In the beginning...

December 2003. The idea for "Mineola63.org" came about during our last event of the 40th Reunion Weekend. We wanted a way of keeping in touch with each other and also of having a focal point for communication where class members could learn about plans for future events. This lead to the suggestion of this website. It is here we could achieve these goals and more.

The task of building this site started soon after the 40th Reunion Weekend ended with the promise that the basic site would be up by the Thanksgiving weekend 2003 and the focus would be to have a reunion photo albumavailable online. Objective met!

Now fast forward to January 2011

Every five years is not enough! The Class of '63 has been holding annual reunions in different locations for the past eight years… Charleston… San Francisco… A Cruise to the Bahamas… San Antonio… Back to Long Island for our 45th and then San Diego… The Rocky Mountains in Colorado and in 2011 our reunion will be in the Berkshires for New England fall foliage. Throughout this period Mini Reunions started and have been held in Florida and one in the Washington DC area. Numerous class members have reestablished old and made friendships anew simply making that connection… a phone call… sending an email and just getting together... and attending an annual class event.

All these reunions didn't happen without a very special group of classmates that have stepped forward and accepted the responsibilities and hard work to make our class events happen and to those that make the effort year after year to attend. Think about that… Reunions every year... clearly reunions have a very special meaning to MHS '63… A "Thank you" to '63 for this gift we give to each other.

Throughout this time the website was growing. I never thought it would become what it has become… over four hundred unique viewable webpages… thousands of links and having to learn so many web technologies… Home grown and overgrown… becoming at times more than just a hobby. It grew to support other classes and their five year reunions as well and it is a lot of work!

The website has grown to a point that I now have to pause, simplify and redesign it. Refocus the website keeping what will serve us well and packing away what won't.

Mineola63.org Magazine… A new website designed with simplifying managing and protecting its content as well as offer more capacity to support our communication needs in the coming years as we look toward our 50th Reunion. That said, the "new" online magazine format will offer five seasonal issues that will cover all our class activities, news and events as well as invite class members to contribute personal news and features. Having a regularly scheduled publication will help keep things organized and focus our class communications. The new website will offer eMail (RSS feed) subscription notifying members of news and events as well as state-of-the art technologies bringing Mineola63.org to smart phone devices such as iPhones and iPads.

All these years and all the thousands of hours of work sitting in front of my Mac holding down the Webmaster's job has given me a unique perspective and role in my Class… back then and now. I reviewed my original dedication in 2003 below and it still holds true with the addition that our class friendships now have grown and are very special indeed since all this started… What a remarkable group of classmates and friends. It's really about being "Family" now.

2003 Dedication: This website; a 'Labor of Love'… when things work the way I plan them to and frustration when they don't... is a gift to my fellow classmates. I dedicate this website to my Class of '63 and also to all the other sister classes we knew while in high school.

My personal dedication is to Buzz Franquemont, Kathy Kwiatkowski, Tom Mohrman, Ralph Sammis, Dorothy Awe, Karen Kenny, Janet Bechtel, Pam Harrison, Maureen Sbarra, Pam Moore, Rich Ottaviano, Jack Emmer, Jim Litterelle, Ken Popson, Ginny Simonson, Bob Szigethy '64, Ed Kenny '65, Susie Fink '64, Paula Lupo '64 and Gloria Miller '64. All these wonderful people touched my life and made my senior year very special…

These wonderful people and now others continue to make my life special… five decades later.

Thank you all for the memories and friendship.

Carl Petersen (Webmaster)