25 Years Later, BASH Class of 2001 Finds New Connections

by Lesley Misko

Twenty-five years after walking the halls of Boyertown Area Senior High School together, members of the Class of 2001 gathered in Boyertown to catch up, share memories, and celebrate how far life had taken them since graduation.

The reunion, held Sept. 19, 2026 at the Boyertown Museum of Historic Vehicles, brought together 63 classmates and guests for an evening of food and music, dancing and conversation. The museum’s collection of historic vehicles provided a distinctly local setting for the milestone gathering.

For Lindsey Riegner Mason, a member of the class who took the lead in organizing the event, the reunion offered something more meaningful than a chance to reminisce about high school. It was another opportunity to see how people who might not have spent much time together as teenagers could reconnect as adults.

“I love that every reunion we've had, there's been a mishmash of random people that probably wouldn't have hung out in high school, but we all get along,” Mason said. “We all talk, we all make it a point to talk with each other.”

That willingness to mingle across old social boundaries has become one of her favorite parts of the reunions.

“It's really cool to see that,” she said.

John Bistrek, Brent Ely, Jared Haas

A Reunion Built by Classmates

Putting together a class reunion takes time, coordination, and help from people willing to pitch in. Mason worked with a committee of classmates to bring the 25th-anniversary celebration together.

Among those helping were Crystal (Rose) Gallagher,  Adam Hubley, Jessie (Engdahl) Quick, Rae Ann (Miskiewicz) Moorhouse, Chris Sterner, Rachel Folk, Stefanie (Davis) Kniezewski, Libby (Bakes) Lorah. Mason also credited other classmates who contributed  to the planning.

The Sept. 19 gathering ran from 6 to 10 p.m. at the museum. The evening had no formal program beyond the social activities: guests ate, enjoyed drinks, posed for a group photograph, and eventually took to the dance floor.

Moyer’s Catering provided much of the food, while vegetarian lasagna from The Grind offered an additional option. Cookies from Frecon’s Farms and Rice Krispies treats made by  Lorah rounded out the menu.

Mason said 63 people attended. Although reunion attendance has varied over the years, this was the most expensive reunion the group had organized, she noted.

She estimated that roughly 10 to 15 attendees came from outside the area, including at least one person from about an hour beyond Washington, D.C. Most were local or close enough to return to Boyertown for the evening. 

Mason wondered whether the timing might have affected attendance. Earlier reunions, she recalled, were generally held around Thanksgiving break, while the 25th reunion took place earlier in the fall. Some classmates who travel home for Thanksgiving may have been less inclined to make a second trip, she speculated, although she could not say whether that was a factor. 

The committee hired Josh Josh Petrauskas, a member of the class of 2002, as the DJ. His playlist included music associated with the classmates’ middle-school and high-school years, bringing back the sounds of their younger days.

Destiny’s Child and Green Day were among the artists that prompted recognition and enthusiasm. The dancing continued into the evening, with classmates enjoying both the familiar music and the chance to spend time together again.

A Museum Full of Memories

For Jeffrey Brunner, a member of the class of 2001 who now teaches vocal music at BASH, the reunion offered a chance to reconnect with people he had not seen in years.

Brunner noted that although the gathering was smaller than the previous reunion, which he understood had drawn about 80 people, the room felt lively, with dinner tables, a dance floor, a DJ, and a bar set up in the museum’s diner car.

The museum itself became part of the experience. Its exhibits were open, and tour guides were on hand to talk with visitors about the vehicles.

At one point, Brunner stepped away from a dinner conversation to walk around. A tour guide promptly began introducing him to the exhibits.

“I went for a walk, and the tour guide came right up to me, and she's like, let's talk about this car. Now let's talk about this car,” he recalled with amusement. 

Stephanie Lock, Lindsey Mason, RuthAnn Jimenez, Breanne Anoushian

Brunner also appreciated the display of memorabilia. Organizers set out yearbooks from the classes’ East and West junior high schools and the high school, along with prom favors and other keepsakes.

Classmates gathered around the table to look through photographs, point out familiar faces, and use the memorabilia to start conversations. The items offered an easy way to bridge the gap between the teenagers they remembered and the adults standing together that evening.

The decorations were intentionally simple, Brunner said, but the setting and company made for a lovely event.

Seeing People Differently

Perhaps the most striking aspect of a reunion after a quarter-century is the opportunity to meet former classmates again without the bias and social divisions that often shape high school life.

Brunner said he had conversations with people he had known only casually as a teenager, including classmates he had respected but never considered friends.

He described sitting down with Adam Hubley, someone he had not been close to in high school but had encountered around Boyertown over the years. The two talked comfortably, as though they had been friends all along.

Brunner found that kind of exchange especially rewarding. 

Francine Black's vocal music students back in 2001.

Francine Black's former vocal music students now.

He also reconnected with Lisa Dunkelberger, whom he had not seen in years, and spoke with Kim (Dallas) McLaughlin as he was leaving. He remembered being shy in high school and assuming he would never have approached someone like Dallas. Her friendly conversation challenged that old impression.

The experience reinforced a point that Mason had noticed at previous reunions: people grow, circumstances change, and old social categories do not necessarily define the relationships they can have as adults.

For Brunner, the evening was also an opportunity to talk about his work. As BASH’s vocal music teacher, he discovered that several classmates were interested in hearing about his life at the school. Some mentioned that their children attended the high school, even if they were not involved in choir.

The reunion connected him not only with his own past but also with the school community he serves today.

The Music of a Generation

The DJ’s playlist helped make the evening feel like a celebration rather than simply a gathering to exchange life updates.

Brunner enjoyed hearing music from the classmates’ school years, including Destiny’s Child and Green Day. The familiar songs brought people to the dance floor, while newer music added a humorous reminder of how much popular culture had changed.

As he was leaving, the DJ played “Pink Pony Club,” which Brunner recognized as decidedly outside the class’s original musical era. He laughed at the contrast and noted that classmates even had photographs of themselves dancing to it.

There were themed drinks, too, including a cocktail the bartender called a “Bear Fever” old-fashioned, along with lemonade and iced tea. Brunner said the food, drinks, music and welcoming atmosphere made the evening well worth attending.

And although he had initially been hesitant about going, he was glad he had.

“I actually had a very nice time,” he said. “And it wasn't scary.”

That simple observation captures something important about reunions. The prospect of returning to a high school social setting can be intimidating, particularly for people who remember the awkwardness, insecurities, or difficult experiences of adolescence. But the reunion Brunner described was not a replay of high school. It was an opportunity to discover who people had become.

Why Showing Up Matters

Mason understands that not everyone is eager to attend a reunion. Some people remember high school as a difficult time and see little reason to revisit it.

She said she struggled in high school herself, but the reunions have given her experiences she is grateful to have.

“I wish people would give it more of a chance,” she said. “We've never had a bad reunion. We've always had a blast.”

For her, the value is not that every conversation will be profound or that everyone will reconnect with a long-lost best friend. It is that people make the effort to come together, even for a single evening, and discover what those encounters might bring.

Brunner’s experience offered a small illustration. A conversation with someone he had never expected to approach became a pleasant surprise. A classmate he had not been close to became someone with whom he could share a conversation. Familiar music, old yearbooks, and photographs made it easier to reconnect.

Twenty-five years after graduation, the members of BASH’s Class of 2001 have lives and responsibilities that their teenage selves could scarcely have imagined. Yet, for one evening, they could return to a shared point in their lives and see one another with fresh eyes.

As Mason observed, the classmates who might never have gravitated toward one another in high school now find themselves talking, laughing, and dancing together.

The reunion was a celebration of a graduating class, but it was also a reminder that friendships and connections do not have to remain frozen in the forms they took when people were young. Sometimes, all it takes is showing up—and being willing to start a conversation.

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