We began creating memories in 1963 at our very first Reunion...our fifth. Outfitted in white pith helmets with a maroon 58 on the front (hey, it’s a jungle out there!), we brought up the rear of the parade as the baby class. There was Reunion chair John Fulmer in a monstrous diaper pushing an antique baby carriage. No one is sure what dorm we stayed in, but there sure was a lot of beer consumed at the smoker and the dorm.

In 1968 Ed Brunswick got us comfy maroon shirts by McGregor with white lacing to dress up our image for our 10th. We stayed in Gates and had our class dinner at the Forest House in west Easton. Ed Alkire subbed for absentee Reunion chair Fulmer.

Reunion chair Don Freimark arranged an upscale 15th Reunion for the class, which stayed in Easton Hall and dined in the faculty dining room in Marquis. The class uniform, a snazzy alpaca sweater (by McGregor/Brunswick), became truly memorable when it was delivered in a salmon pink/orange color, instead of the intended maroon. Hello?

Perennial parade marshal Spence Manthorpe tried his hand as Reunion chair for our 20th in 1979 as part of a cluster experiment with 1958/1959/1960. A real maroon color jacket (by Duckster) redeemed Brunswick as class uniform outfitter. We slept and socialized in Ruef Hall, and at the class dinner at the Hotel Easton, we installed Dr. John Raymond as an honorary member of the class.

Jim Braisted took over as Reunion chair for our big 25th in 1983. (We held a warmup event at Homecoming in the fall of 1982, when we hosted the class of 1983 at a sub picnic on the Quad.) In June we had Watson Hall all to ourselves and took over the Bergethon Room (the main dining room) in Marquis Hall because of our large turnout. We proudly wore our white sweatshirt with the original Leopard artwork on the front and a 58 on the back. Reunion attendees signed a huge Leopard artwork poster for posterity. Thanks were given to Genia Kellow, wife of Jack Kellow ’52, who did the incredible Leopard artwork for us.

For our 30th in 1988, Bill Kurtz did the honors as Reunion chair. The maroon baseball cap uniform had a white front with that great Leopard artwork in it. Our Reunion theme was “Presidential Follies,” and we carried political signs in the parade (such as “I like Ike!”) and vertical signs for the states we represented. The class won the parade award, and we celebrated on Saturday night at Harmony Manor in New Jersey. South College was our home on campus for the weekend.

Kurtz won a second term as Reunion chair for our 35th in 1993. Our uniform was nostalgia attire (khakis and white bucks) and we had Leopard scarves made for all the significant others who attended. We returned to the familiar confines of South College as our dorm, and we dined in the East Wing of Marquis Hall. President Tom Morgan had us in stitches again after dinner for the seventh straight Reunion.

Our 40th in 1998 was unique in many ways. Doug Cherry grabbed the reins as Reunion chair and did a great job in his rookie year. We looked smart in our white golf shirt and a special logo (a standing Leopard holding a saxophone, with the slogan “All That Jazz”). The social lounge was in McKeen, our dorm (who let those townies in after hours?), and the Class of 1958 flag (green and red) hung proudly from a balcony. Before dinner in Farinon on Saturday night, Lehigh University Athletic Director Joe Sterrett spoke to us with compassion, warmth, and humor about Tom Morgan, who had served as Lehigh’s baseball coach for several years until his untimely then-recent death. Then we dined and danced the night away to the music of an incredible jazz band from New York City.

At our 45th in 2003, reunion chair Cherry arranged for us to stay in upscale Ramer Hall and uniformed us in a nice denim jeans shirt with a “Leopard in a crouch” logo. On Saturday afternoon we gathered for the ninth time at the Leopard statue for our class Reunion picture. (Are those gray hairs we see?) At the class dinner in Farinon, we shared friendships and memories, and then split our sides laughing at Bill Aukamp’s nominating committee report prior to electing officers for another five years.

Cherry and Bob Beane are co-chairing our 50th Reunion in 2008. Wait until we create the memories at that one! Don’t miss it!