together at the school, we moved the evening to The Hofbräuhaus in Newport where we continued to imbibe adult beverages, catch-up on families, etc.

On Saturday, June 5th, our class (without our significant others) reconvened at my home where we enjoyed a steak dinner and more adult beverages. We regaled each other with tales of old, successes of new, and lessons since. We caught up on each other’s careers, families, and plans for the future. To be sure that we celebrated on the actual anniversary of our graduation date, a few of us (names intentionally left out here) lasted around the firepit until 2:00am in the morning on Sunday, June 6th! I have not seen 2:00am in decades!

Our reunion exceeded every expectation that I had and was more than I hoped for. I appreciate the distance that many travelled, e.g., St. Petersburg, FL; Dallas, TX; Tucson,

AZ; Seattle, WA; Lorton, VA; Kansas City, KS; Silver Spring, MD . . . a bit closer but still a commitment to come from Columbus, OH; Dayton, OH; Winchester, KY; and Indianapolis, IN . . . even someone who came from just down the road in Morning View, KY. We have classmates with lots (and lots) of children, a bourbon distiller, some retired or thinking about it, some sold their companies, others are soldiers and veterans, teachers, businessmen, doctors, lawyers, entertainers, butchers, financial advisors, engineers, researchers, IT experts, rocket scientists, etc. Our class checked a lot of boxes. Without question, we were reminded of the role Covington Latin School played in our lives. We were reminded of the role that we played in each other’s lives. One of my favorite Bible verses seems very appropriate for graduates of Covington Latin School, “As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another,” Proverbs 27:17. I know others in my class sharpened me. There are only a couple of teachers still with us who were at Covington Latin School when we started there in 1977. It was great seeing Father Dan Vogelpohl. I still cannot believe he was only 26 when we started at CLS and all of 30 when we graduated! To be honest, I could not believe how old my classmates are! 40-years-ago, I would never have thought we would have needed name tags if we got together! The funny thing was that when you started talking with someone, the pounds melted away, the gray hair became less obvious, the wrinkles smoothed out, and you were talking to that young man from 1981. Covington Latin School continues to make a difference in the lives of many young and gifted students. The “shade trees” we sat under while at Covington Latin School were planted by others before us. I am proud that our class chose to

make a “Class Gift” to plant “shade trees” under which later generations will sit. Our class chose a goal of $8100 in honor of the Class of 1981. I am so happy to share that our class raised $11,600, blowing out the $8100 goal! After our class reunion, I am not at all surprised. At heart, our class, and others before and after us, are a caring and generous bunch with a continued affection for Covington Latin School. The “shade trees” that Covington Latin School chose to use our gift for will help renovate the “old” library into a research and collaboration space where students can take their classical education to the next level! While I will never wish time away, I am already looking forward to our 50th class reunion. At the rate time currently flies, that is only like a few weeks from now! One of our classmates is doing a periodic email to keep everyone connected and informed about the goings-on in the lives of each other. Sometime around May of each year, I will pick an evening to have dinner together. While that will mainly June 5, 2021 cover those who live nearby, I do not want to wait for ten years to see my classmates again! If you have the time, willingness, and ability, organize your class reunion. If you do not want to organize it, attend it. You will not be sorry. It is a pleasant walk through history. If you cannot attend, make a donation, plant a “shade tree” for others to sit under. By the way, I am still looking for Roy Stevens . . .

June 5, 2021

John Cain

Class of 1981 Covington Latin School