Class of ’85 Returns to Redwood Campus

A group of alumni from the class of 1985 came together and visited Redwood’s campus on the first Friday of October. The group got to revisit their old high school and see some of the updates the campus has acquired.

By: Adriana Soria-Rosales

The event was planned by a few of the alumni and was helped by Mrs. Tomola in the front office. The one in charge of getting everyone and everything together was Ms. Alma Gladden.

Gladden shared how some classmates put it out on Facebook for others to see, and they reached out to her. Gladden called the office to see if they would allow the tour. “Everybody was super accommodating, so we were able to do the tour for everybody.”

Everyone was super excited to be together again, and Gladden shares, “Everybody’s here for the right reasons. We love it.”

Gladden shared her favorite memory from school was all the friendships and how everybody was super welcoming and really friendly.

Mr. Jesse Lichaa was also a part of the class of ‘85. Lichaa said about being back at Redwood, “Oh, it’s incredible, this school has changed quite a bit”.

Lichaa says that he doesn’t live in Visalia anymore, so being back in his old town and at his old high school is really nice for him.

A lot has changed on campus since the class of ‘85 graduated, including the addition of Ranger Hall. This new attribute caught the attention of Lichaa right away, along with the other alumni.

Lichaa shared that he was very involved during his time here at Redwood, “I played football, I wrestled. I was in choir, I was in drama.” Mr. Lichaa was even the president of the chess club.

Mr. Yoshi Yokoyama was a foreign exchange student of the class of ‘85. He said it is very refreshing to be back after 40 years.

Yokoyama called “canning freshman” his favorite memory. This happened when any underclassmen would walk through the senior court. The seniors would quite literally flip the freshmen upside down into trash cans.

Along with the group of alumni, Ms. Susie Winn came back to tour the campus. Ms. Winn shared how it was wonderful to be back.

Winn says that during her time at Redwood, she didn’t appreciate the beauty of the campus, and she was so excited to see how beautiful it still is and has gotten.

When asked what she was involved in during her time at Redwood, she shared, “I was a cheerleader my senior year, I did 4 years of swimming. Each year got more fun.”

“What I love is getting to come back and even people I didn’t know, I feel such a connection with because we had a coming of life together,” Winn says about being back.

Winn said her time at Redwood helped her for life. “I really developed my social skills here by just getting to know so many people over the years and I always loved my English classes!”

Dr. Gridiron got the opportunity to take the ’85 alumni on their tour around campus. He talked to them about how Redwood practices bringing the Tradition of Excellence to school.

The alumni got the chance to see the cafeteria, ASB room, and they walked through the Wysinger building, and got to take a picture in senior court.

“I think it was great. It’s exciting to see that people still are excited about being Rangers and carrying on that tradition, and that’s what we’re excited to continue to uplift in our younger kids.”

Gridiron shared that they are interested in starting a “Legacy dinner” where they will continue to recognize and honor the tradition and legacy of excellence.

He shared that the dinner would be about “honoring the legacy of those who created the culture that we have today, and it’s really about honoring everyone who has contributed to Redwood in a positive way.”

Gridiron was asked what his favorite part of the class of 1985’s visit was. He said, “I think just them, the nostalgia of it, them sharing stories with me about the things that they experienced when they were here.”