I went to my 50th, graduated in 1957. My regret is that I didn't attend the others, and wished I didn't attend the 50th. Be prepared. Not a waste of time. After dinner, etc. everyone was leaving by 8pm, and some of us went back to the hotel to visit by the pool and drink wine and enjoy. Big change, no surprise in how we all had changed.

Went to my 50th, stayed long enough for a glass of wine and picture taking. Those people weren’t really my friends back then and only a several have been friends throughout my life.

I went back to my 15 year reunion with a revenge mission. I lost a bunch of weight, got a tan, pretty dress, rented a nice car. No one recognized me. I felt like the prettiest one there. I never wanted to go back after that, lol. I would never look that good again. I had a high school friend who died. Her husband who I never met called me a couple years ago and asked me to attend the 45th reunion so he could go talk about how great his wife was. She was picked on much like I was and must have expressed this to him. After listening to him, I decided to make the trip to be his guest as I never got an invitation to the reunion myself. This reunion felt like the B team of attendees. It really was BORING. I just felt good that he got a chance to get what he wanted to say off his chest. He showed pictures and probably was telling people things who did not even remember her.

Despite all the years gone by, I still felt the high school cliques were present in the room. What was so shocking was to see some so called high school jocks and popular girls looking so frumpy.

I don't care to go to any more high school reunions.

Good luck if you go!

glenda- I am confused? you say you regret not having attended the other reunions and then you say you wish you did not attend the 50th. Which is it?

I did not attend the previous reunions, but did attend the 50th. Just wish I had attended the others, instead of the 50th. We've had others since then, and glad I didn't. Such a big change. Hope I clarified, sorry. We all grow old, but accepting the age change vs our high school years is such a big difference. Hope I made it clear :o) The memories of our fun fun high school years, sigh, big sigh.

I graduated in 1975 and my high school celebrated it's 50th Reunion in 2013 over 2 days. I had the greatest time. Some of us had a smaller reunion in 2011 at a neighbourhood bar and then a Facebook group was started for people who grew up in Riverside so we a lot of us met up at the 50th. I met again so many people I hadn't seen in a long time. A lot of them I didn't recognize but they recognized me. Seeing all the teachers that were still alive, I bought a year book I didn't buy when I was in school and then had everyone I met sign it whether they were in my classes or not.

After starting the FB group all those kids we thought were the cliques and the popular kids turned out they had more insecurities than the rest of us did and some of them experienced the same. Some didn't think they were the popular kids at all.

I remain close to most of my high school friends and after the reunion reconnected with so many more that became new friends. I wouldn't hesitate to go again.

How could you have a 50th class reunion if you graduated in 1975?

I have attended most of mine.

Last one was 2017, our 60th.

Our graduating class was 400 and many of us had gone through grade school, Jr. High and high school together.

The gathering was only about 50 or so graduated.

We had a great time talking about all the teachers we had over the years.

A lot of us have kept in touch.

I don’t remember my high school years fondly, with tge exception of the building itself and some wonderful teachers. I graduated in 1961, in a class of over 700 (new HS opened that fall). I had not gone to any until my 50th. My parents moved from this town a year after I graduated, no other family there, no reason to go back.

I decided to go to my 50th out of curiosity and to take my grown daughter with me as my children had never seen wher I lived from ages 8 to 19.

It was interesting. I would not have recognized many of my classmates, they had aged so dramatically. But when they spoke, I recognized their voices instantly. All the cliques were just the same. Most of my classmates never left the town or at least not the state. In some ways, they were frozen in time.

I’m glad I went. I’m glad my DD got to see this extraordinary building, built from 1929-1931 at a cost of $1.8 million dollars, an enormous amount for a small KS townpublic HS. It’s been restored to a great degree an I decided to give money annually to help continue that. It was a privilege to go to such a school.

i won’t go back again. I finished my unfinished business at my 50th. I never fit in there then and I do so even less today. As one woman told me: “You were always so sophisticated and we were just country hicks. We’re still hicks and you’re even more sophisticated now!” We moved there from Kansas City so guess I was already a city girl. Having lived since then from Zmaine to CA and several points in between, and I NYC, Washington DC and LA, I guess I am more sophisticated. I’m not looking my nose down at them - we just have very little in common.

I attended my 55th high school class reunion. We were a class of 50 students, and about half of us had passed away. We thought that was our last one and had been invited to join with a younger class reunion, but then, the organizers managed to pull off one more, the 60th. I attended that one. Those past 5 years had taken its toll on us. Onset of dementia had affected 2 of us. The conversation centered around those who had the fewest aches and pains, and the surprise of whom had unexpectedly out-survived the others.

It was a bittersweet gathering, however, I am glad that I was able to attend.

I attended the 25th. My BF in HS tracked me down and begged me to go. We paired up with 2 other girls that we "ran" with and the 4 of us had a fairly good time together. We stayed in touch for about 3 months, and then drifted right back out of each others lives again.

Many of the cliques were still intact. I didn't play that game 30 years ago, and not going to now.

I've not been to any others, and have no desire to attend any more.

I know I wouldn't remember most of the people. I didn't know most of the people when I was still in high school. My graduating class was over 800 kids.

Like the first poster I went to my 10th. We did not have a 5. I only attended school with those people for 2 years. It was a class of about 200. No one knew me, even after my bff told the who I was, outside my click/'lunch table' pals. I had a bit of the "revenge" going on. I was SHOCKED how the popular girls were all over weight and looking frumpy too!! They all went through the private school circuit for 12 years together so no way I wouldn't be an "outsider". They had their 40th last summer. I do see pictures on our alumni site. That is as close a I need to get. I have one friend who I am in contact weekly from that time of life. I will say my mom still goes to hers. Military took her too far for the first 35 years or so but since then she goes. She graduated in '56 and every 5 years they gather. My dad has never gone with her. They were captain of the football team/homecoming queen, valedictorian/salutatorian of their class of 100. I think there are 10 of them still alive, or that gather. Not sure I comprehend the point of reunions. If you aren't a part of each other's lives you aren't.

I don't have fond memories of my high school years but have been to a couple of reunions...but not the 50th and I'm not sure they even had one.

We moved right before I started high school and to the snootiest town in the area - a serious case of the haves and the have-nots and the right and wrong side of the tracks (the tracks in this case being a hill that divided the exclusive - where Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos currently live - from the plebian). Talk about cliques!! Almost no intermingling between the two and if you hadn't grown up with either, you never really "belonged"!! I have almost no friends from my high school days but still stay in touch with both grade school and college friends. But it was a very good high school and I got an excellent education.....just with very few pleasant memories :-) No way would I want to spend time and lot of $$ to spend an evening with a bunch of virtual strangers I didn't even like back then and who couldn't care a fig about me now!

I enjoy reminiscing about "the old days" but not about specific school events.

I was much too introverted AND shy to be close to many people. The two girls who were my best friends in high school were in military families and moved every 2 or 3 years. Last I heard, both had move way across the country, one didn't even stay long enough to graduate from our school. Although I remember a dozen or so of the most popular kids and a couple influential teachers, I can't find any desire in me to know more about them.

On the other hand, my DH graduated in a much smaller school system. He joined his school's fb group and is now "fb friends" with some people from his graduating class. Two in particular are leading quite interesting lives, leaders in their intellectual field(s).

Neither of my parents were the least bit interested in their reunions, so that apple didn't fall far from the tree!

edited to add: my parents moved away from their home town, and we moved a couple times also. Maybe things would be different if we'd stayed in just one area.

I've not attended one. I keep in touch with my FRIENDS from school -- the rest . . . (but then I was not a popular girl!). I have found there are reunion people and non-reunion people (I'm the latter as are both by husband and daughter). But ours was a big school (600 in our class) and so many people you knew were in the class before or after yours so you wouldn't see them if you went anyway. Our little town (graduation class of around 100 each year) has an all school reunion every five years and it is really a BIG DEAL in our town and yes, lots come "home" for it!

But what is interesting is that those who stayed envy those who left and made something of their life and those who left envy those who stayed and were able to make a living in our little town!

My husband didn't go to any of his reunions either. He had made friends in high school that the friendships lasted a long time after high school. He really didn't care what the others were doing.

About 5 years after he graduated when we were married and in our first house a friend he hung out with a lot in high school called him and wanted to get back together. After graduation their lives took them in separate directions and they hadn't seen each other since school. My hubby was happy to be able to reunite with him. We invited him over to the house one evening. Turns out he didn't want to rekindle the friendship, but just use my hubby. He wanted to sell him life insurance. My husband told him what he thought of him and threw him out of the house.

I went to my 10th reunion just to see what people looked like and find out what happened to all the "popular" girls . It was funny how Age crept up on the cute little cheerleaders of the past

Age? They were only 27 or 28 years old.

My graduating class of 1959 was just 51 students, most of which I started out with in 1st grade. We knew each other well. Every milestone reunion of my class has been well worth being a part of. Those have been held every 5 years, so we have been able to keep involved in each others lives. Sadly, I received an email yesterday saying that there will be no 60th reunion for my class of '59 this year. Not enough interest, so therefore not enough money to support one. Our small school district that was dissolved in the late '60's also holds an all class reunion (all 12 grades were housed in the same building) every May on Memorial Day weekend so the email suggested that all us '59ers attend that and keep our tables together.

Our class president keeps up a class website so that our classmates can keep in touch with each other. How blessed I feel to have grown up in a small town where everyone I went to school with were friends.

I think I attended first one 40th maybe. Invitations were apparently sent but mom never gave them to me which was typical. Reconnected for the 40th. Since our class was only about 30 but most were connected through blood or marriage the majority kept in touch. Couple of years ago someone went searching for me. I went to the 40th because my husband enjoyed his so much. It was interesting to see how the people had changed. The 50th was much better as most were no longer working and they actually talked about what they had done and their current lives. There was some mention of people and things from high school but very few. I was surprised at how many still looked the same at the 50th. There were a few that only the voice was the same. I am fb friends with the guy that was born two hours before me. Because his mother had dementia he helped me through my husband's illness. I would suggest anyone should go simply because life gives us surprises. The playboys became ministers and most of the better looking ones did not age well.

I have never attended any of my class reunions. I am in touch with three of the girls that I was friends with in high school. One of them was my very best friend and we try to get together twice a year at a place that is half way between where we live. I don't have any interest in reuniting with anyone else from those years, although I do hear about them through my three friends.

I think part of my disinterest is because I attended one high school for freshman/sophomore years and a second high school for junior/senior years. That split made it difficult for me to feel a true bond with either class.

We did attend hubby's ten year. It was amazing how much people had physically changed in a ten year period. Many of the men had lost most of their hair and both men and women were starting to look frumpy.

I've only been invited to the first one. I did order a booklet from the reunion, that I never received. Never got another invitation. Neither of my high school friends go to the reunions, so I wouldn't have anyone to talk to except for maybe one person, who I was friends with in grade school. I reconnected with her on Facebook and a few years ago met her in her new little town when my kids and I went to visit my dad. I lived in the town I graduated from since 5th grade so knew a lot of the kids over the years but was very shy and weren't friends with them. I went back to see my dad last February for a short stay and one of my high school friends met me for a movie and lunch. We were talking about high school and I looked around us, and said I wouldn't recognize any of our classmates even if they were here right now.

My 50th will be this summer and we will absolutely go. I don't get up to central NY state very often anymore but enjoy it when I do. Great bunch of people in my class and I was never aware of a clique problem. I was friends with all kinds of people back then and still feel the same today.

Sephia, the school was 50, the reunion was for all the years

I was wondering about that too. It was the 50th anniversary, not 50th reunion.

I've been to mine decade by decade. Many people have left town and scattered geographically (as I have) and it's nice to visit. I only have a few long-term friends from those years but it's nice to see some of the others. Way back then, as now, you'll never like everyone in a large group but there should always be some.

Why wouldn't you go?

Mine seem to be held every 10 years. I went the the 10th, maybe one more? And last year I went to the Friday night no host social but not the main event the following day, we were already committed to something else the rest of the weekend. (my reunion coincided with 8 here from Croatia for the month) It was fun, I enjoyed the people I talked to and caught up with. I got to see a girl I was close to in junior high, was surprised to find her divorced and married to someone else from our class, a very nice guy. My reunions haven't been awful, or special.

DH's are the opposite. His class was and is still the largest class to have ever graduated from his high school, more than 500. So many still stay connected, are interested in each other. Reunions every 5 years and still the same good attendance at 40, 45, 50 years later. He's helped organize a couple (reluctantly ;0) and out of that number, there are very few unaccounted for, missing addresses or ways to contact, or sadly, notices of deaths and that list is growing longer. I've actually enjoyed his more than my own.

When I go to a class reunion, I feel lucky and blessed when I hear the names read of those already dead who can no longer attend a class reunion. Growing up in the country outside a small town, I attended the community junior high school until I transferred to the high school located in town. I made friends with some of the new people in high school but when I go to reunions, I am always interested in those I went to school with in junior high school. They have been my friends since we started school. They were neighbors, people from my church, cousins. We have known each other nearly all of our lives--we have history. They have a special place in my heart and I am glad that I am able to meet them once again.

I went to mine and had a great time. It was somewhat shocking though to see the shape of some. It made me realize that I need to count my blessings!

I am close to a lot of my high school friends, We always have fun at our reunions.

We had our 50th last spring. Many traveled from across the country to attend their first one. Some thought that they would not be be remembered, they were. And had a grand time.

I went to my 20 year high school and 20 year college reunions. There were about the same number (500, I think) in both classes, as I went to a small private university - with a friend from high school. At the HS reunion, I got to see people I knew and wanted to see again, but I've not had the desire to attend any more HS reunions, especially since the school is in Texas and I'm in California now. The pretty girls in HS were still pretty 20 years later - the guys not so much - and so I was much more popular with the pretty women than I was when we were in HS.

I kept in touch with many more people that I went to university with, and a group of us got together on our own for our own reunion party. I'm only still in contact with about three or four people I went to college with - one I still travel with and see fairly frequently. My best friend died before 40, which was sad, and I had kept in close contact with him after college. We used to play tennis in various parks in San Francisco, which is where we both lived after college.

I would consider going to my university 50th reunion, but not my HS. Most of the people from my HS stayed in Texas; most from my university did not, but then many of them were not from Texas in the first place. I only know one person with whom I graduated from university who still lives in Texas, and he is in San Antonio, where he grew up, and the university is in Houston.

I was in a very large class also, but had transferred in from another district and, being a very quiet and shy type, never felt really comfortable there (some due to my own personality, and some do to issues with the school tracking me inappropriately because I came from a more rural district), and had only 2 real friends and very few acquaintances that I ever socialized with either in or out of class.. Both friends I lost touch with as we took varied paths after graduation. I've no one that I want to catch up with. I don't feel nostalgic about my time in high school.

Now, the group of kids that I had been with from early elementary school to the time I moved? I might like to see how they all turned out, but then again, we had very little high school in common and never kept in touch after I moved, either.

Never felt I fit in and so never had an interest in seeing people again. I was one of those awkward very trip over my own feet and put my foot in my mouth on the way down kind of person so school wasn't fun. Imagine that. I would barely know anybody anyway.

Never been. Elmer asked why wouldn't you go....well ....here's my reason.

I hung out with about 7 people in HS. I used to run into them and catch up on their lives. All the children and multiple divorces. Haven't seen any of them in years now. They all seemed to be living these tragic ...depressing lives.

I ran into some guy, across the counter when I was placing a cement order. He asked if I was going to our 20 year HS reunion...only 5 people had rsvp'ed....they were going golfing. I had NO idea who he was. We'd never spoken before. Rude. I should have reported him to his boss.

I stopped attending after the 25th. I went to a small, all girls catholic school (boy's school across the street) and our reunions were combined. Some of the "mean girls" were still that way, I guess some things never change.

I went to a few of the first reunions. I think the women all looked pretty good and some even better. I was surprised that the men looked older. One real hunk in HS was bald and wore funny glasses at our tenth. I ran with the in-crowd in HS where all we cared about were boys and clothes. I don't know most of these people now that we're long past those subjects. My best friend died a few years ago from Parkinson's so I don't go back to reunions or yearly picnics anymore.

I went to my 50th and enjoyed myself...60th will be this year, but I have lost so many close classmates, it will not be the same without having them there.

I've never been to a reunion. I left town, literally, the day after graduation. My dad had moved us three states away, and I stayed until school was out. I never saw any of my classmates again.

I was not part of the "in" crowd. Haha, what's the opposite? I never cared much what became of those people, and they seemed to be the ones running the alumni association. I saw pictures of the 30th, the cliques were obviously still holding strong.

Never missed them, had no desire to travel 10 hours each way, pay for two nights in a hotel, just to drink beer with people I never liked.

Our reunions were very informal. They have all been held in large halls with a buffet, and lots of tables and people sit around and visit. They had a way to project pics on a large screen that showed us from elementary on. Not like most reunions I have heard of. And since they were mostly Quakers, even tho I am sure most people drink alcohol now, none is served. Jody went to school there too....though he quit when he was 16....moved away, bought a boat and started shrimping, he knows everyone too.

Elmer, why wouldn't I go? Because it's a 10 hr drive from where I live, and I doubt my daughter would drive me again. It was an expensive weekend and I got nothing out of it. I have crossed paths with two people in my class since then; one woman called me when the private school her daughters were attending needed a new Head of School and she wondered if my husband would be interested (not!), and a wonderful doctor I contacted when I was very ill a few years ago. He, too, left KS and is a world renowned physician in St Louis. He got me to the right doctor, for which I am very grateful. He was always the "smartest boy in the class"!

If it were here in town, I might or might not go, depending on the time of year. The reason I had not gone to any reunions before my 50th was that they were always held in July...in Kansas. When I was married to my first husband, that meant we were in northern Michigan; with my 2nd husband, on Martha's Vineyard. Gee, hard choice to make between these two places and KS in July!

Anglophilia, my mother graduated from high school in Kansas. Class of '45. She went (from Washington state) to several of her reunions. A couple while my dad was still alive, and later with her sister (flying to Arizona then the two of them driving to Kansas as her sister wouldn't fly). One year, my sister who was born in Mom's hometown and not in Washington like I was flew to Kansas with her, escorted her. Believe it was August. Kansas in August - her first trip to see the town of her birth ;0) The reunions at that school were for a particular year but any who attended the school were invited. And up until she stopped using her computer very much just a few months ago, Mother was still in touch with classmates (at age almost 92).