CANTON – Betty Gray Tremelling recalls with a smile moments of her senior year at Canton Lincoln High School in 1944.
Tremelling was living on Eighth Street SW and would often walk to school. She was the lead majorette of the high school band and part of a graduating class of around 200.
However, her most memorable moment in school was meeting and getting to know the No. 1 man in her life.
“I started dating my husband (Jack) here. So that’s my biggest highlight,” Tremelling said on July 18 during part of a ceremony honoring 100 years of Canton Lincoln and Heritage Christian School at 2107 Sixth St. SW.
Tremelling, 99, attended the celebration — dubbed the 100 Years of Education Centennial Celebration — with her daughters, Loree Tremelling-King and Teree Tremelling Rice.
The celebration was hosted by Heritage Christian and the Canton Lincoln High School Alumni Association. It was attended by about 300 former students, faculty, administrators, officials, teachers, contributors and guests. Tours of the school were available to those who came out.
“We feel blessed to be able to celebrate a centennial event in this building,” said Dawn Campanelli, advancement officer for Heritage Christian at the ceremony. “Education is a foundation for life.”
Founded in 1968, Heritage Christian purchased the former Lincoln high school in the 1970s. Roots of the Lincoln high school date back to 1926.
Heritage Christian started in 1968 and became the primary occupant of the building in 1977.
Over the past five-plus decades, Heritage Christian has become a strong school for learning, faith and close friendships, where students have been also shaped by strong family values, Campanelli said.
Today, the school has an average enrollment of between 275 and 300 students annually, said Campanelli, adding that it serves prekindergarten students through eighth graders.
Canton Lincoln High School hosted its final graduation in 1976. At the time, it was one of four high schools in the city. The first class had 62 students.
“Going to Lincoln High School created so many friendships and memories for all of us that our Alumni Association wanted to make sure that the 100 year anniversary of school was well celebrated,” said Jon Elsasser, president of the alumni group, in a prepared statement.
Reach Steven Grazier at steven.grazier@indeonline.com. On X (formerly Twitter): @sgrazierINDE
This article originally appeared on The Independent: Ceremony marks 100 years of Heritage Christian, Canton Lincoln schools
Reporting by Steven M. Grazier, Massillon Independent / The Independent
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Steven M. Grazier, Massillon Independent | USA TODAY Network
