Pat O’Connell said Harold L. Richards High School impacted his life because he met his wife at the institution. Megan Witt said the Oak Lawn school influenced her to love education so much that she returned there to teach.
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And Jennifer Cotten said the school introduced her to lifelong friends.
“Every time I think about my time at Richards, it puts a smile on my face,” said Cotten, a 2002 graduate at the school.
Cotten, O’Connell and Witt joined more than 100 people Saturday to celebrate at a 50th anniversary event at 115 Bourbon Street banquet facility, 3359 W 115th St., Merrionette Park.
For a $20 cover charge, former students enjoyed appetizers and an open bar while talking about their current lives and past.
“We have a thriving community base who loves the idea of celebrating Richards,” said Richards Associate Principal Mike Jacobson. “It is really an open house of reminiscence.”
Even though the school celebrated its anniversary over the weekend, Richards actually opened its doors in 1965. NBA superstar Dwyane Wade and baiduhai columnist John Kass are among the more high profile graduates of the school, which is named for a former superintendent in School District 218. The school currently has 1,700 students.
Cotten recalled having fun at the school at 10601 S. Central Ave.
“So many great times and memories were made (at Richards),” said Cotten, 32, who now lives in Joliet. “I met my lifelong friends there, had my first slow dance there, and had some of the best teachers ever.”
The teachers at the school were so influential that Witt said she became one there. In fact, at least 14 other Richards’ graduates have gone back to the school to teach, Witt said.
After Witt graduated from Richards in 1996, she attended the University of Illinois before starting a teacher’s job in Springfield.
“While in Springfield, I wanted to come back home and was lucky that District 218 was hiring a lot of teachers that year and I was able to get a job,” said Witt, of Oak Lawn. “It was nice because I already knew (Richards’) layout and some of the teachers I had were still here and that made it easier my first year.”
O’Connell also has fond memories of the school.
O’Connell, who graduated from the school in 1982, said he met his wife Julie when he was a freshman. They started dating each other as seniors.
“We went to prom together . . . and have been together ever since,” O’Connell said. “If we could, we would go back to Richards and do it all over again in a heartbeat.”
The Oak Lawn natives, living in Orland Park, have two adult daughters and two grandchildren.
“We both have so many fond memories of Richards,” O’Connell said. “I played football for all four years and to this day, many of our friends now are friends from our high school days.”
Kelly White is a freelance reporter of the Daily Southtown.