For St. Regis, usually the third weekend of July brings former alumni, young and old, from all around the country to gather in their hometown to catch up and reconnect. But this year due to COVID-19 the St. Regis All Class Reunion has been cancelled.

St. Regis graduate and member of the St. Regis Alumni Association, Ron Forest felt it was the right move.

“A lot of people have said that’s smart, but some are also pretty disappointed. But it is what it is,” Forest said. “With the Corona it’s a little scary for us old people, that’s mainly who comes to this event.”

In lieu of getting together Forest recommends that classes still hold mini-reunions with one another, in smaller groups, or maybe even virtually. He encouraged classmates to get in touch with each other especially with the pandemic to make sure everyone is doing alright.

Forest, along with his wife Linda, Irma Samson, and Hazel Cromwell are the core group that put on the reunions each summer. For big milestones, classes will often coordinate group activities like rafting together or some sort of outdoor recreation. The weekend of the reunion, Saturday is spent in the park barbequing, playing games, and reminiscing. On Sunday morning, the alumni are welcomed back into St. Regis School for an old-fashioned cafeteria breakfast with their peers put on by Dawn Palmer and her kitchen staff.

The St. Regis Alumni Association is in need of some fresh alumni to step up to the plate. Forest stated, “We need some new blood in here, from these younger generations to help put on the reunions and the scholarship programs.”

This year the alumni association was able to award three $500 scholarships to graduating seniors.

For those wishing to donate funds to the alumni association, their mailing address is P.O. Box 99, St. Regis MT, 59866. To get information regarding next year’s reunion Ron Forest can be contacted at 406-678-4255.

With the unfortunate cancellation this summer he shared, “next year we’re going to have a real big reunion!”