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Dr. Jim Baker, Choctaw, president of the Chilocco alumni has to have a note of recognition for his accomplishing the organizing of this years reunion.
There was an unbelievable amount of work but he methodically went through each chore as any leader will do, carefully and with constant thought. He had his group in place and each segment was completed quickly and seemingly easily.
Jim’s daughters were right beside him. The very large student union building had to be mopped and cleaned and they did that, something next to a miracle. Buildings get dank and dusty while sitting empty but they were able to correct that with their own elbow grease.
Clean, new, tables and chairs were placed all inside the long covered patio. I’m not good at measurements but that patio is very large at least 100 feet long and maybe close to 30 feet wide. The First Council casino contributed those for the reunion and Jim had to arrange that.
The display of artifacts and memorabilia was put in the large Student Union room beside the patio. The alumni committee arranged this in a pleasant and enjoyable display. This all done in one day.
Charmaine Pensoneau Billy was right in there too doing all the necessary things of paperwork and such planning to see all went smoothly.
For me I was so happy to see many from the community enlightened about how great the school had been for putting this area on the map with placing students from every endeavor in businesses throughout, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas and on to other parts of the nation.
Before we were never able to attend alumni meetings because of the cost involved for a family. Most folks who attended left their children at home, which is fine and good, but my age old Native teaching of taking the children wherever I go kept me away because of the expense in that. We would have needed financing for seven. At five hundred dollars a piece for lodging and meals this was simply not in our budget, although many families do spend that on vacations we just never did.
My dreams of seeing families of students able to come on campus to see where their parents went to school has been a long held dream of mine. At least one of my dreams has come true and how I enjoyed seeing the campus all alive again with fun activities. This is a great thank you to everyone, too many to list, who worked so hard to see this accomplished. Hopefully next year more of our families from the area will realize there is no cost to come on campus and bring their children along, too so that in the future they will have yarns to spin about the place where their grandparents grew up.
By the way, the brisket lunch Charlie McDonald provided for all these folks was wonderfully delicious.
A thank you to the security guards who lease Chilocco is in order, too. Their presence and the upkeep of the grounds made the event possible to enjoy.
There was an unbelievable amount of work but he methodically went through each chore as any leader will do, carefully and with constant thought. He had his group in place and each segment was completed quickly and seemingly easily.
Jim’s daughters were right beside him. The very large student union building had to be mopped and cleaned and they did that, something next to a miracle. Buildings get dank and dusty while sitting empty but they were able to correct that with their own elbow grease.
Clean, new, tables and chairs were placed all inside the long covered patio. I’m not good at measurements but that patio is very large at least 100 feet long and maybe close to 30 feet wide. The First Council casino contributed those for the reunion and Jim had to arrange that.
The display of artifacts and memorabilia was put in the large Student Union room beside the patio. The alumni committee arranged this in a pleasant and enjoyable display. This all done in one day.
Charmaine Pensoneau Billy was right in there too doing all the necessary things of paperwork and such planning to see all went smoothly.
For me I was so happy to see many from the community enlightened about how great the school had been for putting this area on the map with placing students from every endeavor in businesses throughout, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas and on to other parts of the nation.
Before we were never able to attend alumni meetings because of the cost involved for a family. Most folks who attended left their children at home, which is fine and good, but my age old Native teaching of taking the children wherever I go kept me away because of the expense in that. We would have needed financing for seven. At five hundred dollars a piece for lodging and meals this was simply not in our budget, although many families do spend that on vacations we just never did.
My dreams of seeing families of students able to come on campus to see where their parents went to school has been a long held dream of mine. At least one of my dreams has come true and how I enjoyed seeing the campus all alive again with fun activities. This is a great thank you to everyone, too many to list, who worked so hard to see this accomplished. Hopefully next year more of our families from the area will realize there is no cost to come on campus and bring their children along, too so that in the future they will have yarns to spin about the place where their grandparents grew up.
By the way, the brisket lunch Charlie McDonald provided for all these folks was wonderfully delicious.
A thank you to the security guards who lease Chilocco is in order, too. Their presence and the upkeep of the grounds made the event possible to enjoy.