The Drexel High School and Community Mega Reunion, set for Friday, Oct. 3, and Saturday, Oct. 4, will be more than a chance for folks to get together, catch up, and share memories of “The Good Old Days.”
Instead, it will also be a celebration of a town that is literally recreating itself, working to preserve elements of its historic past, but also improving, growing, and working to build a brighter future.
The reunion will involve three organizations that are working together to chart a new course for the historic town that was the birthplace of the famed Drexel Furniture Company – the Grow with Drexel organization, the Drexel Museum Committee, and the Drexel Alumni Association.
“We had a very successful reunion in the late summer of 2023,” said Dan Hoyle, who is chairman of the planning committee, “and we began almost immediately to plan for our next reunion.”
The 2023 reunion coincided with the annual Drexel Community Fair, held each year in late August, a time of high heat and humidity in the foothills of Western North Carolina.
The decision was made to move the event to early autumn, traditionally a time of great weather with cooler, less humid days in Burke County.
That reunion took place in a single afternoon in the gymnasium of Hallyburton Academy, which in years past had served the community as Drexel High School and then Drexel Junior High.
This year, events will be centered at the R.O. Huffman Community Center, which is currently being renovated and improved.
“We’re seven months away from the date,” said Hoyle, so all plans are tentative at this point, but we will be working hard to ensure that it is a great weekend for everyone who loves Drexel.”
Hoyle noted that Grow with Drexel president Kathy Cozort Oliver, Drexel Museum President Don Bumgarner, and Alumni Association President Brenda Ayers Blackburn, are working together to coordinate the weekend’s activities.
Also involved and being very supportive, Hoyle said, are the Drexel town government, including Mayor Dennis Anthony and Town Manager Bill Carroll, as well as Recreation Director Lisa Butler.
On the night of Friday, Oct. 3, Grow with Drexel is hosting a family friendly event, called Wolverine Pride, at the Drexel Fairgrounds at which everyone is welcome.
A modest admission fee will be charged, with proceeds going to ongoing Grow With Drexel projects.
Activities planned include a bonfire, movies, and games. The main event that evening will be a concert by Scott Oliver and his group, 2nd Sunset. Scott is a Drexel native currently living in the Nashville area.
Saturday’s activities will focus on the heritage of Drexel High School, with a gathering in the gym and food trucks available outside.
The Drexel Museum’s plans for the weekend are tentative at this point, but the group hopes to have exhibits at the reunion and perhaps to show off the actual downtown museum space later on Saturday afternoon.
“All of the groups involved are working really hard to make this an unforgettable weekend for anyone with a connection to the Drexel community,” said Hoyle.
Want to get involved? The next meeting of the Reunion Committee will be held at the R.O. Huffman Center on Thursday, March 13, at 10 a.m.
Bill Poteat -- Editor Emeritus
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