Many high school memories will last forever

TOM LAUB Lifestyles editor

tlaub@lewistownsentinel.com

Lewistown Area High School Class of 1977

LEWISTOWN — Every fve years. Every fve years since graduation, members of the Lewistown Area High School Class of 1977 meet, as many other classmates do, for our class reunion. Friday night classmate get-together and Saturday night class reunion reliving old times. Looking back through years of change, it is customary for each generation to refer to the past as simpler, more innocent times. Yes and no. There was enough turbulence in the 1970s to remind us the world is really not innocent. Over time, priorities, viewpoints and people change. Societal norms change as well. Change does not guarantee improvement.

I enjoyed high school. I enjoyed elementary school and junior high, too. I was blessed to have my family and a normal home life. I’m thankful for both. The environment prepared me for school.

There are a lot of memories from junior high and high school. Classmates, teachers, coaches, pep rallies, the school being condemned, half-day sessions, junior high football, basketball games crammed into the old LHS gymnasium, football games at Mitchell Field, nicknames, bumbling my way through dates like Charlie Brown, junior varsity basketball, the “new” open-space school, a night at the reservoir that I will never forget (most of my friends will not let me forget), the teacher lock-out, the student sitin, the senior variety show, baseball and graduation. And friends.

Reminiscing about school days would be incomplete without popular trends. Each decade, for better or worse, is known for its trademark attire. The 1970s were cursed with the ugliest fashion styles of the century. Start with hair. There was a lot of it and it wasn’t all pretty. Next, bell bottoms. Not the ones with a slight fair, but wide, frayed-atthe-bottom bell bottoms. How many times can you trip over your own pants? Platform shoes. Enough said. One plus, though, was they made you taller. Puffy shirts. Similar to the “puffy shirt” on Seinfeld. Wide collars and cuffs with puffy sleeves. No one wanted to look like a pirate back then, either. Large fuzzy bow ties. I refused to wear one for my senior portrait. The tie that was chosen wasn’t much better. Sometimes, it can be rough thumbing through an old yearbook.

I experienced public school for the frst time beginning in seventh grade.

In the fall of 1971, I attended junior high at the Lewistown campus of Penn Highlands High School. It was an adjustment after attending parochial school. A few weeks into the semester, just as I was settling in, the school was condemned. Before long, junior high students were on buses heading to Reedsville for half-day sessions at the Kish campus (senior high students attended halfdays at the Chief Logan campus). It was a strange year but we all managed. I reunited with some school friends and met many new ones. By June, I was ready for summer, but so was Hurricane Agnes. Much of central Pennsylvania including Miffin County was underwater for several weeks.

When school began in the fall, we were back on the LHS campus for the fnal year of Penn Highlands. At the end of the school year in 1973, the Cougars were put to rest and Miffin County divided its high schools.

In ninth grade, I had my frst German class. For months, we practiced German Christmas Carols. I think we started on the frst day of school. The plan was to perform for the other language classes on the last school day before Christmas. It did not turn out well.

The high school years rolled by. Sophomore, junior and senior years. We said goodbye to the old school after 11th grade.

Our fnal year would be spent in the open-space, colorful classrooms of a brand new building. The year few. When it was over, we said goodbye and looked to the future. The LAHS class of 1977 experienced many things during our time together. The days and nights are all tucked away to refect upon from time to time. At least every fve years.

The times may have faded away. The memories will last a lifetime.

Thank you to all who contributed high school memories for ‘I Remember When.’ I hope you enjoy the fashback.

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