REMINDER: Upcoming Alumni Banquet
The alumni banquet is almost here, and this year’s gathering has all the right ingredients: good food, familiar faces, honor class recognition, school memories, live music, old game tapes, and a chance to help shape what comes next.
Please make plans to attend this Saturday, beginning at 5:30 p.m., at the High School Cafeteria, located at 500 N Main Street, Mt. Vernon, SD 57363.
This is more than a dinner. It is a night to reconnect, remember, laugh, listen, and take part in the future of the Alumni Association. Whether it has been years since stepping into the school or the hallways still feel familiar, everyone is encouraged to come and be part of the evening.
Here is what to look forward to at this year’s banquet, and why it would mean so much to see a big crowd.
1. The evening begins with a social hour
The night will start with a social hour, giving everyone time to arrive, settle in, and catch up before dinner begins.
For many alumni, this may be the best part of the night. It is the time when people spot an old classmate across the room, compare stories, ask about families, and remember moments that may not have crossed their minds in years.
There is no need to wait for a formal program to begin visiting. Come in, find friends, introduce yourself to people from other years, and enjoy the chance to reconnect.
A few simple ways to make the most of the social hour:
Look for classmates from your own graduating year.
Say hello to alumni from nearby classes.
Bring up favorite teachers, teams, plays, concerts, clubs, or school traditions.
Welcome anyone who may be attending for the first time in a while.
Help introduce people who may not know each other.
A banquet like this works best when people do not stay in small circles all night. The more everyone mixes and visits, the more meaningful the evening becomes.
Practical tip: Arrive close to 5:30 p.m. so there is plenty of time to visit before dinner and the welcome.
2. Dinner and the welcome will bring everyone together
After the social hour, the evening will move into dinner and a welcome.
Dinner gives the banquet its central gathering point. It is the part of the night when everyone sits down together, shares a meal, and begins to feel the larger connection across classes and generations.
The welcome will help set the tone for the rest of the evening. It will recognize why everyone has gathered and guide the group into the honor class recognition, remarks, meeting, music, and discussion to follow.
Here is the general flow of the evening:
Part of the evening | What to expect |
Social hour | Time to visit, reconnect, and greet old friends |
Dinner and welcome | A shared meal and opening remarks |
Honor class recognition | Special recognition for milestone classes |
Remarks | Comments from Sabrina Strand, plus letters |
Alumni Association meeting | Updates, ideas, discussion, and planning |
Music and memories | Live music and old game tapes throughout the night |
School tours | Offered upon request |
This schedule gives the night a good balance. There will be time to visit, time to listen, time to honor classmates, and time to talk about the future.
Practical tip: If attending with a group, make plans ahead of time to meet at the cafeteria so everyone can sit together or nearby.
3. Honor classes will receive special recognition
One of the highlights of the banquet will be the honor class recognition.
This year, the banquet will recognize the following classes:
Class of 1966
Class of 1976
Class of 1986
Class of 1996
Class of 2006
Class of 2016
Class of 2027
These classes represent many different chapters in the school’s history. Each group has its own stories, traditions, friendships, and memories. Some remember handwritten assignments and letter jackets. Others remember changing technology, updated classrooms, and newer school traditions. All of them are part of the same larger alumni story.
Recognizing honor classes also gives the rest of the room a chance to appreciate the years that have passed and the connections that remain. It is always special to see classmates stand together, hear their year announced, and feel the response from the room.
For the Class of 1966, this gathering carries a deep sense of history. For the Class of 2027, it looks toward the future. Including both in the same evening is a reminder that alumni tradition does not belong to only one generation. It grows when every class stays connected.
Practical tip: If you belong to one of the honor classes, encourage as many classmates as possible to attend. Even a few extra people from each class can make the recognition feel more complete.
4. Sabrina Strand will share remarks and letters
After the honor class recognition, Sabrina Strand will share remarks with the group.
The remarks will include a letter from a 1966 graduate, which will bring a personal voice from one of this year’s honored classes. Letters like this often say what many people feel but may not always put into words. They can capture what school meant at the time, what friendships carried forward, and how a hometown connection can last for decades.
There will also be a letter from Committee Member Doug Mueller. This will add another meaningful part to the evening and help connect the work of the committee with the people gathered in the room.
These moments matter because they give the banquet more than a schedule. They give it a voice. Alumni events are built on shared memory, but they also depend on people taking the time to speak, write, organize, and show up.
The remarks and letters will help bring those pieces together.
Practical tip: Listen for names, stories, and ideas that spark memories of your own. Those memories may be worth sharing later during the public discussion or with friends at your table.
5. Craig Youngstrom will provide live music and old game tapes
Music and memories will be a big part of the evening.
Craig Youngstrom will perform live music during dinner and again after the meeting. Live music can change the whole feel of a room. It gives people something to enjoy during dinner, adds warmth to the evening, and keeps the gathering lively after the formal portions are finished.
Craig will also bring in old game tapes, which will run throughout the night.
For many alumni, those tapes may become one of the most enjoyable parts of the banquet. Old games can bring back names, teams, cheers, uniforms, rivalries, gym sounds, and moments people have not thought about in a long time. Even people who were not on the team often remember the feeling of being in the stands, riding the bus, playing in the band, cheering with friends, or gathering after a big game.
Game tapes have a special way of pulling people toward the same screen. Someone spots a player. Someone else remembers the score. Another person points out a coach, a classmate, or a moment that still makes them smile.
That kind of shared remembering is exactly what an alumni banquet should create.
Practical tip: If you see someone you recognize on an old tape, say something. It may start one of the best conversations of the night.
6. The Alumni Association meeting will look toward the future
The banquet will also include an Alumni Association meeting. This part of the night is important because it gives alumni a chance to talk about where the group goes next.
The meeting will include discussion about several topics:
Possible new committee members
Suggestions on how to grow the banquet
Introduction of the new website
Updates to the alumni directory
Possible movement of the Alumni Banquet weekend
Public discussion and suggestions
Each of these topics matters.
New committee members can help carry the work forward. A stronger banquet can bring more people back each year. A new website can make updates easier to find and share. An accurate alumni directory can help classmates reconnect. A discussion about the banquet weekend can help the group think carefully about timing and attendance.
The meeting will also open at the end for public discussion and suggestions. Even better, everyone is encouraged to speak up at any time during the meeting itself. That means ideas do not need to wait until the final minutes.
If someone has a suggestion, question, concern, or offer to help, this is the right setting to share it.
The Alumni Association belongs to the alumni community. It grows stronger when more people take part, even in small ways.
Practical tip: Come with one idea. It could be a way to reach classmates, improve communication, encourage younger alumni to attend, add to the banquet program, or make the weekend easier for travelers.
7. School tours will be offered upon request
For anyone who would like to walk through the school, tours will be offered upon request.
This is a great chance to revisit familiar spaces or see what is new, especially since many alumni graduated before the new school was built. For some alumni, the building may bring back clear memories the moment they step into a hallway. Others may be curious about classrooms, common areas, the cafeteria, the gym, or other spaces tied to their school years.
A tour can also be meaningful for spouses, family members, and guests who did not attend the school but have heard stories about it for years. Seeing the place in person gives those stories a setting.
Tours can be simple, but they often lead to strong memories:
A favorite classroom
A locker area
A gym entrance
A hallway where everyone gathered
A place tied to a teacher, coach, concert, game, or club
The school building holds many different memories for many different people. Walking through it again can make the evening feel even more personal.
Practical tip: If you would like a tour, ask during the evening. If others nearby are interested, go together and share stories as you walk.
8. A big crowd will make the night even better
The biggest request is simple: please come, and please remind your friends and old classmates to come too.
An alumni banquet feels different when the room is full. Conversations last longer. Honor classes feel better represented. Music has more energy. Old game tapes get more reactions. Public discussion includes more ideas. The evening becomes less of a program and more of a true reunion.
A strong turnout also sends a clear message that alumni traditions still matter. It shows support for the committee members who help plan the event, the people who prepare the space, the musicians and speakers who contribute, and the classmates who make the effort to attend.
If there is someone who may not have heard about the banquet, reach out. A quick call, text, or message can make the difference.
Good reminders are simple:
“The alumni banquet is this Saturday at 5:30 p.m.”
“It’s at the High School Cafeteria.”
“Our class is being honored this year.”
“Craig Youngstrom will have live music and old game tapes.”
“They’re asking for input about the banquet and the Alumni Association.”
“Let’s get a group together and go.”
Some people wait to be invited. Some assume no one will notice if they come. Some simply forget until it is too late. A personal reminder helps.
Practical tip: Think of three classmates or friends right now and invite them. A bigger crowd starts with small personal reminders.
The top pick for the night is showing up
If there is one best reason to attend, it is this: showing up keeps the connection alive.
The banquet will include dinner, a welcome, honor class recognition, remarks from Sabrina Strand, letters from a 1966 graduate and Committee Member Doug Mueller, an Alumni Association meeting, public discussion, live music from Craig Youngstrom, old game tapes, and school tours upon request.
That is a full evening. More than that, it is a chance to be part of the school’s ongoing story.
Join everyone this Saturday at 5:30 p.m. at the High School Cafeteria, 500 N Main Street, Mt. Vernon, SD 57363. Bring a friend, call a classmate, gather your group, and help make this year’s banquet a big one.
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