The members of the James A. Garfield Alumni Committee have chosen to disband at this time, but they are hoping new volunteers will continue their work. The committee members unanimously came to the decision at a meeting on Oct. 24 that was also attended by James A. Garfield Local Schools Superintendent Ted Lysiak. The decision was made because of the age of current committee members and because of the difficulties posed by the COVID-19 pandemic. For the past three years, the committee could not meet in person or hold the annual alumni banquet in September. The committee members have been working closely with Mr. Lysiak throughout the process.
However, the committee members would like their work to continue with new volunteers. The committee’s main duties are updating and maintaining records and alumni obituaries for the JAG school district and the former Freedom, Garrettsville, and Nelson schools. The new committee members could also plan yearly events of their choosing (this would be up to the committee and does not have to include an annual banquet). Any alumni who are interested can contact chairwoman Helen Louise (Paul) Bouts (‘60) at (330) 309-2734 or at hbouts1943@gmail.com. The deadline to contact Mrs. Bouts is Dec. 1.
In addition to Mrs. Bouts, who devoted countless hours to the alumni, the other hard-working committee members are: Elaine (Lange) Duffield (‘55); Kit (Younker) Semplak (‘69); Carolyn (Lange) Unaitis (‘58); Ruth (Becks) Herrington (‘61), and Judy (Davison) Toth (‘63). The committee members would like to thank Mr. Lysiak for his advice and his generosity with his time throughout this process.
