Today's light and breezy commentary is brought to you by tomorrow's 2024 Presidential Election!
Everybody thinks that their graduating class is the best, and this seems to be true for all types of graduations!
For example, I was lucky enough to be selected for Class 22 of Leadership Akron. We had 33 people in our class, many of whom have remained community leaders and good friends for years. You would likely know quite a few names from our class roster. We graduated in May 2006, and Class 22 eventually became known as the Double Deucers. Like all Leadership Akron classes, both before and since, we tell everyone we were the “best class ever.”
The same was true for the Stow High School class of 1984! My mom always said that out of her three kids' graduating classes, mine was filled with the most friendly and outgoing group of people. I completely agree. As a matter of fact, we recently gathered for our 40-year reunion. More than 80 of our nearly 500 classmates attended, as did many of their spouses and significant others. We had a great evening catching up and sharing old stories. A couple of pictures from the night are included below.
Friends since early elementary school!
Source: Jesse’s iPhone
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame obviously feels the same about the class of 84! They recently opened an exhibit dedicated to the fantastic music from that year. As the Rock Hall is coming up on the 30th anniversary of opening next September, I have never seen an exhibit dedicated to the music of a single year. The top music releases from that year contain some of the greatest and most iconic albums of all time, including:
- Born in the USA. Bruce Springsteen
- Purple Rain, Prince (Rachel will fight me on the order of these albums, but I am the one writing this)
- 1984, Van Halen
- The Unforgettable Fire, U2
- Heartbeat City, The Cars
- Private Dancer, Tina Turner
- Like a Virgin, Madonna
- Couldn't Stand the Weather, Stevie Ray Vaughn
Rachel and I recently visited the new exhibit. There was a lot of incredible memorabilia to explore, and music videos played from that year constantly in the background. It is remarkable how many people living in northeast Ohio have still never visited the Rock Hall. A few pictures from our recent visit are included below.
Source: Jesse’s iPhone
The United States was also on an upswing in 1984 from an economic and political standpoint. On the political side, Ronald Reagan was re-elected President in an electoral college landslide, winning 49 of 50 states and receiving 525 of 538 possible votes. The country seemed more optimistic about coming out of the 1970s Watergate and stagflation years.
From an economic standpoint, we recorded significant gains in 1984, with real GDP up nearly 6 percent. Gains in employment and production accelerated at near-record rates. New auto sales rose to their highest levels since 1979, and housing started reaching its highest rates since 1978.
I could go on and on about the movies that were released and the TV shows that were popular in 1984. Yes, it seems that 1984 was a magical year for many reasons… one being the class that graduated from Stow High School that year.
While attending your 40-year high school reunion can make you nostalgic for things past, it also gives you an appreciation for some of the great people and things you have experienced that have led you to this point in life. Thank you for letting me share with you as we continue “Moving Life Forward.”
© 2024 Jesse Hurst
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