50-year reunion planning

Oh, yes, we are planning our 50-year reunion for July 3, 2021!  Seems early?  NOT!  We have been discussing this for six months already.  Right now we know we're having the reunion dinner on Saturday evening, July 3, 2021.  And we'll be in the Loggerodeo Parade on Sunday morning, July 4!

Additional events and surprises pending. 

So this will be in the local papers, occasionally, between now and then:


Sedro-Woolley High School Class of 1971 seeks class members for the 50-year reunion, July 3, 2021.  Activities and a parade entry are now being planned but not all classmates have been located.  If you are a classmate and wish to be included in the celebration, please contact Judy Johnson at Judyjj "at "comcast.net or any Class of 1971 member.  

Please join the fun!  

Class of 71 45-year reunion July 2, 2016 and coffee hour May 31!

 

Hey, SWHS Class of 71!

We have a plan for our 45-year reunion.  We just need you!  Here it is:

Saturday, July 2, 5:00 to ???  Yes, you can come early.  Don’t know yet what exact time we’ll serve dinner.

At Sue Ann Bryson’s house – same as last time.  Parking on site.
Dinner:  $15 per person, all prepared for you.
Menu:  Salmon, chicken, salads (various), desserts (various), soft drinks, and water.
Grill Chef:  Gary Rothenbuhler
Other food prep:  Take your chances

This date was selected by the group at our pot luck last summer.  It is right smack dab in the middle of Loggerodeo, so there are lots of things to do all weekend.  For a full listing visit:

www.loggerodeo.org  (this is the official site, in spite of a cybersquatter stealing one of their other URLs)

Yes, we’ll need some help getting things ready in the week prior to the reunion.  If you are a local, plz plan to help out.

Invitations:  Everyone on the e’mail list is getting this e’mail invitation.  Others, for whom I have a mailing address but no e’mail address, will get a quick paper copy of this text.  If you know someone who is not on my list at all (just ask) or if you run into class members at Costco, be sure to remind them of the July 2^nd date!!

You can send your checks now to my PO Box.  Check your e'mail for the address or leave contact info here and I'll send it to you.  

Nancy Handy Scott and I will keep track of the reservations.  Plz pay in advance so we know how many are coming. 

At the last reunion we kept things pretty basic.  A group photo before the sun goes down, buffet dinner, lots of visiting. 

If you need more info on motels, RV facilities, or anything, please ask ASAP.  Some folks might like to meet up in the afternoon before our event. 

Yes, we’re having our monthly coffee hour on Tuesday, May 31^st at the Woolley Market.  5ish to 7ish.  We will probably finalize our plans for food prep, etc. 

We’ve done this so many times that we all kind of know what to do!!  If you can’t join us on July 2^nd, feel free to send a letter or photos that we can display for others to read at the party.  But we hope everyone can come!  We had such a great turnout last time. 

Monday, July 4^th, we’ll have an entry in the Loggerodeo Parade.  Let’s see…why don’t we have a flatbed trailer with hay bales?  What a fresh idea!  Actually, it’s the tradition.  We have the banners from last time.  Wear red, white and blue!  Line up for the parade about 10-10:30.  It starts at 11.  Trailer is already reserved and I’m doing the parade entry forms. Not sure yet who is pulling the trailer – still need a truck and driver.  There will be stepstools…

Remember that there are Sedro-Woolley t-shirts and sweatshirts at Oliver Hammer and Rite Aid. 

See you all soon!!

 

Judy J.

 
Check out the downtown cam!

http://www.ci.sedro-woolley.wa.us/Home/main.htm  

 

 

Loggerodeo Parade Stars Class of 1971!!

Here we are at the Loggerodeo Parade on our "float"!  This is a flatbed trailer procured for us by Donna Flack Beland (thanks!) and decorated, hayed, and pulled by JB Bryson (thanks!).  This is a BIG TRADITION in Sedro-Woolley - classes having a reunion are expected to have a parade entry.  For major reunions this is de rigueur.  But any class can have a parade entry - that class of 1964 always seems to be in it!!

22 intrepid members of the Class of 71 turned out for the event:  JB Bryson, Sue Ann Butt Bryson, Susy Thompson Sanders, Shirley Hooper Knapp, Susan Parker Swetman, Donna Flack Beland, Joel Woiwod, Darlene Comstock Woiwod, Brad Warfield, Frank Handy, Sally Hendricks Tucker, Judy Johnson, Keith Sorestad, Mark Stendal, Bob Stiles, Dennis Talley, Jim Kallio, Debra Wagar Kallio, Paula Wilcox Brunn, Leilani Waidelich Morrison, Dale Huggins, and we picked up John Hunter en route!

Here are a few photos.  I'm expecting more...

Waiting for the parade to start!

Waving to all the people! 

This last photo is our view from the parade - of beautiful Hammer Heritage Square in downtown Sedro-Woolley!  At the intersection of Ferry and Metcalf.  Were you there?

Monthly Coffee Hour - Jan. 25th - change of place!

Class of 71 will have our monthly coffee hour on Tuesday, January 25th, at Starbucks - the one at the Cook Road exit off I-5 (exit 232). We normally meet at Common Ground in Burlington, but they have decided to close at 5 p.m. on weeknights during the winter months. So for January and February, we're moving to the Cook Road Starbucks. After that, we'll get back to our regular schedule at Common Ground.



We have found contact info for 114 class members so far! You know why we're looking...because of our 40-year reunion July 9th!!! If you aren't "found" yet, contact us via this blog!

And start thinking about our Loggerodeo parade entry - plan on riding in the parade this year!

Also up next week - the Sedro-Woolley High School Alumni Association meets Wednesday the 26th at 1 p.m. at the S-W Senior Center.

Photo from July 4th

Who is this strong guy loading a chain saw carving? A Class of 71 member, of course!

Looking back - thinking ahead

I had coffee with Shirley (Hooper) Knapp yesterday and we agreed that we all need to start thinking ahead to 2011 (!) when we have our 40-year reunion...and will need an entry for the Loggerodeo parade.

Is a flatbed trailer with hay bales good enough for Class of 71? Or should we plan on doing something better? Not only better than that but better than the other classes! There are usually 4-5 graduating class entries in the parade. The class years that are having a reunion, plus Class of 64, who has an entry every year. They're pretty organized.

Will we even be able to get hay bales in the traditional shape in 2011? Or will they all be round by then? Will any of us be able to lift a bale of hay?

We have some things to consider. Don't wait too long. At our age, it takes a while to rub those brain cells together.

Here are a couple of photos to close. One is the official Loggerodeo float in the parade, featuring the "bucking logging truck" chain saw sculpture. It was great.

The other is a downtown shot I took yesterday while meeting up with Shirley. Clouds have moved in to Sedro-Woolley but we love the cloud cover and a little rain this time of year. Much needed.

Chain Saw Carving - JB's event at Loggerodeo

Stopped at the Chainsaw Carving event today and there was an auction in progress! JB Bryson was the spotter for the auctioneer and also the person who wrestled out the pieces for auction. This was from the "quick carve" competition. More carving Saturday and Sunday!

Here's JB spotting those bidders:








































JB's truck but I'm not sure if this is his Harley or not.

From the Work in Progress division - with a young boy getting a perfect view:

Remember that chain saw carving makes MOUNTAINS of sawdust:

For these pieces, I did not get the artists' names. Sorry.

Happy eagle and friend:

And what's a good chain saw carving competition without a bear? Or two!

Loggerodeo prep update

Here is another photo of a downtown flower basket, for those of you who are following the saga.

This one is on Metcalf and State in front of Wells Fargo bank. Red, white, and blue. Unlike mine at home, which turned out red, white, and purple.

I haven't been to Burlington yet to check on theirs.

Also, they're going to run the "log" on July 11th this year. Historically, it was dropped in the river at Concrete on July 4th (early!) and floated down the river to the Skagit River bridge in S-W. An accompanying boat of log trackers followed it and clocked the exact time. There are rules about what to do if it gets caught in drifting brush or an eddy. The person who buys a ticket and guesses the exact hours, minutes, and seconds from bridge to bridge wins a cash prize! So we're all gauging the height and flow of the river this time of year. But it is harder and harder to find people willing to miss the entire July 4th celebration in town and sit on a boat in the river, watching that log. So the log drive has been moved to July 11th. This log on a trailer pops up in different spots around town - just for visibility, I think.

Finally, a photo showing the ballot box at the Post Office which is always there. We have red, white, and blue in our town all year long.

Getting Ready for Loggerodeo

We are approaching Loggerodeo season! So the red, white, and blue decorations are coming out and you can see things happening around town. The carnival is setting up at Riverfront Park - the first time in that venue ever. The carnival has always been somewhere around the downtown core, but this year the carnival and the fireworks on July 4th will be at the park.

There are also some very big logs staged in the parking lot at the corner of Murdock and State, where the chain saw carving events will be held. I think that JB Bryson had something to do with getting these logs. It is harder and harder each year to procure logs the size we need for the large, elaborate carvings that competitors make. Due both to the size required and to the value of the logs. Chain saw carving is one of the great events of Loggerodeo and we're glad to continue the tradition.

There was an article in the Skagit Valley Herald recently regarding the town's hanging baskets. We have them, they seem a little small (well, it's early in the season), and we're so grateful to Les Schwab employees who volunteer to care for them. But Burlington has baskets, too, and they have been trash-talking S-W a little about these baskets. Burlington thinks theirs are better. So here's a photo of a typical basket in S-W. I haven't been over to get a photo of the ones in Burlington, but they are nice. The S-W ones seem to be all different colors, except for the baskets lining Metcalf, which are all red, white, and blue. And there are fewer baskets this year; none in the 300 block of Ferry.

This basket is on State and Third Streets (Third goes to the high school). Photo faces east.

In other news, I bought some "blue" petunias at a local, unnamed, store for my own hanging baskets and they turned out purple. So I have red geraniums, white somethings, and purple petunias. Looks like I'll put a blue ribbon in each basket this year and be done.

Tuesday, June 30th, Class of 71 will have our monthly coffee hour as a pot luck dinner at Gary Rothenbuhler's house in Sedro-Woolley. We did it last year and it was so much fun it became an instant tradition! Wouldn't you rather be there in person than read about it here? Come on down!

Photo: Dollar Spree moved across the street to the former "Stonehedge" or "SW Floral" location this week. There's a flower basket on that globed lamppost. Coconut Kenny's (great place to eat) is on the right. Mural (sort of facing the post office) is on the left. I took this photo while driving...this is on Metcalf, the main street downtown.

Note: Blogspot is not a WYSIWYG application, so I have a heck of a time getting all these photos and the text to line up. Forgive me if it's a little choppy. JJJ

2011 - our 40-year class reunion

2011 is just around the corner! Considering that we are already discussing the presidential election in 2012...exhausting, isn't it?

Class of 71 will be having a 40-year extravaganza in 2011 and here is something to think about:

Historically, SWHS classes had their reunions in August (I'm talking in the olden days, maybe 20 years ago). In the current times, more classes, including ours, have reunions closer to the 4th of July. Many people like to come to SW for Loggerodeo activities, and it could be convenient to have our reunion around that time.

July 4th falls on a Monday in 2011. That will be the day of the Loggerodeo Parade and Class of 71 will want to be in it!

The second Saturday in July is the 9th, and that is probably the date of the SWHS Alumni Association All-Class Picnic.

Some classes have been holding their reunions the same day or weekend as the all-class picnic. They reserve the small shelter at Riverfront Park (the all-class picnic uses the large shelter) and continue the festivities after 4 p.m. when the all-class picnic is over.

If we would prefer to have the reunion event closer to the 4th of July, we need to look at July 2 and/or 3.

Or go out to August or another time.

Just a few things to consider. It's not an emergency - yet! I'll be happy to compile people's opinions and suggestions about this and we can come to a decision later.