‘Everyone’s important’ to reunion organizers

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This article was published 24/09/2015 (3900 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

You don’t need a Delorean to take a trip back your glory days. All you need is a ticket.

On Oct. 24, the River East Collegiate Class of 1990 will come together for a 25th anniversary reunion at CanadInns Polo Park for a night of cocktails and catching up. A few moves will surely be busted out on the dancefloor, too.

“I was always thought our class was special,” Daniel MacNeil, a former member of student council and currently one of the reunion organizers, said over a cup of coffee.

That’s a sentiment that Calvin Moore, MacNeil’s classmate and fellow reunion organizer, shares.

“It was a good group of well-rounded students who were a lot of fun,” said Moore, a Valley Gardens resident who teaches in the River East Transcona School Division. “There were a lot of clean cut kids who were there to learn and get along.”

Even though today Facebook allows people an unprecedented ability to keep track of their peers, MacNeil, along with two of his former student council classmates Calvin Moore and Christy Cessford, are hoping that a good chunk of their grad class of 400 will make it out on Oct. 24 to reconnect in person.

“Response is going good, so far,” Cessford said, though she admitted it was “slower than I would like. But Winnipeggers are notoriously last minute.”

“I’ve reached out to some people who I haven’t really stayed in touch with and hopefully they can make it,” said Moore.

While it may seem like half a lifetime ago that Moore was driving his mom’s 1975 Maverick to River East, he, MacNeil and Cessford all spoke fondly of their time at the school. Ski and varsity sports trips were big events, and “gym riots” and a talent show still stick out in their memories.

“It’s that age, right?” MacNeil said. “I think that naturally brings people together. People found meaning in things so intensely at that time in their lives. So getting together again is going to be kind of neat.” 

“Even though we had the typical cliques in our graduating class, there were a lot of people who were between them, everyone got along,” MacNeil added.

“Everyone’s important to our class,” Moore added. “It would suck if people felt they weren’t remembered, or they weren’t important. We want to make it a very positive night for everyone.”

While some details are still being ironed out, guests at the REC Class of 1990 reunion can expect an evening of cocktails and appetizers.

“We’ll have some introductory speeches, a look back at some fond memories, then have a real opportunity for people to mingle and dance, to have those conversations you haven’t had for 25 years,” Moore said.

“We didn’t want a sit-down dinner where people were segregated and separated from each other,” he added. “The natural tendency is to stay with who you know, and that will happen regardless. But we didn’t want to be the ones to start it. We want everyone to be up and mingling.”

There will be also be a DJ spinning hits from the late 80s and early 90s as a soundtrack to the evening.

“There’ll definitely be some New Order, Pet Shop Boys, and Bon Jovi,” Cessford said with a laugh.

Moore, Cessford and MacNeil would encourage anyone who might be apprehensive about taking such a trip down memory lane to put their doubts aside.

“We’re all in the same boat,” Cessford said. “We all don’t look like we did in high school, you know?”

“This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and I think you’re going to regret, on Saturday night, if you don’t go,” Moore said. “Even if you just come for an hour, and see someone you do know, it’s going to be worth it.”

The organizers would also like to extend the invitation to the familiar faces of River East alumni who attended with the 1990 grad class. Check out www.recclassof1990.ca for more information on the event, or to buy tickets.

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