The 2019 Elgin High School Alumni Banquet was held on Saturday, June 22, 2019 at the EPS lunchroom. A total of 48 alumni, spouses, and guests attended the 7 p.m. banquet. Traveling the furthest to attend the banquet was Sarah Huffman Hutchinson from Durango, Colorado who traveled 823 miles. The oldest alumni member attending the banquet was Phyllis Kinney Lawson from the Class of 1943. She received a corsage in celebration of her 76th reunion.
Prior to the banquet, there were just a couple who attended an open house which was held at Elgin Public School. A Social Hour was then held at Boomerangs. Dennis and Lynell Morgan took pictures of the honored alumni. Rita Schrage Heithoff, from the Class of 1976, provided decorations for the banquet.
Laurie Schindler Waterbury, from the Class of 1980, served as Master of Ceremony and Allyson Wemhoff, from the Class of 2019, gave the invocation before the roast beef and chicken dinner catered by Jodine and Marvin Meis of Jo’s Classic Catering. Following the meal, Waterbury introduced special guests, including EHS Superintendent Dan Polk and his wife, Deb, and the newest members of The Association, the Class of 2019. Brian Carr, Class of 1992, gave the welcome to the alumni and the newest graduates of EHS while his daughter, Breanna Carr, Class of 2019, gave the response to the welcome. Superintendent Polk then shared some humor with the alumni as well as informed them of some of the campus improvements along with information about the Washington DC/ New York trip for Juniors and the added security to the campus. He also introduced the 2019 graduates of Elgin High School to the alumni.
Five and ten year classes were recognized and honored. Speakers were Richard Uhrenholdt from the Class of 1969 and Hunter Reestman from the Class of 2019. Speakers shared memories and information about their classmates and time spent at Elgin Public School. Gene Norton, from the Class of 1948, helped in presenting two $400 scholarships to Allyson Wemhoff and Hunter Reestman who will both be attending the University of Nebraska at Lincoln. There were no nominations for the Honored Alumnus this year.
During the business meeting, the 2018 Alumni Minutes and Financial Report were reviewed. No questions or concerns were addressed. The goal of the alumni is to have one representative of each class who will be responsible for sharing information about the banquets to their classmates each year via the internet/email. Very few paper invitations will be sent out. The 2020 Alumni Banquet will be held on the fourth Saturday in June which is June 27, 2020. Information will be on the elgineagle.org website, in the Elgin Review and on the Elgin Public Schools Alumni page on Facebook. The banquet concluded with the School Song.
