Parkersburg High School classmates met in October to celebrate their 70th birthdays. Kneeling in front, Fritz Renner, Steve Lovell, Greg Garrett and Steve Murrill. Middle row, Candace Jones, Kathy Lovell, Marty Lee, Cindy Whiting, Dallas Whiting, Beth Matlack, Jeanne Hayhurst, Kathy Kent, Sharon Garrett, Mary Halfhill, Becky Miller and Mark Souther. Back row, Joe Carrico, Diane Hamilton, Becky Zimmerman and Steve Halfhill. (Photo by Justin McChesney-Wachs)

MONTEREY, Calif. — Twenty graduates of the Parkersburg High School Class of 1967 celebrated their 70th birthdays together in California from Oct. 18-20.

“We had a wonderful Parkersburg High School 70th Birthday Weekend Celebration here in Monterey (California) with our classmates from 1967,” said Fritz Renner, who lives in Monterey. “It truly was a once-in-a-lifetime event, although several of us talked about another gathering in the future.”

Renner emphasized that this was not a PHS class reunion, as that’s organized by another group every five years. Renner said the 70-year-olds want to meet again for another themed event with classmates somewhere in the United States.

Twenty-nine people attended the birthday celebration in Monterey.

Monterey Mayor Clyde Roberson was the surprise guest and presented the 1967 class with a framed “Letter of Recognition” and Monterey lapel pins. He gave a speech that Friday night, listing many PHS facts. “For example, we were the 100th graduating class from PHS and the 50th from the Dudley Street location,” Renner said.

Roberson also talked about interesting facts on Monterey and his friend Clint Eastwood.

The 1967 class at PHS had over 1,000 graduates.

The PHS 1967 graduates in attendance were Joe Carrico, Vienna; Greg and Sharon Bailey Garrett, Parkersburg; Steve and Mary Condry Halfhill, Springfield, Va.; Diane McGuire Hamilton, Chester, Va.; Jeanne Pahl Hayhurst, Vienna; Candace Dollman Jones, Vienna; Kathy Marilla Kent, Annapolis, Md.; Marty Morris Lee, New York City; Steve and Kathy Lincicome Lovell, Daphne, Ala.; Beth Umbleby Matlack, North Granby, Conn.; Becky Dils Miller, Perrysburg, Ohio; Steve Murrill, Wilmette, Ill.; Fritz Renner, Monterey, Calif.; Mark Souther, Clearwater, Fla.; Dallas and Cindy Day Whiting, Lexington, Ky.; and Becky Batten Zimmerman of Huntington.

The group met on Friday, Oct. 18 at the Jabberwock Inn in Monterey for its opening night reception. Among the hors d’oeuvres were West Virginia pepperoni rolls flown in from Harpers Ferry.

The group met on Saturday at the private residence of the Metz family on their country property, which included a swimming pool. A steak and chicken barbecue dinner was prepared by Chef Justin McChesney-Wachs from San Diego.

A custom logo birthday cake with homemade ice cream and chocolate sauce was presented after a group singing of “Happy Birthday To Us.”

Class President Greg Garrett of Parkersburg gave out logo blankets and logo-etched glasses as birthday presents to classmates.

This was followed by the “dive-in” movie by the swimming pool, “The Big Chill,” with an introduction by classmate Marty Morris Lee and husband George Lee, both Broadway actors from New York City. They are personal friends of actor Kevin Kline, one of the stars in “The Big Chill,” Renner said. The Lees gave the classmates background details from Kline on the making of the movie.

The event on Sunday, Oct. 20 was held at the private residence of the Weichert family with a traditional South Carolina Low Country Boil with hushpuppies. Cornhole and pingpong tournaments were held and 1960s music was provided by homeowner Rick Weichert.

Classmates visited the Monterey Peninsula before the event and stayed after the event to travel and see the area attractions and beautiful scenery, Renner said. Collectively, they traveled 30,209 miles one way to participate in the weekend celebration.