Get the champers ready for top reunion
Win fizz at high school night
The organiser of a school reunion is offering a prize for the person who can track down the most people who used to attend Rutherglen High.
David Lang wants to bring together hundreds of former pupils on March 9 at Rutherglen Town Hall to recall their school days. But he has encountered one problem, with women who have married proving hard to track down. He is now offering up a quality bottle of champagne to the person who can track down the most former pupils between January 31 and February 28, with the winner being presented with their bottle on the night. David said: “The biggest problem we have got is the fact the Friends Reunited website is no longer there. “Because of that, trying to contact some of the girls who had been at the school has been tricky because many of them will be married and no longer have their maiden name. “I have spent hours on Facebook trying to track people down, but it’s difficult if they only use their married name.”
Despite that, plans for the evening are progressing well with around 200 people signing up to the mailing list for information.
Property developer David. 66, actually bought the Melrose Avenue building that was the old academy in 2001 after it was put up for sale by South Lanarkshire Council.
He then transformed the iconic structure, which went on to be the main building for Stonelaw High until 1998, into 36 flats as well as building around 60 new homes on the site and even took the old gym hall floor for his own home when they were lifting it.
Initially the night was planned to be for pupils who had attended the school in the years leading up to its closure, but he has extended that to include all former pupils.
And some have plans to attend from far afield. “One man is coming from the USA and the day after there is a Rangers-Celtic game,” he explained. “He’s a Rangers fan so he’s looking forward to that as well.
“He’s making a whole holiday out of coming for this.
“We had a few calls at the beginning from people who didn’t attend between 1965 and 1970 who wanted to come so we decided to open it up.
“When I first started, I was thinking about all the people I could remember and started with maybe a dozen and then within a week I had 40. It’s amazing what you can remember.
“This is all about seeing what people have been up too, what they have done.
“The vast majority have lost touch with their old school friends but a lot have never moved away from the wider Rutherglen area and quite a few have ended up marrying pupils.
“Remember, even if you don’t recognise me, there might be people you knew who are going, so get in touch.”
David is being helped by an organising committee which includes his sister, Connie Young.
The reunion is open to anyone who attended Rutherglen Academy up until its closure.
Tickets cost £25 and include a buffet and some drinks.
They can be bought from www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/ rutherglen-academy-reunion-tickets-39191827812.
Trying to contact some of the girls who had been at the school has been tricky- David