Kevin Allerston
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Aug 03/05) - The August long weekend was one to remember for 34 Sir John Franklin graduates who celebrated their 20th anniversary.

The grads, some with new families, came from across Canada to reminisce on the time they spent at the high school and in Yellowknife.

Theresa McGrath-Wooley (left) and Nancy Marchiori were having a good time looking at old photos at the 20 year reunion of their 1985 Sir John Franklin grad class on Sunday.

"I really can't describe what it's like to see everybody again," said Kim Williamson who came from Parksville B.C. with her family to see the old gang again.

"It's emotional. It takes you right back. I mean, the longer you're with everybody the more it's like being back in high school," Williamson said.

Williamson moved south in 1991 and notices some changes in the city.

"We didn't have McDonalds or A&W or anything. And it's spread out," Williamson said.

As for the school: "I remember it was really dark almost like a dungeon, and now it's so open with windows everywhere, it's great," Williamson said.

After the reunion she plans on keeping in better contact with people.

Counce Brampton was back from Saskatoon.

"It's been quite something seeing all these people after so many years," said Brampton, who hasn't seen the whole group since the 1985 graduation.

Brampton said he missed the natural beauty of Yellowknife.

"It's changed unbelievably so. It always was the government centre of the NWT but still in a lot of ways it was a rough, backwoods place; now it's much more cosmopolitan," Brampton said.

'It's been really cool'

The reunion-ending barbeque on Sunday was held at the Forrest Drive home of Robin Weber.

"Some of the people I hadn't seen since before graduation, so it's been really cool," Weber said.

"It's actually better, because the people who I didn't like back then, it doesn't matter now," Weber said.

The whole event wouldn't have happened, however, without a year and a half of hard work from Joe Malmsten who chaired the reunion committee.

"I caught the reunion bug and jumped in with both feet," Malmsten said. He spent the last 18 months or so sending e-mails and making phone calls trying to get everybody out. "Thank God for the Internet," he said.

He said it's hard to catch up on 20 years in one weekend, but it was worth it.

"Every single person still has the same characteristics from high school, they're still the same people inside," Malmsten said.