Wheeling High Class of 1966 to hold 50th reunion

Wheeling High School was completed and opened in 1964. The Class of 1966 was the first graduating class from the newly opened school.

The Class of 1966 was made up of students who were transferred from other District 214 schools. Many who went to Jack London Junior High and then on to Wheeling High were also first graduates of Jack London.

The Northwest suburbs were in their infancy. New schools were needed to accommodate students from all the new suburban families. Thus, the beginning of Wheeling High School.

While many Wheeling High graduates stayed in the Chicago metro area, many others spread out to all sections of the country. Among the early sign-ups for the reunion, (including the committee) are graduates from Florida to California.

The golden celebration for the "Wildcats" will be the weekend of Oct. 7-8. The theme for the reunion is "60s - Remember When."

The era of the '60s had some of the greatest music, bands and singers of all time.

The Cellar in Arlington Heights was a teen club that hosted many of the local garage bands. One of those bands was the Amboy Dukes. Two of the original band members were in the Wheeling High School Class of '66 - Richard Treat on bass guitar and Gale Utpadel on drums.

The other original members were Ted Nugent, lead guitar; Bob Lehnert, lead vocalist; and Gary Hicks, rhythm guitar. Also in the Class of 1966 was Larry Brooks, who played in the band Life In The Big City.

The reunion schedule for the Class of 1966 follows:

• Friday, Oct. 7: 5:30 p.m., tour of Wheeling High; 6:45 p.m., class recognized on football track; 7 p.m., football game/homecoming; 8 p.m., icebreaker at BlackFinn Ameri-Pub at Randhurst Village, purchase own food and drink

• Saturday, Oct 8: 6 p.m. The Maine Event at Ditka's Restaurant. $75 per person, reservations required. Prepay and sign up at 66wildcats.com. Alumni are welcome to bring spouses and friends. Reservation deadline is Sept. 16.

There will be a Memorabilia Table, so bring your items to display from your Wheeling High School days.

Memorabilia T-shirts are for sale at $10 each. Shirts should be worn Friday evening. To pre-order a shirt before they are sold out, contact Char at cbuckley4@yahoo.com. The shirts will be given to classmates on Friday.

The committee consists of Norma Schwinn Anderson, Pamela Lipschultz Bennett, Char Winfrey Buckley, Richard Treat and Jim Towery.

For information, contact Norma Schwinn Anderson at normajand@aol.com or (407) 359-7266.

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