Annual Rivesville High Reunion returns, raising money for scholarships
Jun. 23—RIVESVILLE — The small town of Rivesville has a lot of history to its name, but central to most of that history is the town's former high school.
This year marks the return of the bi-yearly reunion and homecoming, where alumni and community members from Rivesville are invited to join together for two days of food and fun on July 28-29.
This year's event is being called, "the last dance," not because the event is coming to an end, but because its long-time organizers are stepping away from it.
Gary Morris, who graduated from Rivesville High in 1960, and his cohort John Uveges, who graduated in 1969, have been organizing the reunion together since its inception in 2001.
"You always want to go back to where you came from," Morris said. "The point of the event is to see some folks you might not see for a long time or to make some new friends. I know a lot of our local folks don't come out, they think, 'Oh I can see them any time,' buy hey, you better see them while you can, you never know when you're going to be here and when you won't."
While the focus of the event is to reignite relationships from the past, there's also an emphasis on forming new relationships between the older grads and the younger grads and members of the community.
The event spans two days, the first day includes a hot dog roast and community potluck and the second day offers up a catered dinner. One $13 ticket buys access to both days.
According to Morris, the tickets are prices at one dollar over breaking even and they try to keep prices as low as possible. All the extra money goes toward funding the next event.
In addition, attendees will be able to partake in special raffles, which will go toward funding the foundation's two $1,000 scholarships that are awarded to two local high school grads each year.
"High school really was some of the best times in life. We didn't have any troubles, didn't have any bills to pay and there are plenty of great memories to share," Uveges said. "Then you go out the door and have to figure out what you have to do for a living. It's a trip back to a simpler time."
The reunion harkens back to a time in Marion County prior to the 1985 consolidation into the three high schools the district has today. Rivesville was one of those schools, and dates back to 1917.
In 1926, a massive fire burned down the original high school. The next morning's edition of The Fairmont Times read, "The fire gained such headway by the time of the arrival of the firemen that there was no hope of saving the building."
After the blaze, a smaller building was built on what is now the campus of Rivesville Elementary-Middle School. That building, which is now the school's gymnasium, was used until the Works Progress Administration finished the new high school in the late 1930s, with the first class graduating from the new high school in 1941.
The high school operated until the consolidation in 1985.
But this reunion and homecoming isn't just for alumni, it's open to anyone who calls Rivesville home.
As Morris retires from his event planning days he can say he's learned a thing or two from the process.
"Doing this event all these years has taught me patience and the importance of asking for help, neither of which are one of my good virtues," Morris said with a laugh.
For tickets or more information about the event, contact Gary Morris at 304-365-4053.
Reach David Kirk at 304-367-2522
or by email at dkirk@timeswv.com.
