Huntington Class of ’79 Celebrates 30-year Reunion
When members of Huntington High School’s Class of 1979 gathered recently for a 30th reunion celebration, memories came flooding back like a tidal wave as members of the group returned to town for a two-day long party.
The fun started on Friday night when 14 of the 1979 graduates turned out to paint “The Rock” located near the Holdsworth Drive entrance to the high school. Blue and white paint was splattered over the huge boulder along with a three sentence statement that personalized it for the alumni: “We are cool. We are divine. We are the Class of 1979.” More than a week later they still “owned” the boulder.
“We found our inner Van Gogh,” joked Lori Stahl Haggerty, a member of the Class of ’79 who is currently a special education teacher at J. Taylor Finley Middle School, about the session at The Rock.
“After painting, we moved on to Meehan's in downtown Huntington,” Mrs. Haggerty said. “Approximately 40 classmates show up to toast each other. We packed the place and it was difficult to try to get to see everybody in attendance. There was lots of reminiscing and looking through one of our yearbooks gave us all a good laugh.”
An afternoon family picnic was held the next day, Saturday, at Centerport Beach. Alum Adam Schwab secured a town permit for the group to use the covered pavilion, BBQ pit, playground and beach. The event featured another large turn-out with about 70 people stopping by over the course of five hours. Participants munched on clams, corn, shrimp, hot dogs and hamburgers and picnic fare.
The graduates admired the children of their classmates and, of course, there was some “raucous laughter,” Mrs. Haggerty said. “Nobody wanted to leave.”
The “main event” was held Saturday night at the Melville Marriott when 60 grads attended a reunion dinner at the Melville Marriott. Classmates circled around the room, trying to “catch-up” with one another, telling countless stories, reminiscing about the good old days in and around Huntington High School and laughing the night away.
Some of the alums, including many who came from out-of-town booked rooms in the Marriott so after the formal dinner concluded, many in the crowd retired to the hotel lounge to continue the celebration, mingling and sharing even more laughs, even if some had lost their voices by then. An informal breakfast was held the following morning.
Many alums wanted to return for the reunion, but couldn’t, including Anthony Brown, who is currently serving as Maryland’s lieutenant governor and who earned undergraduate and law degrees at Harvard University in the years following his graduation from Huntington High School.
Another ’79 class member who wanted to attend the reunion events but couldn’t was valedictorian Alan B. Berg, who has been serving as the commander of the 10th medical group at the U.S. Air Force Academy. Dr. Berg earned an undergraduate degree at Boston University and went on to obtain a master’s in strategic studies and an MD at Harvard Medical School. He has served his country all over the country and the world, including a stint in Qatar in recent years, and has a chest full of medals and service ribbons.
Mike Connell, who proudly counts himself among the Class of ’79 members, was a key behind-the-scenes organizer of many reunion events, playing a large role in enticing classmates to attend. Class President Andrew Lewkowicz chaired the reunion committee and worked with Reunions Unlimited to organize the formal dinner at the Marriott. Classmates also utilized Facebook to network with each other and drum up interest in the reunion.
Some found it remarkable how members of Huntington’s Class of 1979 resumed their friendships as if just five years had passed, instead of three decades. “We all looked terrific, of course,” joked Mrs. Haggerty, who added the family picnic portion just might become an annual event if enough alumni signal interest in it.
“It was easily the best reunion ever,” Mrs. Haggery said. “We are cool. We are divine. We are the Class of '79!”
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