Community Voices Looking Back
One Hundred Nine by Marcia Napier Grain Valley Historical Society
The Class of 1963 presented Randol and Florene Wiggins with gifts recognizing their efforts as a driving force behind the alumni association for many years.
For 109 years, the Grain Valley Alumni Association has been celebrating the newest graduating class. The Class of 1909 had four members, Curtis Houston, Ora Morrison, Madge Butler and Lillie Ashcroft. They were the first to graduate from Grain Valley’s fouryear high school and the first to celebrate their alumni status. The story I’ve been told is those first graduates provided “punch and cookies” for the Class of 1910 as a way to welcome them to alumni status; and thus the tradition began. For a few years it became a custom for the previous graduates to provide refreshments after graduation for the new alumni. At some point in those early years, the refreshment became a dinner and reunion for the graduates to come together. With only two or three exceptions the dinner has continued. Once during WW I and for a couple of years (probably 1944 and 1945) during WW II the dinners were cancelled, however they still had refreshments for the new alumni after graduation. Sometime during the 1930’s a dance was added to the celebration. I remember my parents attending Alumni Banquets when I was young. It was always the one time each year I can recall my father buying my mother a corsage. I remember one year in particular, the corsage was a beautiful white orchid with a blue ribbon. Of course, Mom along with several others, wore their corsage to church the following Sunday morning.
Sometime during the 1980s the dances were discontinued. The dance bands of the 30s, 40s, and 50s had become DJs and I suspect the alumni attending the banquets weren’t overly fond of the “rock and roll” music they provided. But the annual Grain Valley High School Alumni Banquet lives on. I have always been told that Grain Valley has the oldest continuous alumni association in the State of Missouri. I don’t know how this can be proven, but I suspect that is true. At the 2018 Alumni Banquet Randol (1955) and Florene Brown Wiggins (1957) were presented with gifts from the Alumni Association purchased by the Class of 1963. In the photo above, the presentation was made by George Scarborough. For the past many years, Florene and Randol have been the driving force behind the organization. Florene’s “roll call” of alumni is phenomenal as she remembers nearly everyone’s first, middle and last names! And when she occasionally forgets, we all have a great laugh, including Florene. Florene first attended the banquet when she was in high school. In those days, it was an honor to be chosen one of the sophomore girls to serve the banquet. While the meal has been catered by Nadler’s from Wellington for many years, that wasn’t always the case. For many years the alumni officers planned and cooked the meal, soliciting additional cooking help from other members. When the school got a cafeteria in 1954, the cafeteria ladies were hired to cook the meal. The Historical Society is fortunate to have a nice collection of memorabilia from the Grain Valley schools which includes photos, yearbooks, school newspapers including The Broadcaster and The Eagles’ Cry, prom favors, and old text books, to name a few.
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Teens Invited to Event with Killer Itinerary
The Mid-Continent Public Library Grain Valley Branch invites teens to sign up for a relaxing Caribbean cruise with a killer itinerary--literally. The Waves of Danger Murder Mystery program will be held at the Mid-Continent Public Library on Saturday, July 28th from 2:00pm—4:00pm. Join cruise director Jules McCoy and head of security Shaun Hardy for a voyage on the S.S. Carnage to help solve a murder mystery on the high seas. Are you a detective, an accomplice, or a murderer? This program is eligible for Teen Summer Learning Program points. Registration is required at mymcpl.org/events. The library’s free Beyond the Books magazine is coming out this week, which will have programming information for the entire Mid-Continent Public Library system. This edition lists library events for all 31 MCPL branches from August to October, including the Romance GenreCon on August 3-4 at the Woodneath Branch and the annual Veterans Salute on Saturday, September 22 at the Midwest Genealogy Center. Copies of the Beyond the Books magazine can be picked up at any local library branch.
