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Nowadays it is pretty easy to message an old friend on social media, but for two ex-students from Dannevirke High School, finding their school friends was a little bit harder.
Colleen Stephens (nee Vincent) and David Strawbridge had worked tirelessly to track down pupils who attended the schoolbetween 1950 to 1960, and so far have had 238 returned RSVPs for the reunion they are planning next month.
Colleen Stephens with photographs of 1950s-era Dannevirke High School, which provided clues that aided in finding former students. Photo / Warren Buckland
They had planned to host a two-day gathering at the Thirsty Whale in Napier last year, but were put off due to Cyclone Gabrielle and set the new dates for March 1 and 2.
The pair are in different parts of the county, yet connected over their Dannevirke High School experiences.
Between them, they combed through phone books, sent emails, and even placed an ad in a local paper to find others who attended the school during that decade.
Stephens said it was important for people to get together, but didn’t mind that some were unable to attend because of health-related reasons.
She went to high school from 1957 to 1960 and married Tony Stephens, who was a year ahead of her. However, she recalls their paths didn’t cross until after they left school.
She said reconnecting with other students from the time had been fantastic and she’d had many fascinating conversations already.
“It’s been quite interesting, because there have been lots of phone calls. It has been very difficult to contact people because they don’t have a landline, so you can’t look them up on the White Pages.”
Colleen Stephens said people from all over New Zealand would be at the reunion. Photo / Warren Buckland
The semi-retired farm owner and co-organiser spearheaded a previous reunion for students who attended in 1960 and was keen for another.
“It’s great to see and experience the happiness of people meeting again. In some of these cases it could be 50 years since they left school, or have seen anyone [from that time].”
Strawbridge didn’t want to reveal too much about his schoolboy antics, as he was saving those stories for the reunion.
He said an added challenge in the hunt for former students was names that had changed after marriages, but despite this, he was amazed by the number of people who had reached out.
“Slowly it rolled and we found ourselves.”
They both hoped to find more people to attend, and said registrations for the event are open until February 26.
Contact Colleen Stephens on 021 079 1442.
Michaela Gower joined Hawke’s Bay Today in 2023 and is based out of the Hastings newsroom. She covers Dannevirke and Hawke’s Bay news and has a love for sharing stories about farming and rural communities.
