PVHS graduates reconnect at all class reunion
Pahrump Valley High School (PVHS) alumni gathered in Southern Nevada over the weekend for two evenings of reunion and reminiscence.
“I’m really, really excited for the turnout,” Dawn Radcliff told the Pahrump Valley Times at the reunion’s start.
Radcliff and her husband, Charles, are the past Trojans who organized the PVHS All Class Mixer and All Class Reunion. Two hundred PVHS alumni from various graduation years journeyed from all over to attend the ticketed reunion on Saturday, June 20, at the Tuscany Suites &Casino in Las Vegas.
“These people are really dedicated and they really have the Pahrump spirit. So I’m really glad that they traveled that far,” Radcliff said when asked about PVHS graduates who visited from states such as Hawaii and Tennessee.
The free all-class mixer took place the night before in Nye County’s largest community at the Nevada Treasure RV Resort, where 50 PVHS alumni attended.
“We enjoyed each other’s company,” Radcliff said about the mixer. “It was really a no-frills kind of thing, but everybody who was there got to see some of their friends, and they knew that if they didn’t see them last night, they were going to see them today.”
Guests trickled into the Tuscany Suites &Casino’s event rooms, where alumni took pictures courtesy of a professional photographer, grabbed drinks and mingled with each other. Decorations at the reunion were maroon and gold, for PVHS’ colors. Joe Bernard, also known as DJ Famous Kid, provided music at the event.
“It’s still fun meeting other new people from Pahrump,” explained J.J. Searles, class of 1999 and now a resident of Las Vegas. “I actually ended up running into someone I worked with for five years that I didn’t even know went to Pahrump Valley High School.”
Kenneth Searles, class of 1997 and J.J. Searles’ brother, attended both the mixer in Pahrump and the reunion in Las Vegas.
“It [the reunion] was on a Facebook group. I saw it, and I was like, ‘Oh, a reunion? I gotta check that out,’” Searles enthused.
After the Radcliffs thanked everyone for coming, attendees made their way to the buffet filled with an assortment of appetizers, entrees and desserts.
“We just thought we would come out, visit and see everybody,” said Sheena Buffi, another class of 1999 graduate, who now lives in Boise, Idaho.
Buffi has also put on a PVHS reunion before, previously planning a 20th reunion for the class of 1999.
“It’s a lot of work, so I really appreciate all the organizing that goes into this, that Dawn and her husband did,” Buffi elaborated.
Although Radcliff doesn’t plan on organizing another public reunion, she proud of the turnout and herself.
Contact reporter Elijah Dulay at edulay@pvtimes.com
