Hundreds expected for reunions in Mount Olive
By Kelly Corbett
Published in News on July 5, 2012 1:46 PM
MOUNT OLIVE -- Two local alumni associations are holding weekend-long reunions, beginning today and Friday, to celebrate with friends and family members from near and far.
The Carver Alumni and Friends Association kicked off its annual reunion this morning with a golf tournament held at Southern Wayne Country Club.
National president Cassandra Rush, who lives in Washington, D.C., did not attend the old Carver High School, but said she was named an honorary member after bringing her mother, Berneice Leach, to a reunion four years ago.
"I remember that first reunion," she said. "I was really in awe of the accomplishments from so many years ago. It was really moving."
She said she and her mother have turned the trip into an annual girls' roadtrip tradition.
Tonight, the youth and scholarship program will be held at 7 p.m. at Carver Elementary School. A banquet dinner will be held Friday night.
On Saturday, a general membership meeting will be held at 10 a.m. in the Carver Cultural Center followed by a picnic at noon. A dance and social at the Southern Wayne Country Club will be held from 8 p.m. to midnight. The weekend will come to a close with a prayer breakfast at 9 a.m. Sunday at the Carver Cultural Center.
The traditional Saturday parade will not be held this year.
Those who did not receive the registration form by mail can register by calling treasurer Helen Greenfield at 735-4874.
The third annual Southern Wayne High School Alumni Weekend will also be held in Mount Olive this weekend, beginning Friday with a men's and women's basketball game at 6 p.m. at Southern Wayne High School.
President Cent Jones said after she attended her 20th class reunion in 2009, she thought about what she could do to get people to come together.
Now, a team of eight people helps organize the event each year.
Committee member Crystal Daniels said she has always been active with class reunions.
Her class, 1994, gets together two to three times each year.
She said she would like more recent graduates to get involved in the reunion, too.
On Saturday, golf at Southern Wayne Country Club at 8 a.m. will begin the morning and the day will end with an alumni party at 9 p.m. at SWHS. For the first time, a co-ed softball game is scheduled for 11 a.m. Saturday at the high school.
The alumni weekend will wrap up with family fun in Westbrook Park from 2 to 6 p.m. Sunday, including train rides, face painting, games, music and food.
Last year, more than 500 people attended the reunion events.
There is no cost to register for the event, but former grads can become a member of the Southern Wayne alumni for $25 per year by signing up over the weekend.
For more information, contact southernwaynealumni@yahoo.com or visit Facebook/SouthernWayne.