Texas Living

Facing Off

By Paige Skinner 10.7.13

A simple click of the mouse and you are virtually connected with old friends, coworkers and peers via various social media sites.

The questions you might have, such as: “What has Susie been up to?” or “Did her divorce finalize since the last time I saw her at Starbucks?” or “Did her son get into the university of his dreams?” can now easily be answered because of the constant feed of Facebook.

And while Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn are great tools for keeping everyone up-to-date with their friends, social media seems to be taking away from the unknown that drives the excitement of high school reunions.

Seeing your old crush from first period chemistry class 15 years after high school graduation and finding out whether or not they gained weight, is no longer something to anticipate before a reunion because of the small world of Facebook.

Amanda LaFevers, a reunion attendee and Facebook user, says that only about 30 — out of nearly 500 — of her old classmates showed up to her 10-year high school reunion.

And while LaFevers says that the reunion organizers spread the word about the event via Facebook, she thinks the social media site had a negative effect on the reunion.

“I think not as many people went to the reunion because of Facebook and because everybody already knows what everybody is doing,” she states.

And while seeing old friends in person does have its draws, more and more people are opting to simply keep in touch through social media sites. What will you do when it is time to attend your high school reunion?