GHS Class of 2000 Reunion

Hi everyone! Jon here. My podcast Off the Clock w/Jon Eks has been going for a few months now, and I keep forgetting to post interviews I've done with classmates. Here's my chat with Lisa Emanuel that I think you'll enjoy. My show is on podcatchers everywhere, but here's the direct link to my Buzzsprout page.

Extracurriculars with Lisa - Off the Clock w/Jon Eks On this episode of Off the Clock, I’m joined by my friend Lisa, a world traveler, current resident of Shanghai, and one of my class’s valedictorians. Here’s some of what we talk about:First Question: What has surprised you most about living in Chi...

Set Two of Two Albums: Pictures From Golden High School Class of 2000 Reunion At Wynkoop Brewing On July 17, 2021 Wonderful Event With Amazing People!

Set One of Two Albums: Pictures From Golden High School Class of 2000 Reunion At Wynkoop Brewing On July 17, 2021 Wonderful Event With Amazing People!

Hey Demons, photos are in! You should have received an email with a download link for all 109 official photos from our MAIN EVENT. If you didn't and would like a copy, hit us up at the email address and request it.

Thank you all for a phenomenal evening just over two weeks ago! Your joy, enthusiasm and gratitude made the months and months of work more than worth it. We cannot wait until we see you again, and until we do, please enjoy a sampling of some of the photos from the evening!

- Jon, Shahara and James

“Your heart is the size of an ocean. Go find yourself in it’s hidden depths.” ~Rumi 🌊❤️

❓Have you ever felt so much relief, joy, and sadness all at the same time? 😅😁😭

🎉That is how I feel today. I woke up utterly exhausted from the 3 days of reunion events we had. Jon, James and I put in a lot of time and we are so incredibly thrilled at how well everything turned out.🥳 and so relieved that its over! And also… sad🥲 because we had so much fun reconnecting with so many wonderful people.

I hated high school for the most part- but I straight up fu***ng LOVED the people I went to school with. And getting able to see you all again and watch everyone reconnect, makes my heart burst with gratitude.❤️‍🔥🙏🏼❤️‍🔥

After a year like 2020, I have grown to appreciate the value of deep and authentic connection and community, real and virtual. 💯

😶I can’t even find words to express my appreciation and love for the caliber of humans I got to spend all those formative years with.

To me, this life is all about relationships, love, and remembering that we are not separate from each other or the divine. Ever.✨🙏🏼🌀

🙌It’s about supporting and lifting one another up. And we all know now, more than ever, that we have an entire community of that are ready to support and lift up each and everyone of us if we ever need it.💥

And for that- I feel so blessed and like the richest woman in the world. 💎🙏🏼💎

Thank you all so much for being you and bringing your love and excitement to this event. It was more than I imagined it would be.

Thank you.❤️ Thank you. 🙏🏼 Thank you. 🌸

Hey everyone, Jon here. Long post expressing my gratitude coming.

It's Monday morning and I'm exhausted, sore, and hungover from three straight days of partying. As I reflect on this weekend's events, I'm overwhelmed with gratitude, joy, relief, and fulfillment.

My company, Deft Communications https://www.deftcom.us/, does outreach campaigns professionally usually in issues-based PR. I treated this reunion weekend as another outreach campaign, which I think helped contribute to its success. Booking and vetting venues, keeping a steady stream of content flowing to our attendees, creating sponsorship packages and then procuring sponsors... all of that is right in my wheelhouse professionally. If you or a company you work for needs those services, hit me up. I work with companies of all sizes, and getting to work with any of you again would be a privilege.

One of the first things you learn doing campaigns is that no one can do it alone. It's why I'm infinitely grateful for Shahara Jagrati Mattingly and James Jay for being equal team members here. None of the three of us could pull this off alone. We all bring complementary skillsets and different points of view to these events, and I treasure their tireless work ethic, their creativity, and their unbridled enthusiasm to making this weekend the best that it possibly could be.

I'd also like to give a shout to Brett Zahrte and Karla Zahrte and their team at Old 121 Brewhouse for brewing a great beer for our event and being such phenomenal hosts Friday night. Another shout goes to Kent who made the majority of those exquisite decorations! Also to my wife Kristin Crites - Ekstrom for stepping up and just checking people in without being asked when we needed the help the most. And finally to the Wynkoop, who, even though it was hot as balls up there, were an absolute pleasure to work with every step of the way and provided great food and beverages.

Most of all, I want to thank all of you. It was your enthusiasm, your excitement, and your eagerness that motivated us to give these events our full effort and work our asses off to give you the events you deserved. And it was admittedly a sh*tload of work. Watching everyone get together, reconnect, share hugs (some of which were 21 years overdue), laugh, smile, and share stories overwhelms me with such joy and fulfillment I can't seem to stop crying. My cheeks are streaked with tears of joy, and I suspect this is going to happen off and on for a few days. Man, what a gift.

Seeing your posts and photos, hearing your appreciation, and reflecting on a collection of so many wonderful tiny moments, conversations, and interactions over the course of three days of activity makes my heart full, and I hope you all carry this with you for a long time, as well. This is a remarkable group of people. We are incredibly fortunate to be in each other's pasts, to share in each other's present, and to look forward to whatever the future holds.

Thank you all for being you. Thank you for trusting us to put these events on. And thank you for your overwhelming expressions of gratitude to us. I cannot wait until our paths cross again, and know that until they do, I will carry you in my heart forever.

What a weekend. What a time to be alive! I adore you all. Take care, and see you soon!

- Jon (with Shahara and James)

Fun in the sun!
Thanks all who came to the family event!

That’s it, folks! Our 21st reunion-✅✅✅

Hope you all had a blast! 🎉❤️🥳✨💥🙏🏼🤘🥰

📸 PHOTO SHARE!📸

thank you everyone for coming out This weekend!
Loved seeing all of you! 🤘🎉❤️🥰

Please share all of your amazing photos!

📸PHOTO SHARE!📸

Oh my gosh! We had so much fun last night!!

Please share all of your amazing photos!

Thank you all for coming out.

❤️🎉🤘🙏🏼💥

This photo captures us so well! 😂

2 years ago, I set out to plan our 20th high school reunion. I was so lucky to have these two incredible friends join me in this endeavor.
They have worked tirelessly on this event and we’ve had so much fun planning it together!🥳🤩🥸🤪

I am beyond grateful for them! None of this would have happened without them! ❤️🙏🏼❤️

Last night was a total success and a testament to our hard work AND to the amazing people in our class. 🥰 Thank you to Brett and Karla at Old 121 Brewhouse for hosting us.

1 event down, 2 to go! 🙌🙌

So excited to see all y’all tonight🎉🥳🤘🍻❤️🤗