Bonnie Alberts Passes On During the Holidays
(posted 12/25/19) ROCKFORD, ILLINOIS - Classmate Bonita Mae Alberts (Mund) was born on July 4th and died during Christmas week December 23, 2019. She was 79 years old.
Bonnie attended Roosevelt Junior High, and then all three years at West graduating in 1959. During High school she was a member of the glee club.
Bonnie married classmate Jack Mund June 24, 1960. Jack predeceased her August 15, 2010.
See her obituary for more information.
Husband of Janice Brown Passed Away at Age 78
 Rosella's husband Peter Rosella.jpg)
(posted 11/15/19) YORK, PENNSYLVANIA — Peter Michael Rosella, husband of classmate Janice Ellen (Brown) Rosella, died Saturday November 9, 2019. Peter was an East High graduate. They were married for 59 years.
Funeral services will be private and at the convenience of the family.
See his obituary for more information.
Ginny Bufalo Celebrates 56th Wedding Anniversary
(posted 10/19/19) ROCKFORD, ILLINOIS — It may have seemed like eons ago but well-known classmate Virginia (Bufalo) Harezlak and her husband John just celebrated their 56th wedding anniversary last September 14th.
Ginny or Ginger, as she is referred to by many of us, and John Harezlak, a graduate of St. Thomas high school were married on September 14, 1963 in St. Anthony's Church.
The couple met in 1958 after Ginny's older brother Tony Bufalo brought John home for dinner one evening. They continued their relationship for five years as Ginny attended St. Anthony's School of Nursing and John went to Notre Dame and then Marquette University - they both graduated in 1962. John then enlisted in the US Marine Corp Reserve.
Their oldest son John Luke was born in 1964, Charles Joseph in 1966, and David Anthony in 1969. They were then blessed with four grandsons, Joey (22yo), Jack (18), Gabe (12), and Zeke (14). All of their children, their wives (Theresa, Marge, and Michele), and families live in Rockford where they can see each other often and participate in their school and sports events.
The couple's parents are now deceased but the children were able to enjoy them until they became young adults creating many special memories.
It is a story-book marriage and you can see, with all of the family nearby, why they love calling Rockford home!
Follow the link here to see more photos of the wedding, newspaper coverage, and the 56th celebration.
Ed Adams Dies Unexpectedly on his Birthday at 78
(posted 9/23/19) ROCKFORD, ILLINOIS - Classmate Edward Earl Adams died unexpectedly on his birthday September 17, 2019. He was 78 years old.
Ed attended Roosevelt Junior High, and then all three years at West graduating in 1959. During High school he served with the Yearbook editorial staff and was a member of the Quill and Scroll acquiring skills tht he used later in life in the printing and publishing industries.
Celebration of life with stories and fellowship to be held September 28, 2019 from 1 – 4 at Park Lanes, Loves Park, IL.
See his obituary for more information.
Large Geographically Diverse Turnout for the 60th
(posted 9/10/19) ROCKFORD, IL — Over one hundred classmates and partners turned out each night at the Hoffman House for our 60th reunion. As shown in the class directory, given out to those classmates who attended the Saturday night dinner dance, this event has been happening regularly every five years since graduation. It was an excellent showing especially when you consider the fact that almost one third of the original class of about five hundred has passed on.
Of course the majority of the attendees were from Illinois but there were many from other states plus our foreign exchange student Annegert Bock called Ann or Anna Klamroth who came from Neu-Ulm Germany. Other states represented were Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Maryland, Minnesota, Nevada, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia, Washington and Wisconsin. A few were attending their class reunion for the first time.
There was continuous visiting both for the Friday August, 23rd casual mixer and the following Saturday dinner dance with hardly enough time for dancing to the Mike Williamson Band. Many posed for photos with their Junior High and Elementary School friends. Photos of the event will be available in the "Gallery" section of this website within a couple of weeks.
FOLLOWING ARE CLASSMATE COMMENTS:
From Rosanne (Cuppini) Hemmens:
[to the] Reunion Committee,
Thank you for all of your time and effort to make our 60th class reunion such a success and memorable event. The food was excellent, the entertainment was great, and most of all, reuniting with our classmates and recalling old memories made it seem like yesterday. All of your dedication and hard work is appreciated!
Love, Rosanne (Cuppini) Hemmens.
From Anna (Klamroth) Bock:
Dear classmates, I had much fun joining the reunion in Rockford Illinnois and I want to thank you for your kindness. I am back home now in Neu-Ulm in Germany, but I will never forget the 60th Diamonnd Reunion 2019. Annegert Bock, former AFS-Student, called Ann or Anna Klamroth.
From Chuck Espy:
To all the hard working committee———
The reunion was an absolute blast…. The hard work you guys did made it a really fun weekend… I was pretty apprehensive that it would be 1— Boring, 2— Waste of Time, 3—Too much of a blur….. $—Wouldn’t recognize anybody….
Instead it was great…. The alums were happy, engaged, curious, & seemed like they wanted to be there to catch up with old friends,, The Hoffman House banquet food was terrific. Some of the best we/ve had, & we’ve had plenty of hotel banquet food… It was good to be there both nights as some folks were only there one or the other..
Couple of questions—— The spiral booklet that was passed out to everybody… Is that also going to be mailed to the alums that couldn’t be there??… or can they request a copy??
We were at the 40th, now this is the 60th… I promise, the good Lord willing, we will be at the 80th if you guys plan it….
Thanks again, Chuck & Jan Espy
60th Reunion Golfers Do it One More Time
(posted 8/31/19) ROCKFORD, IL — A golf game prior to the reunion is a tradition and this year is no exception. The Rockford team is joined by classmates from the west coast to play at Ingersoll one more time August 23, 2019. They are from L to R: Bob Stoll, Sandy Jacobson, Jeff Saunders, Marty Pirrello, Howie Partch, and organizer Jim White.
From Sharon (Simpson) Sbragia Prior to Reunion
(posted 8/25/19) ROCKFORD, ILLINOIS — Classmates Sharon and Gary Sbragia, a class couple, who live in Parker Colorado could not make it to the reunion this year but wanted everyone to know they miss us. She sends the following message prior to the reunion to classmate Dave Ferreira in respose to the question "are you coming to the reunion?":
"Hey Dave, you’re probably in bed, sound asleep by now. It’s almost midnight here. I just finished looking through all the pictures Ron had up in the Gallery from Reunions gone by, stars that graduated in 1959 and what records were popular in ‘59. Plus old grade school pictures. Fabulous job Ron. Just a fun trip into the past. However now I have a problem!!! I AM SO HOMESICK FOR YOU ALL! So here’s what you can do for me..... Live it up, love each other as never before and laugh, God laugh as if this can’t ever come to an end. I’ll feel it and hear it out here. Gary and I will hug each other and shed some happy tears in remembrance of you. Stay well.
If you want to share with the Class feel free. It was your comment that got us started. Bless you for bringing it up!!"
NOTE: Sharon Simpson was the homecoming queen in our senior year. Also today is husband Gary Sbragia's birthday - Happy 78th to Gary!
Joe Adams Retires back to Wisconsin
(posted 8/17/19) BAYFIELD, WISCONSIN —
The Adams’ have retired to Bayfield, WI, the Cape Cod of Lake Superior.
They have volunteered some years, 3 years in Peru South America, 5 years with the National Parks including 5 months as light house keepers on Michigan Island int Apostle Lakeshore National Park and 4 years as docents at San Javier Mission Church in Tucson Arizona. They are also licensed guides in Mexico and led many groups into Mexico.
They finished their very active careers going back to their farm and turning the production to organic vegetables which fed 80 families, a roadside stand and contributed 2,500 to 3,000 lbs to various food shelves.
"At last we are retired but volunteering for the “Big Top” music events, cooking and teaching for CORE, and active in St. Francis Church on the Red Cliff Reservation".
They feel "Life is full of opportunities".
Linda Sandwick Passes On after a Long Illness
(posted 8/16/19) CARMEL, INDIANA — Classmate Linda Joan (Sandwick) Buselli died August 4, 2019 at age 77.
 Buselli.jpg)
Linda was with us since Montague Elementary, Washington Junior High and graduated West High in the top ten. Then she went on to the University of Illinois where she received a BS degree in Journalism.
A memorial service will be held 1–3 PM on Saturday, August 24, 2019 at Indiana Funeral Care, 8151 Allisonville Rd, Indianapolis, Indiana 46250.
In lieu of sending flowers, please send donations (tax deductible) to the Urantia Book Fellowship at P.O. Box 6631, Broomfield, CO 80021 or online at https://urantiabook.worldsecuresystems.com/donation.
See her full obituary for more details.
The Lamps are Shining Brighter Than Ever
(posted 8/5/19) ROCKFORD, ILLINOIS — Classmate Bill Lamps and his wife Nancy just celebrated their 51st wedding anniversary August 1st, 2019! William "Billy" Lamps Jr. and Nancy Jane Hills Lamps were married in salt Lake City, Utah August 1st, 1968.
Billy was drafted into the Army and served in Kornwestheim, Germany for almost two years before returning to the States to pursue further education. He later met Nancy who was working as a child welfare worker in Huntsville, Alabama.
The couple now reside in Rockford where they have raised three sons, Mike, Dana, and David who have given them eight grandchildren. After all these years, they are still very much in love with each other! Congratulations to them both!
Bob Armstrong Says Hello from Oregon
(posted 7/18/19) DALLAS, OREGON— Classmate Bob Armstrong thanks us for keeping up this website as he visits it frequently to get the latest class news.
Bob's wife Erma will be 90 this year and she struggles with a painful back. Luckily for her, she has great caregivers in her daughters and husband. Bob has taken over all of the household chores.
You may remember Bob as the close friend of classmate Pat Block who was the first from our class to die November 19, 1962. Bob accompanied Pat to the Senior Prom. You can read about Pat along with some photos of them in Pat's obituary.
Depite living in Oregon, both Bob and Erma are die-hard Cubs fans. They keep up with Cub games via a radio hookup. Bob says don't count out the Cubs this season as they will turn on the steam after the all star break!