The following is the "Welcome/Thank you" speech given by Sue Hall Johnson after the dinner on the second night of reunion activities for the class of 1963, Fargo Central High School, July 12, 2013:
On behalf of the planning committee for our 50th reunion, I thank you all for being here. I haven't been to a reunion of our class in 30 years, but during this past year, as I got involved in working with the committee --and I have to thank my good friend, Marcia Anderson Nelson, for persisting in getting me involved, because it's been a wonderful experience--I found how much I was enjoying reconnecting with those who have been working on the reunions of the past, and those reconnections spurred my anticipation of getting together with all of you who've come. I've only been to one other reunion... several of you are here for your 1st ever...and all of this got me thinking...what brings us back, especially after 50 years, to reconnect with each other and relive the memories of those angst-filled teenage years?
Many of you grew up in Fargo, attending elementary school and junior high together and some of us didn't come into the mix until we came to Fargo High. Those 3 years that we spent together in that iconic building...and Fargo Central High School still sparks interest (pun not intended!) in this community because of it's history in this town and the spectacular way in which it met its demise. Those 3 years were only 4.4% of our lives to this point, and yet for some compelling reason, we come together to celebrate having been graduates of Fargo Central High School. I don't think we can say those 3 years made us what we are today, but it was during that time that our hopes and dreams for the future started taking shape. It was a pretty interesting time of life.
This class of ours is an exceptional class. It always has been. We have such a wide variety of careers and family experiences and interests, and I am just amazed by you...how you've lived your lives...how you've handled the joys as well as the difficulties and tragic losses that have come to many...and I don't know the half of it, of course. Many of us have stayed close to home, completing our education, building our careers, raising our families, serving our communities...others have done all those things half way across the country or halfway around the world.
I'm amazed by all of you...where you've been and what you've done. I've kept track of your careers; I've read your books; I've followed your travel experiences. Many of you have had such exceptional experiences...you've stood on the Great Wall of China and visited Antarctica and Borneo, and you've climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro and viewed Earth from hundreds of miles in space. When we were kids...50 years ago...did we ever imagine doing such things?
But whatever you've done in life and wherever you've gone, you've come back here to Fargo to join in our 50th reunion. Many of us have maintained close friendships through all these years; many feel only marginally acquainted, but whatever the depth of our connections, we all came back because we share the honor of being members of the class of 1963 of Fargo Central High School.
...and If you sang with me in Acapella,
or if you dissected a frog with me in biology,
or if you took me to Homecoming,
or if you simply sat beside me in English class,
you were important in my life.
And even if you don't remember me, we share a common bond in that we are members of this extraordinary class...
And maybe that's all it takes to bring us back together again.
You've heard that this is our 50th and last reunion, but at our age it's a little depressing to think that whatever we're doing is the last time we'll do it! So let's keep our options open. The class of '61 had such a good time at their 50th that they are coming back together this summer to celebrate their 70th birthdays. I hope at this stage of life that we're looking forward to the future and still adding things to our bucket lists.
So have a great time for the rest of our reunion. Thank you for coming. Let's keep up the reconnections we've made this week. And wherever you are in life, I hope you all feel proud to be a member of the class of 1963 from Fargo Central High School.
On behalf of the planning committee for our 50th reunion, I thank you all for being here. I haven't been to a reunion of our class in 30 years, but during this past year, as I got involved in working with the committee --and I have to thank my good friend, Marcia Anderson Nelson, for persisting in getting me involved, because it's been a wonderful experience--I found how much I was enjoying reconnecting with those who have been working on the reunions of the past, and those reconnections spurred my anticipation of getting together with all of you who've come. I've only been to one other reunion... several of you are here for your 1st ever...and all of this got me thinking...what brings us back, especially after 50 years, to reconnect with each other and relive the memories of those angst-filled teenage years?
Many of you grew up in Fargo, attending elementary school and junior high together and some of us didn't come into the mix until we came to Fargo High. Those 3 years that we spent together in that iconic building...and Fargo Central High School still sparks interest (pun not intended!) in this community because of it's history in this town and the spectacular way in which it met its demise. Those 3 years were only 4.4% of our lives to this point, and yet for some compelling reason, we come together to celebrate having been graduates of Fargo Central High School. I don't think we can say those 3 years made us what we are today, but it was during that time that our hopes and dreams for the future started taking shape. It was a pretty interesting time of life.
This class of ours is an exceptional class. It always has been. We have such a wide variety of careers and family experiences and interests, and I am just amazed by you...how you've lived your lives...how you've handled the joys as well as the difficulties and tragic losses that have come to many...and I don't know the half of it, of course. Many of us have stayed close to home, completing our education, building our careers, raising our families, serving our communities...others have done all those things half way across the country or halfway around the world.
I'm amazed by all of you...where you've been and what you've done. I've kept track of your careers; I've read your books; I've followed your travel experiences. Many of you have had such exceptional experiences...you've stood on the Great Wall of China and visited Antarctica and Borneo, and you've climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro and viewed Earth from hundreds of miles in space. When we were kids...50 years ago...did we ever imagine doing such things?
But whatever you've done in life and wherever you've gone, you've come back here to Fargo to join in our 50th reunion. Many of us have maintained close friendships through all these years; many feel only marginally acquainted, but whatever the depth of our connections, we all came back because we share the honor of being members of the class of 1963 of Fargo Central High School.
...and If you sang with me in Acapella,
or if you dissected a frog with me in biology,
or if you took me to Homecoming,
or if you simply sat beside me in English class,
you were important in my life.
And even if you don't remember me, we share a common bond in that we are members of this extraordinary class...
And maybe that's all it takes to bring us back together again.
You've heard that this is our 50th and last reunion, but at our age it's a little depressing to think that whatever we're doing is the last time we'll do it! So let's keep our options open. The class of '61 had such a good time at their 50th that they are coming back together this summer to celebrate their 70th birthdays. I hope at this stage of life that we're looking forward to the future and still adding things to our bucket lists.
So have a great time for the rest of our reunion. Thank you for coming. Let's keep up the reconnections we've made this week. And wherever you are in life, I hope you all feel proud to be a member of the class of 1963 from Fargo Central High School.