Around 700 alumni gathered at Campion Academy this last weekend to reconnect with their classmates and support their alma mater.

Kicking off the event on Wednesday, the 26th annual Reeder Golf Classic featured 62 golfers, 20 more than previous years. More than $10,000 was raised towards our counseling and mentoring program. This year’s tournament was in honor of Lance Turner, ‘85-’86, an alum and beloved community member who was known for being exceptionally supportive of his classmates and neighbors. 

On Friday evening, alumni and current students gathered for a vespers concert presented by Prisma, a local group of musicians. 

The main event on Sabbath was the church service, featuring Dr. Andrew Harewood, the first Adventist and African American chaplain to reach General rank in the US Army reserve. In addition, Campion Academy’s music ensembles performed for the first time this school year. 

The weekend also featured the reunion of 5 music directors and host of brass players - performances by the Alumni Reunion Brass Ensemble graced us throughout Sabbath. A choir sing-a-long was also a weekend highlight for everyone who used to sing in the choir. 

Following the service, some of the honor classes were provided with a meal of lasagna served by the Campion senior class. The honor classes gathered in the halls of the Ad Building after lunch looking at pictures of their class and seeing how much things have changed.

Celebrating 70 years since graduation, Betty Ready, Class of 1952, reflected on her feelings when she first came to Campion Academy: “I was just always so excited to come to Campion because it was a bigger school with more people. I was coming from a school of six or seven people.” 

The students enjoyed being around the alumni and talking about how the school has changed since they were here. “I thought it was really cool getting to meet some of the people that graduated years ago and seeing all of the many faces on campus,” commented Daneil Camas, junior at Campion Academy.

Current students got to see some of their friends that graduated recently. Sandra Arlt, Class of 2022 commented, “It’s really cool coming back as an alumni this year because it was fun to see all of my friends, talk to the teachers, and update everyone on my life. I really appreciate being able to come back, seeing friendly faces, and having a family to say hi to.” 

On Saturday evening, in a new feature this year, the alumni and students came together to perform in a brass ensemble and a choir sing-a-long that featured five former choir directors. 

The alumni closed off the weekend by playing volleyball and soccer against Campion Academy’s varsity teams. In typical fashion, the alumni defeated the current students in both games. 

The livestreams of the programs are available on Campion Academy’s Facebook page and Youtube channel. 

Haley Beckermeyer, Student News Team


Additional photos available here. 

​Campion Academy hosted their 26th annual Reeder Golf Classic at TPC Colorado this last month. The Reeder Golf Classic, associated with Campion’s alumni weekend but open to the public, promotes networking among the alumni and community and raises funds for various projects at Campion Academy. Alumni and community friends attended the Reeder Golf Classic from all over the Denver metro area, Seattle, Salt Lake City, Phoenix, Chicago, and parts of Ohio and North Carolina.
 
The tournament included additional contests and featured a pro from Charity Golf International who brought an extra element of fun to the day. “The Reeder Golf Classic was my favorite tournament to play in this season,” shares Loveland local Katie Oakley. “The hole contests were not only a lot of fun but did such a great job of raising awareness to the struggles our youth can face. TPC Colorado is such a beautiful course, and it was so nice to be able to play somewhere that can be difficult to get a tee time at. But hands down my favorite part had to be the fact that we won an actual trophy! We can’t wait to defend our title next year!”
 
This year the proceeds, totaling over $10,000, go to fund Campion’s mentoring and counseling program to ensure that all students have access to the services regardless of their income status. The tournament was hosted in honor of Lance Turner, a Campion alum and local. Though Turner struggled with several challenges through his lifetime, he was known for his big heart and desire to help others. He was involved in many community giving projects. 
 
“We had an amazing day at TPC,” says principal Don Reeder, namesake of the tournament for his years of dedication to Campion. “God was present to bless our efforts in building community in our Campion family. The weather was perfect and so was the company. It is always fun to play with my former students. This year we had even more community members join us and made new friends. TPC’s staff were superb. And we were able to honor Lance and support our students. It doesn’t get any better than that.”
 
The Reeder Golf Classic was supported by sponsors Rocky Mountain Conference of Seventh-day Adventists as the lunch sponsor, Centura Health-Avista Adventist Hospital as the apparel sponsor, Campion Church, Golf Charity International, Gebhardt-Davidson Chevrolet as the hole-in-one sponsor, Scheels, Southmarch Veterinarian, and Vivage. 
  
The winners of the Reeder Golf Classic were Bill Schliewack, John Hill, Katie Oakley, and Cody Vogel. 

View photos here.

 
​Campion Academy hosted their 25th annual Reeder Golf Classic at Highland Meadows Golf Course on Friday, September 17. The Reeder Classic, associated with Campion’s alumni weekend, promotes networking among the alumni and community and raises funds for Campion’s student financial aid fund. Alumni and friends attended the Reeder Classic from all over the Denver metro area, Seattle, Salt Lake City, Phoenix, Chicago and North Carolina.
 
“It was a gorgeous day to play golf with family, friends, and alumni,” says principal Don Reeder. “Several of the players were students I’ve worked with over the years at Campion Academy. I was thrilled for their support, and for the new friends who joined us in support of our students and their financial aid needs.”
 
The Reeder Classic was supported by sponsors Centura Health-Avista Adventist Hospital as the dinner sponsor and Campion Church as the gift sponsor. 
 
The Reeder Classic is named for Don Reeder, current principal and former men’s dean in Campion’s men’s residence hall for 30 years. The tournament was named for him because of his ability to connect and keep in touch with students long after they’ve graduated. The Reeder Classic was originally started by alumnus Kenny Gregerson, ’71, who then worked together with Reeder, Chris Gaines, and Kevin Binder, ’73, to build the tournament up in the mid 1990s. 
 
The winners of the Reeder Golf Classic were Scott Fardulis ’90, Jim Lee ’89,  Sam Lee ‘89, and Chuck Geiger ‘90.

​Paulenne “Polly” Strickland Stenberg, class of 1924, is the author of the words to the Campion Academy school song, Dear Old Campion.  Paulenne was the youngest of four. 
 
Polly Strickland married Clarence Stenberg in Eaton, Colorado. Clarence was 23 and Polly was 21 years old. Clarence and Polly lived most of their lives in Colorado and worked at Campion in the 1940s. Their daughter Idabel remembers working at the Campion library for 37 cents an hour. 
 
Paulenne’s oldest sister was Maude Strickland, Class of 1911 – the first graduating class of Campion Academy. Maude is the great, great aunt of current student Danny Werner, Class of 2024.  Maude married into the Williams family, who came to Colorado by covered wagon and mule team to attend Campion Academy in the early 1900s. 
 
Special thanks to Danny’s mom, Jenny Williams Werner, for helping our Alumni Office track down some of this information. Jenny, and her husband Dan Werner, graduated from Campion in 1982. Clearly, Danny, our current student, comes from a rich history of Campion alumni – at least 5 generations and on both sides of the family.
 

Campion Academy hosted their 24th annual Reeder Golf Classic at TPC Colorado on Wednesday, September 16. The Reeder Classic, associated with Campion’s alumni weekend, promotes networking among the alumni and community and raises funds for Campion’s student financial aid fund. Alumni and friends attended the Reeder Classic from all over the Denver metro area, Seattle, Salt Lake City, Phoenix, Chicago and North Carolina.
 
“It was a gorgeous day to play golf with family, friends, and alumni,” says principal Don Reeder. “Several of the players were students I’ve worked with over the years at Campion Academy. I was thrilled for their support, and for the new friends who joined us in support of our students and their financial aid needs.”
 
The Reeder Classic was supported by sponsors Centura Health-Avista Adventist Hospital as the lunch sponsor and Campion Church as the shirt sponsor. Dr. Robert Stacey was a hole sponsor. Campion alumnus Scott Fardulis, ’90, lent his expertise and connections as a founding member of TPC Colorado to aid in the planning of the tournament. 
 
The Reeder Classic is named for Don Reeder, current principal and former men’s dean in Campion’s men’s residence hall for 30 years. The tournament was named for him because of his ability to connect and keep in touch with students long after they’ve graduated. The Reeder Classic was originally started by alumnus Kenny Gregerson, ’71, who then worked together with Reeder, Chris Gaines, and Kevin Binder, ’73, to build the tournament up in the mid 1990s. 
 
The winners of the Reeder Golf Classic were Ross McLean, Matt Tomeny, ’14, Bobby Jarvis, and Angelo Giron.
 
“It was a great experience,” says Tomeny, who works for Personal Capital-Empower. “It’s a beautiful course. It’s technically challenging. We just had a really fun day and were able to support my alma mater.”
 
Because of COVID-19 restrictions, the tournament was limited to 32 players. Mask policies and social distancing outside their teams was practiced during the tournament.