Alumni Day set for July 14 at Pea Ridge High

Pea Ridge High School Alumni Day is from 9 a.m. - 2 p.m. Saturday, July 14, at the cafeteria of Pea Ridge High School on West Pickens Street. The annual Alumni Day, sponsored by the PRHS Alumni Association, brings together graduates of Pea Ridge High School from all years, as well as other former students, teachers, administrators, school employees and school bus drivers. During the years since the 2006 organization of the Alumni Association, the Alumni Day reunion has developed a tradition of recognizing the graduating classes of 25 years ago, 50 years ago and 75 years ago. This year those will be the graduating classes of 1987, 1962 and 1937. Also, several prizes will be given away during the day, with drawings at the top of each hour.

Coffee and donuts will be available when the high school building and cafeteria open for registration at 9 a.m. on Saturday morning, July 14. Everyone is invited to come for visiting, renewing old acquaintances, catching up on news from old friends and learning about recent developments involving Pea Ridge schools. Before lunch, the Alumni will elect three, possibly four, new members of the Alumni Association Board. Lunch will be served, beginning at 11:30, with food provided by Pizza Hut of Pea Ridge.

Each year, several of the graduating classes use the Alumni Day weekend to hold their individual class reunions, and the Alumni Association both encourages those gatherings and offers to help arrange them. For example, the class of 1958 has held reunions every five years since 1958, and currently is holding a reunion every year around Alumni Day. The Alumni Association especially appreciates receiving class member lists and addresses for each of the graduating classes. The size of PRHS graduating classes has varied from as few as six in early years to the approximately 100 graduating seniors of the class of 2012. This years’ 75-year class, the class of 1937, was a large class for its day; and several of the members of that class are living today. The oldest known living PRHS graduate is Pauline Webb Foster, a member of the class of 1931, which was the first class to graduate from the new 1930 school building.

Alumni returning to Pea Ridge for July 14 will have an opportunity to reminisce by visiting the School Heritage Building on the downtown school campus. Those who attended Pea Ridge School in the 1930s will remember the building as the Agri/Shop Building. Those who came to school in the 1940s, 1950s and early 1960s will remember it as the Hot Lunch Room. Later it served as a general classroom, as school counselor’s office, Art Room and later as the headquarters of the S.E.E.K. program.

The building is being leased by the Pea Ridge Historical Society, and will operate in conjunction with the museum across the street, with displays highlighting the history of Pea Ridge schools. At the same time, visitors will have opportunity to see the progress on the renovations and new additions to the Pea Ridge Intermediate School on the downtown campus.

For information, contact Jamie Cotton at 619-8862, John Lasater at jlasater@ arvest.com or 366-6340, Jerry Nichols at joe369@ centurytel.net or 621-1621 or Linda Schooley at 640-7928.