Included in the photo from L-R
Back row: Ray Ellis, Rob Hitchon, Pam (McDonell) Skinner, Darrin Heasman, Julia (Haggerty) Gosson, Kelly (Barrett) Beaudrie, Cheryl (McGuinn) Johnston, Christa (Fricke) Bashall.
Middle Row: Kathy Latchford, Deb Clare, Amber Clarke, Kim (Musson) Sampson, Liz Geen, Karen (Locke) Symons, Rhonda (Whiteman) Garrett.
Front Row: Scott Symons, Doug Holt. (Photo: submitted).
Calling all Chargers! Centennial Secondary School marks their 50th anniversary in 2017 and they want all alumni to participate in the celebration. “Put the date in your calendars now”, says 50th Reunion Committee Co-Chairs Elizabeth Geen and Amber Clarke, who noted the event will run from Thurs May 11th through Sun May 14th, 2017. “Even if you can’t attend everything, we hope to see you at some point over the weekend.”
The planning committee, which consists of graduates from throughout the last 5 decades, has been working on putting together the 4 day event for the past 2 years. Registration opens on Thursday, May 11th and continues throughout Friday and Saturday in the lobby of the school. Previously ordered packages, tickets and swag can all be picked up at this location throughout the weekend.
Centennial’s Principal and Charger Alum, Kim (Musson) Sampson announced that “Friday’s festivities will integrate the students of today with their predecessors when the school hosts the opening ceremonies, a pep rally, and rugby game.” Sampson also noted that “we’ll be taking the opportunity to honor the past athletes of the year before cheering on our present day Chargers to a win.” Friday evening the school will remain open for attendees and their families to tour the ‘Decade Rooms’, reminisce about the days gone by, and sit in on the Open Mic Cafe.
Celebrations continue on Saturday with a fun filled family day in the gym and out on the fields, leading up to a sit down dinner and dance on the Saturday night. This age of majority event will be held at Wally Dever Arena where local band The Far Side will play. Sunday morning brunch and salute to Mother’s Day will be followed up with closing ceremonies and recognition of all the Valedictorians over the last half century.
Sponsorship opportunities are available for businesses looking to reach the 1,000 plus expected attendees. “The intent of the sponsorships,” said Clarke “is to help cover expenses so we the alumni can make a donation back to the school.” Technology upgrades, a new library, and overall improvements to the facilities are just a few of the items on the school’s wish list and the reunion committee would like very much to raise the funds necessary to make it all happen. “It would be an incredible legacy to leave for the Chargers of tomorrow,” agreed Geen.
All event information can be found on the reunion’s website www.css50anniversary.com or by searching Charger Pride on FaceBook. Make sure to monitor these sites regularly to stay up to date on hotel information, event details and to reconnect with long lost classmates. Tickets and merchandise can now be purchased through the website using your PayPal account so make your reservation today! Spots for the dinner are limited. And for more info on sponsorships, comment under the Sponsors tab on the website or email gossonjulia@gmail.com .
