SCHOOL TOUR (Part 2)

Twelve of us (plus spouses) showed up for the tour of the school on Saturday morning. Left to right: Myra McCammon, Mary Ann Mertz, Susan Roetter, Bev Caesar, Randy Moser, Norma Buckwalter, Pete Bird, Patti Flanigan, Doris Stump, Sam Stutz, Connie Daupert and Ruth Ann Parish.

Myra McCammon Leap found a photo of her mom, and Susan Roetter Melvin spotted her dad in class pictures of every graduating class from Pike High School. This was rewarding for us all, and gave us a sense of pride for loved ones who led the way through the annals of Pike history. Ruth Ann Parish (pictured below), Susan and Myra's childhood friend, knows both of these Pike alumni very well. The planners have done an extraordinary job of preserving history in this new school.

Bev (Caesar) Moser found her little brother's (Chuck Caesar) picture on the Wall of Fame, an impressive display of athletes who have earned honors throughout the years.

We all wanted to know what happened to our old pool, one of the first of its kind in a central Indiana high school back in 1965. With the new buildings erected around all four sides of our old school, the pool was "relocated" to an exterior wall. We were all holding our breath a little to see what this one might look like, and it was even more spectacular than our old one. Some of us even got down on our knees to snap some pictures of the new natatorium.

The choir and band rooms were first class, but what really caught our eye was this music composition lab, with 30 keyboards hooked up to computers. The students in this school are so fortunate to have such leading edge technology at their fingertips.

And though we never got to see the new planetarium, our guide, Tim Friend, saved the best for last. The new Performing Arts Center, which replaced our wonderful auditorium, literally made our jaws drop. This facility rivals Clowes Hall and just about any other facility in America. Take a look! We all did.

The Reunion Committee took one last pause at the huge new Pike seal, which greets visitors to the school. Thanks for a great two-hour tour, and some memories that will remain with us for a long time.

The New Pike High

Tim Friend (yellow striped shirt), a teacher and member of the Pike Alumni Association, graciously took 2 hours of his weekend to show us through the old and the new sections of Pike High School. There was very little that is still recognizable from our four years in the facility. This is the new entryway to the school.


Rising above us in the spectacular entryway were flags from every nation where current Pike students were born. It was both impressive and awe-inspiring, and shows how truly diverse our old "cornfield" school has become.



Yet, as progressive and modern as the new school has become, there is a rich sense of history evident throughout the buildings. Murals like this one picturing the first structure, then known as New Augusta High School (circa 1909), adorned hallways throughout the facility. Somehow, it felt like we were once again back in Sarge Reese's or Mrs. Brandt's classroom, learning about our heritage.


And then we spotted the mural picturing the old Pike High School that so many of us attended as 8th Graders. Wow! How the memories began to flood back to us. For those of you who couldn't make the morning tour or the Reunion, hopefully, these photos will help rekindle a few memories that were created at Pike. Thanks to Pete Bird for these great photos from our tour. I will post more for you this weekend.
Randy Moser