With squeals of delight at old friends lost and found again, the Lake Washington Class of 1988 reunited Aug. 15 at Safeco Field in Seattle for their 20th High School Reunion Gala.

The cool shade of the stadium’s Third Base Terrace Club served as a welcome respite for more than 140 classmates who traveled from as far away as Hawaii, California, the Eastern U.S. and Texas.

Surrounded by a long buffet and charmed by the music of 1980s hits from the likes of Terrence Trent D’Arby, INXS and Will Smith, the class alumni furtively clustered around tables with old yearbooks, caught up on Kirkland news and revived old friendships.

Asked for their favorite memories, Megan Bloomer Barnes and Sean Keane alternately thought of Kangs football games. Keane was in the band and Barnes was in the stands with friends and at the old Chuck E. Cheese restaurant in Houghton after the games.

“It’s fantastic, it’s wonderful,” Barnes said. “And you know, no one has changed!”

Stephanie Kirkpatrick and Lynn Jesen Koening, in a scene that was repeated dozens of times throughout the evening, ran screaming like excited teens toward each other and hugged. The two old friends hadn’t seen each other in over a decade, Koening said, since she moved to Wenatchee.

“I hardly know anyone here!” she said, excitedly.

The event was organized by Bellevue-based Reunions with Class and the high school’s reunion committee members. Class alumna Courtney Calkin Gonzalez, who helped organize the event, said Safeco Field was a good choice for holding a reunion because of its size, location and reputation as a fun, exciting venue.

“I work for Microsoft and we hold an annual meeting here,” she said. “(We) just wanted to do something different than the usual hotel ballroom.”

A large number of reunion visitors appeared to be visiting from out of town.

Describing himself as “an upper parking lot stoner-kid”, Wailuku, Hawaii resident Ed Jensen also seemed bewildered by the number of alumni that arrived at the party. He said he missed experiencing the change of seasons and camping outdoors with friends, but after his graduation he said he was ready for a change.

“I was the scrawny kid with long hair and glasses,” said the clean-cut, tanned and contact-wearing Jensen. After a couple of years in the Air Force, he visited relatives on Maui and found work supervising operations for a Hawaiian coffee company.

Tuscon, Ariz. physician Steven Herron said he was surprised by the number of changes that had moved Kirkland from “just a town into a city.” He also said he was surprised to hear about plans to completely rebuild the school, set for 2012.

“That’s kind of a bummer, but that’s progress,” he said. “In 15 years, Kirkland’s changed a lot.”

Herron, a former All-American freestyle swimmer and state Hall of Fame inductee, said he was lost several times last week driving through his old hometown. Standing nearby, his classmate Chip Peterson sympathized.

“It’s still a small town, but you need to know where to find the people you (grew up with),” he said.

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