Generations of alumni celebrate Golden High School's 150th anniversary

Corinne Westeman
cwesteman@coloradocommunitymedia.com
Posted 6/6/23

When the call went out to celebrate Golden High School’s 150th anniversary this month, hundreds of graduates — from the 1960s to the future Class of 2032 — answered.

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Generations of alumni celebrate Golden High School's 150th anniversary

Posted

What started as Colorado’s first high school with a permanent building in 1873 has become a vast network of thousands of Demons across Colorado and around the world who bleed maroon and white.

So, when the call went out to celebrate Golden High School’s 150th anniversary this month, hundreds of graduates — from the 1960s to the future Class of 2032 — answered.

On June 4, generations of Demons gathered to celebrate their historic high school — the oldest in Colorado — during its sesquicentennial year. GHS will have more festivities for Homecoming Week this September.

Throughout the event, the attending alumni enjoyed reminiscing by looking through the yearbooks and newspaper clippings, watching a short documentary of the school’s history and touring the current campus.

Golden High School has had five iterations of buildings and/or campuses throughout its history. The current building at 701 24th St. was finished in 2008, and several alumni said they hadn’t seen it yet.

While much has changed throughout GHS’ history, attendees said one thing has remained the same: the community feel.

Class of 1993 graduate Amber English née Hayes remarked how GHS is “one of the last elements of small-town culture” in Golden.

She and her brother Ryan Hayes described how several longtime families, like theirs, have had three or more generations graduate from Golden. Over the years, Demons have returned to teach and/or coach at GHS, and the community generally rallies around the school’s events, activities and teams.

Ryan Hayes said his wife, who graduated from Arvada West High School, has noticed how GHS’ culture is distinct and unique from other high schools’.

The siblings, who are the third generation of Demons in their family, noted how their grandmother Virginia Hayes graduated from the school in 1933 and then worked as the GHS librarian. They added that their dad, Bob Hayes, was an alumnus and longtime teacher and coach, and the current gym is named after him.

Amber and her husband met at GHS, where they were high school sweethearts in the early ‘90s, and their son graduated in 2020.

Ryan graduated in 2006, and briefly coached at the school afterward.

“Golden High School has been our whole lives,” he said.

The Hayes siblings and other attendees emphasized how all the different generations of Demons returning for the sesquicentennial celebration was a testament to that community feel.

Michelle Henriksen née Ellis and her husband Nils Henriksen, Class of 1992 graduates who live in the Arvada West area, said they plan to choice-enroll their daughter Annalise at GHS because of that unique environment.

Annalise, who was sporting a “Class of 2032” sticker at the sesquicentennial celebration, said she was very excited to be a future Demon. She enjoyed the June 4 event, saying she had fun seeing old photos of her parents and uncle in the GHS yearbooks.

Michelle and her brother Brian Ellis, a Class of 1994 graduate, moved to Golden from Indiana, where their education was a “sit-and-get” format. But, GHS was different: it was more engaging and immersive.

Brian Ellis added how, at that time, felt more like a college campus with students coming and going at all hours of the day.

That environment, the siblings said, allowed them to flourish at GHS. Now, the Henriksens hoped that’d be the case for Annalise and other future Demons.

Decades of Maroon & White

The 20-minute documentary recapping the school’s history was a highlight of the June 4 event, showing how GHS history intersected with Golden, Colorado and United States history.

It honored those Demons who fought and died in World War I, World War II and the Vietnam War; it showed the passage of time along Washington Avenue and the various school buildings and campus sites; and highlighted those GHS teams who won state championships.

The video also brought back memories for the alumni, like the payphone outside the gym, various fashion trends, and traditional GHS events like prom, junior raft trips and senior seminars.

Class of 1988 graduates Cora Rice and Jennifer Chaet also later expounded on how they helped develop the now-iconic GHS hand jive.

The two alumni initially learned the hand jive at a camp and brought back to GHS, but did it to a variety of songs. It caught on enough that the Class of 1988 performed the hand jive at graduation.

Rice and Chaet theorized how the Class of 1989 must’ve solidified the routine and eternally paired it with Depeche Mode’s “Just Can’t Get Enough.” However it came to be, the pair just appreciated how the Demons have kept it going, noting that it’s “become a staple of the school now.”

For several alumni, this was their first time back at GHS in decades.

Class of 1968 graduate Doug Doffing noted how his children went to GHS as well, but he hadn’t seen the new campus since it was finished in 2008.

Judy Foley née Becwar said she toured the campus five years ago for her 50th class reunion. But, she appreciated returning with her children, who graduated in the ‘90s, for the sesquicentennial.

Class of 1988 graduate Jon Olsen said he probably hadn’t been back since graduation, but his brother and another friend from GHS encouraged him to go with them on June 4.

For Golden High School to last 150 years is a true accomplishment, he said, adding how both the anniversary itself and the June 4 celebration show how enduring and resilient the Golden Demons are, have been and always will be.

golden, high, school, alumni, 150, year, anniversary, sesquicentennial, 1873, 2023, colorado

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