50th Reunion Invitation

The official invitation to the class of 209 Girls High 50th reunion has been emailed to all class members for whom we have email addresses, and post cards will be going out to those for whom we have only a mailing address. A copy of the invitation is also now posted here on the blog, and can be found by clicking the invitation tab above. There are other important pages to view including reunion activities, booking info, RSVP and class gift.

All of the reunion materials are available to print. You can find printable PDF files by clicking here.

Most important is the RSVP form which must be completed and returned by March 1, 2015.

Please join your classmates for this milestone event! And don't forget to let people know you're coming by clicking the who's coming tab above, and leaving a comment!

Leaving comments on the blog

There hasn't been much use of the blog for communicating and sharing among our 209 classmates. Comments from classmates are warmly welcomed, but not everyone is familiar with the mechanics of leaving comments, and the process may seem overly complicated when really it's not. I'm posting a few guidelines to try to make the process more clear. To get started, look in the blue rectangle below any post on any page for the word "comments." If yours is the first, it will say, "no comments." Click on it.

First, choose an identity.

You first need to claim some sort of an identity to leave a comment. You can either be already signed into an approved account (like Google) or you can leave a comment anonymously, without signing in. If you choose 'anonymous', that will be the heading on your comment, rather than your name. You should include your real name in your comment, of course, so we know who you are! (If you want to sign into one of the listed accounts, you should do it before selecting it from the drop-down list and writing your comment.)

Using the anonymous setting means you don't have to have an account with any of the listed services in order to leave a comment. However, if you use one of the accounts in the drop-down list, it's possible to have your name link to your account so people can contact you.

Because spam is such a problem on blogs and Web site comment forums, devices are in place to prevent mass spam attacks, and you will be asked to prove you are not a spam robot. You will be presented with a symbol (like a circle or square, for example) to click, or letters or numbers to type into a box. This is called a CAPTCHA (an acronym for "Completely Automated Public Turing test to tell Computers and Humans Apart"). Presumably, only humans, and not spam-spewing robots, can perform these tasks. (In the case of letters/numbers, they can sometimes be hard to read. There is a curved arrow to click on to get a different set of letters/numbers. Click on it until you get a set that you like.)

Once you compose your comment, you can preview the comment before submitting it. If you approve of what you see, publish your comment for all of us to read.

It takes much longer to read about commenting then actually doing it — it's easy!

News from Joanne Vitelli Pateman

You can share Girls High memories or updates about your life, in the comments section under the personal stories/reflections tab. Joanne Vitelli Pateman has a story to share. Here's the link: The Basic Sugar Cookie is a Canvas for Christmas.

The New York Times talks about 50th reunions

Thinking about attending our class of 209, 50th reunion? Read what other 1964 and 1965 high school graduates have to say about the experience. Find the New York Times article here.

Update on the Ritz

The Ritz has guaranteed us a block of discounted rooms ($249/night whereas the rack rate is double that) for Friday 4/24 and Saturday 4/25/2015. The representative from the Ritz has not yet returned calls about corrections that needed to be made to our contract. The details still need to be approved and sent through the Ritz reservation system, but once we get the details straightened out, you will be able to reserve a room from the block.

50th Reunion

The 50th Reunion Committee invites you to save the date of April 25, 2015. We are planning activities for the whole weekend from a Friday visit to the school to a festive brunch on Sunday, April 26. The main event will be the luncheon on April 25 at the Ritz Carlton Hotel in downtown Philadelphia. For information contact Mary Cogan Frankel at: mcfrankel(at)comcast(dot)net

It's hard to believe that 50 years have passed since the members of the 209 graduated from Girls High! We'll try to keep this page up-to-date with reunion news, and will post copies of all the emails that go out, to make sure no one misses any important information. Please share your thoughts, memories, comments or questions here. And, if there is something you think should be on this page, please let us know.