Bearden High School Class of 1978
Links

* Reunion Information
(Updated 09/14/08)
* Class Member List
(Updated 04/15/10)
* Individual Web Pages
(Updated 01/19/09)
* Class Member News
(Updated 04/27/08)
* 1978 and Sign Pictures
(Updated 07/22/08)
* Reunion Pictures
(Updated 09/14/08)
* Whatever Happened To.....?
(Updated 01/11/09)
* Virtual Yearbook
(Updated 07/29/03)
* Dearly Departed Class Members
(Updated 11/25/08)
* Message Board/Chat
* Bearden High School
* BHS Foundation Alumni Community
* BHS Foundation
Announcements

April 28, 2013 -- Hello everyone. Remember, we have a Bearden High School Class of 1978 page on Facebook, and I have been trying to make as many classmates as possible aware of our 35-year reunion next summer. If you are not sure whether we have good contact information for you, please go to the Bearden High School Foundation web site and make sure your alumni information is up-to-date. We would love for this to be the best reunion yet, so spread the word.

Take care!

Tony Pagano

January 31, 2013 -- Message from Buddy Heins.

All,

Our sign campaign has gone very well. We’ve raised about $2000. We still need more. Our sign has stood the test of time (for 35 years anyway). We need to completely rebuild it. We need to raise about $4000. We’d like to get all the work completed before our reunion this summer, which is planned for July 27 at Concord Marina in Knoxville.

Listed below are the classmates who have donated to the sign. You can mail your contribution to me at:

Buddy Heins
Vice President
Merit Construction, Inc.
10435 Dutchtown Road
Knoxville, TN 37932

Thanks for your support!!!

Donors: Paul Koonce, Tracy Snyder Cannon, Todd Lebert, Kelly Conway, Buddy Heins, Rusty Ensor, Tom Van Sickle, Marty Martin Gamble, John Slater, Melanie Anderson Cox, Mark Liberman, John McMillian, Diane Kenny Lanning, Tony Pagano, Linda Cleland Caviglia, Robert Smaley, Margaret Sternberg Smalley, Cindy Golden Contreras, Debbie Carney, Parker Stair, Jimmy Clayton, Missy Smith, Scott & Lydia Ellis, Doug Harris, and John Temple.

December 20, 2012 -- Hello everyone. We are getting closer and closer to it being 35 years since we graduated. So, Concord Marina has been reserved for Saturday night, July 27, 2013, for our next reunion. Please save the date, and please pass this information along to classmates who may not access this web site. Also, remember that we have a class Facebook page: Bearden Class of 1978 Facebook Page. Feel free to "like" that page and invite others). Also, please go to the Bearden High School Foundation web site and make sure your alumni information is up-to-date. We would love for this to be the best reunion yet, so spread the word. We're the class that's better than great, we're the Class of '78!

November 2, 2012 -- From Buddy Heins:

So far, we've received about 20 donations for the the renovation of the sign at the school. We need more!

Thank you to everyone who has donated so far!

September 25, 2012 -- From Buddy Heins:

Dear Classmates,

We are working hard to renovate our sign at the entrance to Bearden High School. Next year will mark 35 years since our graduation (unbelievable, really). The sign has many components that are deteriorating beyond repair. The sign has looked great all these years and I hope we can make it look great for another 35 years.

Please consider a $100 donation to help rebuild the sign. Any donation will be help! So far, we have received donations from Paul Koonce, Tracy Snyder Cannon, Todd Lebert, Kelly Conway, Rusty Ensor, Tom Van Sickle, Melanie Anderson Cox, Marty Martin Gamble and John Slater.

Checks may be made out to “BHS Class of 1978” and mailed to me at the address below.

I look forward to hearing from you!

Thanks,

Buddy Heins
Vice President
Merit Construction, Inc.
10435 Dutchtown Road
Knoxville, TN 37932

September 25, 2012 -- I'm sure many of you remember Ms. Hembree, the biology teacher at Bearden. She passed away in August -- Ms. Hembree Obituary. Rest in Peace!

December 27, 2011 -- I just received a note from Buddy Heins regarding the sign the Class of '78 donated to the school. The sign will be 34 years old in 2012, and while it still looks good, there are some structural issues that will need to be addressed in the next year or so to make sure it lasts another 30-plus years. John Temple and Buddy are exploring some options for repairs, and it is pretty clear that this effort will take a some fundraising to ensure the repairs are possible. Here is the picture of the sign that Buddy sent.



I am also posting this information on our Facebook class page -- Bearden High School Class of 1978 -- and I will post more as the fundraising effort takes shape. I hope you all have had a happy holiday season and have a wonderful new year!

Tony Pagano

October 6, 2010 -- The Class Member List has been taken down until such time as all privacy isses can be addressed. I apologize for any inconvenience the list may have caused anyone.

Tony Pagano

June 13, 2010 -- For those of you who use Facebook, we have a class group -- Bearden High School Class of 1978. Please join and keep up with us there too.

February 2, 2009 -- If any of you are interested in FaceBook stuff, here is a message I just received from a Bearden Class of 1983 grad:

Hi,

My name is Cynthia Laing St. Germain. I graduated from Bearden in 1983. My brothers and sisters (Leslie, Lance, Grant, Catherine) Laing, graduated in front of me. A gal by the name of Debbie Hill Frewin started a facebook page for all of Bearden Alumni. We are trying to find classes before 1980 and encourage them to go on and join www.facebook.com and look up Bearden High School class 1980-1985. We have opened it to all alumni. I know several have already joined. It has been a neat way to reconnect with our past. Could you relate the message to your class. I think we are up to mid 300's. Thank you for your time and consideration and please be sure to check it out.

Cynthia Laing St. Germain

November 25, 2008 -- I have some sad news. Our classmate Elizabeth "Libby" Cagle (Lowe) passed away on Saturday, November 15, 2008 at the age of 48. Here is a link to her obituary: Libby's Obituary. Once again, our condolences go out to all of Libby's family and friends. I am adding her obituary information to our Dearly Departed Class Members page, and I want to say thank you to Ann Williams, Michelle Pickens Decker and Chuck Kilgore for alerting me to this information.

November 11, 2008 -- First, thanks to all our Military Veterans! Second, it's not often that I run into any classmates, so when I do I like to document it. Here is a picture of Cindy Golden Contreras and her husband Mario: Cindy and Mario. I ran into them at the Tennessee Vols football game on Saturday. Based on the outcome of the game, seeing them was the highlight of my day.

September 14, 2008 -- I have added a page for reunion pictures sent to me from Michelle Pickens Decker -- Reunion Pictures From Michelle Pickens Decker. All of the reunion pictures can be accessed on the Reunion Pictures page. If you have pictures you would like to have posted here, please send them as e-mail attachments to webmaster@bearden78.org.

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August 25, 2008 -- Here is a message from Ann Williams regarding the recent passing of former Bearden teacher Bob Knisley:

I had a wonderful opportunity to be invited and attend the BHS 78 class reunion on Friday nite. Many of the former students asked about various teachers. One of the most asked about educators was Mr. Bob Knisley. It is with a heavy heart that I send you the sad news of his death on Aug. 17th. I am including the link to the Knoxville newspaper where you can read his obituary and click on the "view/sign guest book" if you would like to leave a message to his family -- Obituary - Rev. Bob E. Knisley. I am sure they would appreciate knowing any impact he might have had on your life.

With regards,

Ann Williams
Retired BHS Distributive Education Teacher/DECA Advisor

August 4, 2008 -- On a sad note, I confirmed that our classmate Eric Sater passed away in September 2003 at the age of 43, leaving behind a son Patrick. Eric has been added to our Dearly Departed page, and our condolences go out to the entire Sater family for their loss.

April 21, 2008 -- Here is a link to a group picture from one of our previous class reunions (1988?): Class Reunion Group Picture. If you have any pictures you want me to add to the site, just send them to me at webmaster@bearden78.org.

November 25, 2007 -- I was looking through some old stuff recently and found the program for our class Commencement Exercises, so I added it to the web site. I think it's always fun to see that kind of stuff, so take a look. If you ever have anything you want added to the site, just let me know and I'll see if I can get it done.

October 29, 2007 -- A Message From the Bearden High School Foundation

Bearden Foundation  Help Us Spread the News!

Dear Bearden Alumni,

Greetings from the Bearden High School Foundation!

Another school year is well underway at BHS. The Bulldog Football team is off to a great start at 7-1, and is hoping for a long run in the State playoffs this year. Last weeks game was topped off with the annual homecoming festivities which were a huge success.

Weve had a great response so far to the Foundation website. There are now over 700 registered users. But, we would like to have many more!

The website includes lots of information about whats happening at the School and the work of the Foundation. It also has great resources for staying connected with your class and old classmates. To access a roster of your classmates and to update your own information, just go to WWW.BHSFOUNDATION.ORG, click on the Alumni Community link and follow the simple registration process. All the services are free of charge.

Would you help us spread the news about the Foundation and the online Alumni Community? If you have email addresses for any BHS alumni in your contact list, would you consider forwarding this message to them, asking them to visit the site, register as a user and update their information? That would be a tremendous boost to our efforts and would be a great way to support the school.

Thanks for your help! Go Dogs!

Your friends at the BHS Foundation

August 4, 2007 -- Our friends the TWIGS are at it again, and Jill Wallace sent us some more pictures of several Class of '78 grads who get together at least once a year. In case you've forgotten, the TWIGS include Dee Dee (Hinds) Rogers, Jill (Wallace) Thompson, Lacy (Smith) Wallace, Mindy (Comer) Sontag, Rhonda (Mixon) Seals, Sherra (Sowards) Gillespie, Tracy (Belew) Curlew, and Vandy (Vance) Kanaday. Check out their updated Individual Web Page to see their festivities in 2007. Like before, the page will be updated any time they are willing to send us more pictures. Remember, if you have pictures or information you want to share with the class, just send them my way.

August 2, 2007 -- On the good news front, we received a message from a teacher of many of our class members -- Ms. Ann Williams. She may be reached by e-mail at AW1949@aol.com, and here is her message:

I just happened to run across the BHS class of '78's website. Oh my gosh.....what a rush to read about this group and see pixs of families and friends. But I have jumped ahead of myself.

I am Ann Williams and I taught marketing education or perhaps back then it was distributive education. Also I was the DECA advisor. So many of the people on who have pixs and individual webpages were in my classes. Talk about a trip down memory lane....I remember being so proud of Lacy Smith as she served as a state officer for Tennessee DECA and so proud of the accomplishments of those DE class as an entire group. Shhhhhhhh don't tell but they were one of may ALL time favorite classes and stand out so much in my mind.

To say the least, I was moved by Parker Stair's comments about Terry Richardson at the time of Terry's death. My parents lived next door to Terry's mom/dad's place on Norris Lake and I witnessed first hand many of Terry's antics with skis or anything else he would attempt to ride including a parasail. I still can hear his mom as she realized it was Terry hanging from it as the boat came down the lake "that's Terrrrrrrrryyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy - get him down NOW!"

If you guys have a 30 year reunion next year, I would love to come crash it LOL. Reunions can be so much fun not to mention the hard work for those involved in planning it. I know because I am on the committee for my high school aka central class of '67. We are planning our big 40 for july of this year.

I belong to "brats" which is the Bearden retired active teachers group. We meet every other month for lunch and keep in touch with each other. I guess I am the baby brat as I took a medical retirement in 1990. So if anyone would like info about their former teachers I might could give some insight as to those folks.

Personally, I would love to hear from ANY "kids" of BHS '78.

Please feel free to post my email address or whatever and keep me posted on upcoming events.

Thanks so much,

Ann Williams aka "Adub" aka "AW"

March 24, 2007 -- I just ran across three pictures taken during our Junior Class Trip to Boston. You can view them here -- Junior Class Trip.