The Way We Were
Celebrating The Golden Years & Remembering
“Celebrating the memories that shaped us into who we are today.”
Our Journey Toward June 1975
Welcome back, classmates!
As we prepare to close out the year 2024 and leap into 2025, I salute you all. We will always be connected as members of the East St. Louis Senior High School (and Lincoln) Class of 1975, one of our city’s most distinguished graduating classes.
First, let’s honor the memories of our classmates who are no longer with us, and let’s wish the best for their families and friends. This site’s Memoriam section lists those we’ve lost recently and over the years.
Once again, I’d like to encourage you to register for activities to mark our Fiftieth Class Reunion, scheduled for June 5 – 8 at various locations in the metro-east area. Use this link to register and pay your dues to ensure a memorable time.
I also urge you to contact other class members in your contact list to ensure everyone can be present for our last organized reunion. Now is the time to take the time to do something that should mean a lot to everyone – celebrating who we are, from whence we came, and how we move onward in our journey.
And as we look forward to reconnecting in June to remember “The Way We Were,” here’s a little perspective on how we got there.
Think about it; most of us were born in 1957, the year of Sputnik, marking the beginning of the Space Age. So, we’ve been galactic all our lives. Then, in 1962, we lived through those 13 days of the Cuban Missile Crisis, which brought the world to the brink of nuclear war. But I don’t recall hiding under our desks like our older brothers or sisters had to do.
I do recall, nevertheless, how our teachers were crying their eyes out at the news of President Kennedy’s assassination. That was in 1963 when we were first graders – a traumatic experience that we’ve yet to receive ‘counseling’ for. We showed resilience!
And can you believe it, Class, we lived through the year 1968, marked by the assassinations of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy, a raging war in Vietnam, Nixon’s first presidency, and the burning of inner cities, aka, the ghettoes, during the struggle for civil rights. We persevered.
We also kept our eyes on the skies (and On The Prize) in 1969 for the First Moon Landing, as NASA’s Apollo 11 successfully put humans on the moon. Who knew that our classmate, Larry Gladney, was so moved by the feat that he would be a world-renowned physicist and cosmologist whose research focused on the origins and the universe’s expansion following the Big Bang? Again, Larry’s favorite candy bar was a sign of our galactic nature, or maybe the Milky Way, and he had to find out why. We dreamed.
We went through some things, y’all, to get to 1975. Remember the Oil Crisis in 1973 when OPEC imposed an oil embargo that led to significant price increases for gas and other items? A time when Roe v. Wade was decided when Native Americans made their stance at Wounded Knee and the deaths of Lyndon Baines Johnson and Pablo Picasso? This was all happening as we got six-week blowouts and searched for cute halter tops. We recognized.
And in 1975, during the fall of Saigon and the end of the Vietnam war, Arthur Ashe becoming the first black man to win at Wimbledon, the first airing of Saturday Night Live and Bill Gates founding of Microsoft, we prepared to walk across that stage at the Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows.
These are just a few tidbits and hurdles we faced on our journey to the Class of 1975. We endured. We were fortunate, blessed, and lucky, too, to have people in our lives – family, friends, teachers, and the ‘village’ – to show us what was possible. We understood the assignment.
Alonzo Byrd – East Side, Class President
RESERVE YOUR ROOM TODAY
There are just three rooms remaining: two Kings and one Double. By reserving one of these rooms, you will enable us to open up another block. If we reach full capacity, please leave a message in the comment section indicating your preferred room type. To make your reservations, simply click the link below.
Registration
Classmates, the registration form is not designed for editing but only for viewing and printing. You can print, enter your information, and mail the registration form with your payment.
If you don’t have access to a printer, write your information on a piece of paper. Be sure to include your polo shirt size, which is included in the registration fee. You can also drop off payments at our monthly Planning Committee meetings. The date, times, and place are listed below.
Make Registration Payments
Classmates, you can divide your registration fee into as many as four payments to make it easier for you to attend. We aim to accommodate everyone who wishes to participate, so please send in whatever amount works best for you, and we will keep track of your remaining balance. The total cost for registration is 175 dollars.
Suppose you had already submitted your payment before we included polo shirts. In that case, you have a couple of options: please click on the polo shirt tab, complete the form with your details, and mail it, or feel free to leave a message in the comment section, which will be only visible to the administrator.
If you are not attending but would like to pre-order a Polo Shirt, the price is $35.00, which includes shipping.
The price of pre-ordering additional polo shirts is $30.00. Shirts will be distributed at the reunion.
hotelumiere
We have secured a block of ten rooms at the HoteLumiere for Friday, June 6, 2025, and Saturday, June 7, 2025. Once the block is booked, the Hotel will release more rooms.
If you are interested in booking a room on Thursday, please leave a message in the comment section below.
RESERVATION METHOD
Group attendees will make reservations directly with Property via a dedicated weblink on or before the Group cut-off date. Individuals must identify as part of the Group to receive the special Group rate. All reservations must be guaranteed with a deposit for the first night’s guestroom and tax charge. If the reservation is guaranteed to a credit card, the first night’s guestroom and tax charge per guestroom will be billed immediately to the cardholder’s account.
Rooms Sizes Available
- Four – Deluxe Queens is $99.00 per night, single or double occupancy.
- Six – Deluxe King is $99.00 per night for single or double occupancy.
RESORT/AMENITY FEE
In addition to the room rates above, a daily resort fee of $19.99 per room per night, plus the current occupancy room tax, will be charged. These fees include overnight parking, access to the Fitness Center, and access to the Business Center.
Please use the link below when making reservations online; this link is set up with our group discount.
INFORMATION
Money Orders or Cashier’s Check, and Personal Checks. Make payable to ESTL Class of 1975
Mail payments and registration form to ESTL Class of 1975, 8701 State Street, PO Box 3503, East St. Louis, IL 62203-9997
Schedule of Events
EVENTS/ACTIVITIES
Registration Launch in the Park: Thursday, Saturday, September 7, 2024, from 12:00 pm – 4:00 pm
Join us for fellowship, food, and refreshments. We will have registration forms available for you to complete, so come prepared to register. Please share the word with all local 1975 Classmates. (If you live out of town, please click on the registration form, print it out, and send it in with the fees.)
MEET & GREET: Thursday, June 5, 2025, from 6:00 pm – 11:00 pm
Join us at Tim & Joe’s Tavern in the Arcades Center at 6500 West Main St. Ste 26, Belleville, IL. 62223
DINNER BANQUET: Friday, June 6, 2025, from 5:30 pm – 11:00 pm
HOTELUMIERE AT THE ARCH
- 5:30 -6:30 Professional Photography Session: Please be on time to be included in Groups (Class, class married couples, all sports players, all organizations). Individual photos with onsite printing will be available.
- 6:15-7:00 – Welcome Reception
- 7:15 – 8:30 – Dinner & Memorial Tribute
- Remaining Schedule of Events TBD and are subject to change.
PICNIC: Saturday. June 7, 2025, from 1:00 pm until
Plans are to picnic at Moody Longacre Park, 5704 Pontiac Drive, Fairview Heights, IL 62208. Reservations will be made in January 2025 once Fairview Heights starts accepting park reservations
CHURCH SERVICE: Sunday, June 8, 2025. Service starts at 11:00 am
Truelight Baptist Church, 1535 Tudor Avenue, East St. Louis, IL 62207
DEADLINES
5/01/2025 ~ Reunion Registration Deadline
5/05/2025 ~ Hotel Reservation Deadline
3/01/2025 ~ Donations/Fundraiser Deadline
*Deadlines are subject to change
COMMITTEE REUNION MEETINGS
The planning committee meets on the third Thursday of each month from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. True Light Baptist Church, 1535 Tudor Ave, East St. Louis, IL 62207. Meeting times and dates are subject to change.
You can drop off your registration payments at the meeting; registration forms will be available.
Mtgs. Date & Time | Place |
8/15/24 – 5 -7 pm | True Light Church |
9/5/24 – 5-7 pm | Hotelumiere |
9/19/24 – 5-7 | True Light Church |
10/17/24 – 5-7 pm | True Light Church |
11/21/24 – 5-7 pm | True Light Church |
12/19/24 – 5-7 pm – Cancelled | True Light Church |
ESTL 1975 Yearbook Cover
Classmates, We need high school pictures from 1972-1975.
If you have a Gmail email account, click on Google Drive to upload photos or click on the Dropbox link for all other email accounts to upload your photos.
Click here to view the video of Dr. ‘Jockenstein’ King – What a blast from the past!
HIGH SCHOOL photos
past reunion photos
If you have a Gmail email account, click on Google Drive to upload photos or click on the Dropbox link for all other email accounts to upload your photos.
IN MEMORIAM
I will gain more understanding when I realize that I am always in touch with all forms of life and those who have lived.
People never really die. They leave their bodies. They end their physical existence in order to continue their spiritual journey in another form on another plane. A person who has entered the realm of existence that we call death is never beyond your love. The thing we call death is not a cold or a dark or a frightening and cruel existence. It is an essential part that teaches us to believe in what we cannot see. Once you know a person, you will always know a person. Once you have loved a person, your love will keep them alive.
Life continues after death as long as you remember the warmth of another’s smile, the gentleness of their touch, and the meaning they brought to your life. In your remembrance of another, death cannot overtake life. Life simply changes its form. When you spend time honoring the dreams of one who has changed, standing up for the things they believed in, and doing what you loved to do together, you are saying, “This life continues to touch my life.”
Stay in touch with your loved ones. Send them your love. Use the memory of your time together as motivation to keep growing. Always honor the special ways the one you knew and loved touched your life. Your remembrance offers them a victory over the thing called death.
Until today, you may have misunderstood death. You may have been grieving or mourning the loss of a loved one, believing they were forever gone from your life. Just for today, be devoted to being a living reflection of the dreams and love you shared with someone who has passed on.
IYANLA VANZANT
Honoring the lifelong bond we formed with those who have passed away. We learned life’s truths from the friends with whom we shared many gifts that extend beyond our youth. We will always cherish the friends and schoolmates we adore.
We greatly appreciate your assistance in ensuring our records are complete and accurate. Please review the lists below to help us identify any deceased members we may have overlooked. If you notice any omissions, kindly share their names and the schools they attended in the comment section.
2015 – 2022 / Amazing Grace
Video created by Erica Brown Gayles
EAST SIDE – Hubert H. Hoosman, William E. King, Rosalind Aldridge Langford, Donald Nicholson, Renaldo Williams Sr. Annice Ells, Renaldo Boyd, Jay Carlton Lowry, Deborah Alorsan, Betty Lou Dawson Davis, Althea (Money) Gaines, Dr. Mecca McDonald, Sherly Hill Anderson, Darnell “DD” Heavens, Annie Pearl Bufkin Callahan, Roy Dale, Bernard Bennet, Lee “Pinky” Malone, Victor McIntosh, Yvette Bradigan, Ola Minor, Teresa Black, Dexter Rogers, Alonso Thomas, Michael Karl Hampton, Marlon Reed, Phyllis D. Brown Joiner, Karen Askew, Christopher A. Taylor, Valerie Johnson, Lamont Holman, Cynethia Mason Dent, Ruth Lewis, Bobby Joe Thompson, and LC Goliday Jr.
LINCOLN – Carlos Hood, Frankie Allen, Anita Johnson, and Douglas Johnson
1975 – 2015 / IT’S SO HARD TO SAY GOODBYE
Video created by Austin Isom
EAST SIDE – Andre James, Anita Howard, Arnold Cobbs, Arnold Johnson, Bernard Moore, Beverly Alston, Clara Daniels, Clara Franklin, Debra Brown, Delbert Tucker, Dwayne Barfield, Emmet Glasper, George Floyd, Jeffery Stewart, Jenell Allen, Jerome Leanard, JoAnn Johnson, Laverne Benton, Kevin Perry, Linda Slaughter, Maurice Hooks, Monica H. Jones, Pamela Fitzhugh, Percy Campbell, Phyllis Armstead, Roberta Hearn, Robin Stoval, Robbin Turner, Roderick Austin, Roland Gordon, Rosalyn Hibbler, Roslyn Johnson, Sally Tatum, Stanley Braggs, Terry Bell, Thomas Gardner Vernon Shipp, Vernon Totley, Wayne Smith, Darryl Paulette, and David Bozeman.
LINCOLN – Annie Young, Earl Owens, and Josely Hendricks
2022 – 2024
Video created by Erica Brown Gayles
EAST SIDE – Myron K. Brown, Joann Brown Horton, Darlene Hughes, Kenneth Johnson, Vanessa Mitchell, Diane Stewart Carter, Wendy York, Jessica Redd, Paul King, Debra Reed, King Tyas, Alex (Chat) Chapman, and David Kloppner
LINCOLN – Belinda Ewing, Gertrude Carson, Karl Hilliard, Michelle Vaughn Hawkins, Carolyn Hamilton, and Daryl Henley
ST. TERESA & ASSUMPTION – Zelphia Robinson Otis
‘When someone that you love dies… it’s like fireworks suddenly burning out in the sky and everything goes black.’
~ Muriel Barbery
Wellness in our Golden Years
Our wellness shapes every aspect of our daily lives, from our family lives to our social lives to our working lives. It affects our feelings, choices, and actions. Wellness is our ability to live a healthy, enjoyable, fulfilling life and connect with and care for the people around us.
Wellness is about so much more than having good physical health. True wellness is rooted in mental, emotional, social, occupational, financial, and physical well-being. Wellness is fed and watered by practicing healthy—but simple—habits that allow us to grow and blossom. For those living with chronic illness or challenges to their mental or emotional health, true wellness may seem intangible, even impossible. Yet for all of us, however difficult our circumstances are, the wellness journey is infinitely worth taking, with even the most minor steps. Mostly, if those small steps are all we can take, we will be rewarded with great joy.
Resources coming soon
Fundraisers & donations
East St. Louis Sr. High Scholarship Fund
- East Side is blue and white, with the school mascot on one side and the 50th reunion logo on the other.
- Lincoln is orange and white, with the school mascot on one side and the 50th reunion logo on the other.
ACKNOWLDGEMENTS
Join us for our Fithieth-Year Reunion as we celebrate our golden years. We can’t wait to reconnect with each of you and commemorate this special milestone. Get ready for a reunion that will leave you reminiscing for years.
Keep living your life like it's golden because that's precisely what it is!
Fiftieth Reunion Planning Committee Members: Don Thomas – Chairperson, Venues / Erica Brown Gayles – Co-Chairperson, Tech, Webpage, Memorial / Rosa Allen – Financial Secretary / Tammarra Walker – Venues, Hotel / Fannie Harrison – Secretary / Esther Fuller – Decorations, Lincoln Liason / Gail Hudson-Hankins – Fundraiser & Media / Sylvester Manuel – Memorial / Roderick Willis – Mtg Organizer / Greg Hudson – Reunion Promoter
Comments
Please leave all comments or questions here, and we will respond as soon as possible. All comments posted must be approved before they appear on the webpage. You do not have to fill-in the website section.
Hello Erica! This was wonderfully made; Got to see people I have not seen since Eastside; I am going to do my best to see these Classmates, Christ Bless Us All. Amen.
Take Care Keep the Faith Erica
Hey Cleveland, it was so nice to talk with you and catch up on each other lives. I am happy to know that you enjoyed engaging on the class web page and viewing the photos brought back warm memories that we all have shared. I pray that you are able to come next year. May God continue to bless you with good health and happiness!
Much love,
Erica!
Erica,
You did an awesome job on the website. I love it and it represents who we are as the Class of 1975.
Love ya, Sis!
Gizelle
Love you back! ❤️
Hi Erica, you did a great job with this site, it looks fantastic!!!
Hi… I am trying to add pictures to the site (which really looks great!!) but it wants me to sign in to Google Drive, I don’t have a log in. Do I need to sign up for one?
John Yakubovich
Hi John, I didn’t realize that a gmail email account was needed to utilize google drive. I have created a link for Dropbox for all class members that have other email addresses. Please use the Dropbox links to upload your photos. Thank you for bringing this to my attention.
EBG
Thanks Erica for such an Awesome & Fantastic website❤️
It’s The Golden Time Of Reunions🎉
You are welcomed my friend!❤️
I’m so excited about reconnecting with new and old classmates. We encourage your engagement and your participation on our web page. Please be sure to use the links to upload your photos, and don’t forget to leave a comment or reply and connect with other classmates.
Ps. You do not have to complete the website section to leave a comment.
Much love, Erica
💙🧡🖤
I’m excited to celebrate our Golden Anniversary Reunion. I look forward to reconnecting with everyone from East Side Class of ’75.
Eagerly awaiting the date,
Vera Z. Nicholson
Hey Vera,
We have updated all the information and we are committed to keeping everyone abreast of class events and current events. I too looking forward to connecting with everyone. Hopefully I’ll see you before the reunion.
Much love,
Erica❤️