William “Bud” Pirone had a dream. The dream came true 25 years ago, and this year the Oneonta High School Alumni Association is celebrating the milestone.
One way to celebrate is coming next weekend, Friday and Saturday, Sept. 20 and 21, with OHS Alumni Weekend.
Pirone had a lot of help in making the dream come true. In the spring of 1999, Pirone, Geoff Smith, Tony Drago, Frank Gallucci, Madolyn Palmer and Oneonta School Superintendent James Piscitelli met to form the Alumni Association.
This dream took shape during the time when Pirone was the principal at Oneonta High School.
One might argue that the dream got its start, or had a major boost, when an article appeared in the Nov. 18 edition of The Daily Star. Some students were forming a committee to search for an appropriate cheer that would catch the spirit of their class.
Pirone happened to find a graduation pamphlet from 1905 in a pile of old papers he discovered in the school, with a cheer the class adapted for the 1980s.
“Pirone was intrigued by the memorabilia scattered around the school, and decided to put together a high school archive. He wants to display the books and pictures from the past so that students get a better feel for the classes that preceded them.
“‘I want to make our students aware of the traditions of our school,’ he said.”
At some point after that, Pirone wanted to expand the number of scholarships available to graduates, and he thought an alumni association would help raise much-needed scholarship funds. It soon went beyond that, as he was getting steady requests from former students, once being a history teacher, to find their classmates. There was no such database. Again, an alumni association could be the solution to these challenges.
Oneonta High had an alumni association long ago, but it had been dormant for decades. That was until the six founders met in 1999. After the constitution and by-laws were passed on July 6, plans began to bring alumni together on a regular basis. Class reunions happened probably every five or ten years, and the plan was to have all classes be able to return each year. Today, many single class reunions join in the all-classes festivities.
The first annual Alumni Day was planned for 2000 in conjunction with the Parisian Pit Run, which itself brought home many OHS alumni.
The Star reported on Sept. 16, 2000 that there was a tour of the high school, followed by a tailgate party on the baseball field before the football game against Chenango Forks. The party then moved to the Sixth Ward Booster Club Field for a chicken and rib barbecue.
The success of that weekend became grounds for future events. Added in years to come were an all-class gathering on Friday, held for many years at the Oneonta Armory. A fundraising golf tournament for scholarships, named after Tony Drago, soon became a Friday morning tradition at the Oneonta Country Club. Committees were formed to recognize the athletes and achievements of alumni in their careers. The Wall of Distinction and Athletic Hall of Fame began an induction ceremony on Saturday morning. An alumni newsletter was first issued in March 2000. The alumni database has grown enormously over the years.
While the Pit Run has ended, the OHS Alumni Weekend continues to stand alone most successfully.
OHS grads who’ve never attended an Alumni Weekend can do so next weekend. The 17th annual Tony Drago Alumni Classic will get underway Friday, Sept. 20 with two flights at the Oneonta Country Club. An alumni gathering will begin at 6 p.m. at the Oneonta Boys & Girls Club.
On Saturday, Sept. 21, the day will begin at 9 a.m. with the ninth annual OHS Alumni Veterans Breakfast at the Oneonta Veterans Club, followed at 10:30 a.m. with the annual Wall of Distinction and Athletic Hall of Fame induction ceremony at Belden Auditorium. Tim Catella will also be honored as the 2024 Alumni of the Year. The alumni luncheon will follow at about noon, followed by a 1 p.m. OHS varsity football game at Lloyd F. Baker Field.
Twenty-five years later, Bud Pirone’s dream lives on and the OHS Alumni Association wants the “dream” to become a “forever endeavor.” Additional details about the events can be seen at oneontahighalumni.org.