Members of the Central High School Class of 1967 came from near and far to spend the weekend chatting about old times and catching up on what they’ve been doing for the past 40 years. The weekend started with a social on Friday night as those attending caught up on where everyone now lives, where they work and how many kids they have. On Saturday night, at the formal banquet held at the Oxford Conference Center, classmates had a chance to look at old photos and talk about the good old days. They even remembered the 10 classmates that are no longer with them. Earlier on Saturday, everyone got the chance to tour the halls that they walked everyday for four years as Brian Harvey, Oxford Middle School principal, gave them a tour of Central Elementary School, which once was Central High School. The tour helped to spark a few memories. In fact, for Freddie Buford of Etta, who now lives in Cleveland, Ohio, it brought back memories of the mother of his 37-year-old son. “When we toured the school I remembered turning the corner and meeting this young lady named Shirley,” Buford said. “We kind of fell in love and a lot of people thought we got married.” The weekend also reminded them of how close everyone became during their four years in high school and what great teachers they had. “Our senior year we became really close because we got together more and we shared our futures,” George Price, of Oxford, said. “We had a lot of great moments. I miss the friendships we had.” “It’s been so amazing to see all these friends from 40 years ago,” said Rosie Herod Robertson, who now lives in Jackson. “Our class was so close knit. We had a lot of silly times together.” Ora Polk Willingham remembered that the prom was one of those great moments. “We all looked so good in our cute little dresses,” she said. “I miss being at Central because we had great classmates and faculty,” Charlene Young, of Chicago, said. “The faculty really pushed us.” “We had some wonderful teachers who inspired us to work hard and seek more,” Buford said. While others remembered how being at Central High School brought together students from across the county. “It was a chance to meet new friends as a freshman,” Harold Owens, who lives in Atlanta, said. Before starting CHS in the ninth grade, all the students attended their neighborhood schools such as Taylor where Owens and his buddy W.C. Stokes were from or Abbeville where Delores Vaughn attended. “It was unique because it was all the schools coming together in one,” Stokes said. “It was good for me to come from Taylor to the city school and get to meet people like Delores over the next four years.” Because Abbeville and Taylor are on opposite sides of the county, Vaughn noted that they may not have ever met each other if it weren’t for Central. ~Sue Lynn Mills |
