MONTEREY, La. &045; On Saturday more than 100 Monterey High alumni traveled from as far as Oklahoma to the school to attend the 12th annual reunion of classes that graduated prior to 1970.

Many alumni said they attend every year circumstances permit. There, they are met each year by rows upon rows of photos and other memorabilia, a massive lunch of down-home favorites and, best of all, dozens of old friends.

But those who attended this year’s reunion the main attraction isn’t the lunch or the program, complete with door prizes. Instead, they come simply to catch up on recent news and share the memories of yesteryear with their former classmates.

Class of 1954 member Enola Young, who organizes the event with husband Dick, knows firsthand the special way Monterey has of drawing its children back home.

She and her husband grew up in Monterey but moved away to live and work for 40 years in south Louisiana and in Houston. About 10 years ago, they moved back &045; although Enola has trouble defining why. It’s just home, she said.

&uot;All our family is here, for one thing,&uot; she said. &uot;But, too, there’s just something about living near the Black River. We grew up here. It’s home.&uot;

&uot;We genuinely feel like this area is special because we grew up here,&uot; Dick Young, Class of 1953, chimed in. &uot;For many of these people, their family isn’t around here any more, so they look forward to the chance to get together with so many of their friends.&uot;

T.J. Taylor, Class of 1946 and now a Tulsa, Okla., resident, said it’s the people that draw him back home every year &045; back to the site where the old brick schoolhouse once stood, now the site of the school’s gym.

W.L. Paul, Class of 1945, a good friend of Taylor’s and still a Monterey resident, said he remembers the days in which the school had wood heaters and outdoor toilets.

It’s come a long way since then

&045; and will continue that progress, said the school’s John Bostic.

The modernized Monterey High is about to undergo some major changes, including the installation of a wireless Internet tower and renovations to the science lab and library.

Academic excellence will also continue, Bostic said, adding the school is in the top 25 percent of performance scores in the state.

But one thing hasn’t and won’t change &045; the quality of Monterey’s people, according to Taylor.

&uot;There’s a lot of fine people here, the best in the world,&uot; Taylor said.