My Wonderful Colorado College 41st Reunion Day! - October 12, 2019

I decided to take part in the Colorado College's Class of 1979 reunion this year even though I graduated from CC in 1978.  Usually, I only know a few people, so I don't bother going since I live "in town," but this year, I thought, "Why not go?

I'm so glad I went!

I signed up for some of the free events that went on Thursday and Friday, but what really attracted me to attending Homecoming 2019 was the Alumni Bike ride down Gold Camp Road scheduled for early Saturday morning. When my daughter Rebekah agreed to join me for the bike ride, I decided we must participate!

So my reunion-homecoming day on October 12, 2019 day began on at 5:45 am just south of Worner Center on the CC campus where we met the people running Pikes Peak Bike Tours who do a shorter tour down Gold Camp Road.  (Colorado College's alumni office must have worked out a special discounted group rate for our excursion.)  It was a very cold morning, and it was so fun to talk to some of the other alumni who were keeping more sitting in the vans as people were arriving for the group's biking experience.

One alum who really stood out to me at that "wee hour of the morning" was Hunt Kooiker (Class of 1969).  He and I are like 10 years apart, but as we talked we realized that we were like kindred spirits.  Even though he is in his 70s, he still rollerblades and bike rides. I of course hope to do that in my 70s.  It was just so fun to talk to him.  When Hunt, moved to the other van as the group rode up to the top of Cheyenne Canyon, I was disappointed that I didn't get his contact info, but hoped to at the end of the bike ride.  (I wanted to scooter with him on the San Diego beach's bike path since he lives in San Diego and I've wanted to go there for the longest time on one of my California trips.)

When we finally did arrive at the Gold Camp Road parking lot, it was so so cold.  There was coffee and bagels to warm us all up and we were also delighted that Pikes Peak Bike Tours had huge duffles full of extra pants, vest, gloves, mittens, and ear warmers available for us to borrow and use.

Also, both Rebekah and I were delighted that they provided small size mountain bikes for us to ride.  I tested a small bike that had the lowest seat, and knew I could "do this!"

Before the ride began, we met some alumni who graduated in 1999 and they thought it was funny when I exclaimed, "Oh...you didn't graduate long ago."  Well, for me, 41 years seems a lot longer than 20 years for them....

Anyway, after a brief introduction to downhill biking, the group's descent down Gold Camp Road began.  Our journey would be seven miles of mostly downhill on a wide and easy road with a van leading the group in front and another van in the back.

Rebekah and JO ANN

I was the slowest rider, but was told to not stress out and ride at my own pace.  Rebekah stayed with me.  We both were sorry we didn't wear extra warm socks since our feet were freezing, but we just kept going down.  We hardly got to peddle and the hand brakes on our bikes were fantastic, so what ended up happening was cold feet from lack of movement and numbed hands from the cold and from also just pushing the handbrakes.  Pike's Peak Bike Tour's van right behind me, so I didn't worry about the cars that might be behind me as we descended.

There were some breaks to take photos and as the sun began to rise, the city of Colorado Springs looked incredible as we looked below.

Anyway, the ride was incredible and as the ride concluded, we arrived at the Pikes Peak Bike Tours office around 9:30--9:45 am and after warming up we were taken back to campus.  Both of us were freezing, but so exhilarated!   I wrote the following on Facebook when I returned home:

"Today was a life milestone for me. As I child I was in a horrible bike accident. I didn’t ride a bike again for years. I eventually rode a bike again, but although I skate, scooter, mountain scooter, rollerblade, bike, and ski, doing downhill mountain biking for a long distance had not yet been attempted by me. Today I got to ride down Gold Camp Road with other Colorado College alumni and Pikes Peak Bike Tours. It was a seven mile very cold and scenic descent and so much fun!"

When Rebekah and I got into our car, we turned the heat up immediately and drove home.  At home, I drank a lot of coffee to warm up, but Rebekah went downstairs and took a nap.

A couple hours later, I went back to campus for the 1979 Class Photo that was scheduled for 12:45 pm in front of the historic Palmer Hall.  Of course I rode my scooter on campus (why walk when I can scooter and at this point of my life who cares if I show up for Homecoming with my scooter?) and I first headed in the wrong direction since the photos used to be near Loomis Hall, so I made the Palmer Hall photo shoot just in time.

Cindy Olsen, JO ANN, Julie Reddan

I was delighted to see Julie Reddan and Cindy Olsen, who both were in the Gamma Phi Beta sorority with me.  I also knew Tom Blickensderfer who I knew because we had a mutual friend named Chuck Welch.  Chuck was 6'6" and I'm only 4'10 (now 4'8 3/4") and Tom remembered me because I had gone to a dance with Chuck Welch in 1978 and going to that dance had been quite a joke "back when."  Tom had been the best man at Chuck's wedding.

JO ANN and Tom Blickensderfer

Other alumni from the Class of 1979 said they remembered me.  I don't remember many of those in that class or in my own class of 1978 since I skated so much in college that I rarely made friends at CC until my senior year when I moved on the campus after I quit competitive skating.

Just as the group made their way to the all-campus picnic, John Shonk, who was in the Class of 1979 began talking.  Neither one of us knew one another at CC and also neither one of us had signed up or paid for the picnic, but we began talking and our conversation was so fun that it just didn't seem to end.  That was like what being a student at CC had been like: you'd meet someone in the cafeteria and a conversation would start up and all of a sudden, you were friends!  Anyway, it was so great talking to John!

Finally, the two of us parted and just as we parted, the Class of 1969 began to form some sort of circle reliving their hippie days.  They were doing face painting and playing songs from the 1960s on kazoos.  I applauded their antics and the next thing I knew, they'd invited me to join in!  And...of course I accepted!

1969 CC Alumni

The Class of 1969 was celebrating their 50th reunion and they were having the best time together.  Also, I was able to connect again with Hunt from the morning bike ride and got his contact info.  He invited me and my husband to stay with him and his wife in San Diego and he said he definitely wanted to ride a scooter alongside me when I visited California.

JO ANN and Hunt Kooiker (Class of 1969)

The 1969 class also decided to spray colored dust on one another and invited two young students who were CC Sophomores to join in on the fun.  The two young men seemed to really enjoy being sprayed with colored dust and joining in on the 1960s songs.  I especially enjoyed singing :Yellow Submarine" and "Where Have All the Flowers Gone,"

The time spent with the Class of 1969 made my day and I left their gathering just so happy!

As I began to walk to the bookstore to get my 41 percent discount since all registered alumni got a discount based on how many years ago they graduated during Homecoming Weekend, I chatted with Robby Walters Buchanan from the Class of 1969.  As we talked, I found out she was also in the Gamma Phi Beta sorority and her master teacher when she had done her student teaching at CC had been Turza Phlug who had been our alumni advisor during my college days.  (Now, thanks to Facebook, I am in touch with Turza's daughter, Patti, so I let Patti know about our encounter.)  Robby now lives in Arizona, but had lived after college in Albuquerque and then had gone on to her passion of art history and was now retired from her work at the National Art Gallery in Washington DC.  I realized then that so many Colorado College alumni have done so many great and interesting things.

Robby Walters Buchanan - Class of 1969

When I finally completed scootering over to the bookstore in Worner Center, I thought my interesting conversations were over on campus, but in the bookstore I ended up talking to former Dean of Women and 1969 graduate Laurel McCleod!  Again, it was a delightful conversation that put me in an incredibly happy mood.

I ended up just buying myself a CC headband to keep my ears warm and of course got my 41 % discount and headed home just in the happiest mood.

When I got home, I told my family about my wonderful day and then we decided to head to Poor Richards.  I had no idea yet that the evening at Poor Richards would also be an adventure, but there, a man approached me and said I looked familiar, and even though he had nothing to do with the reunion, he knew a few people we knew in town.  Phil Ginsburg and his wife Chris knew some of the people we know from Temple Shalom, but also know Betsy McClenahan who ran Attitudes performing arts school where my kids had attended when they were little.

Phil and Chris Ginsburg With JO ANN at Poor Richard's

I thought the interaction with Phil and his wife was "cool enough," but then we also ended up see Jill who taught Rebekah and Joel ice dancing when they were young and then we also saw Mason Ryder Kaplan who we had spent Rosh Hashanah with!

It seemed that this particular reunion Homecoming day had one great encounter after another. It showed me how great Colorado Springs can be! What a special day it was for me too! I will never forget Homecoming 2019.