On Saturday, Aug. 3, former students, teachers and staff of Horizon School gathered for a reunion.
It's believed to be the 48th year of the school's existence.
Events included a tour of the school for students with special needs and a banquet later at the Olds Legion Hall.
Students at Horizon School have a variety of challenges such as difficulty communicating, physical disabilities, delays in developing learning and/or language skills as well as the need to acquire skills to live independently.
Dorothy Elliott and Lianne Manning were among the former teachers who attended. Both still live in Olds.
They each started teaching at the school about 30 years ago and did some substitute teaching after retiring.
Manning became involved in the school when her daughter Zandra, now 43, began attending it.
"We were in a little place south of Hanna and our daughter had to go to school and we looked around at different schools throughout the province and when we walked in the door here we knew that this is where we wanted to be, so we moved," she said.
Eventually, she became a teacher and rose to the rank of assistant principal there before going back to being a teacher. Like Elliott, Manning did some substitute teaching off and on over the years.
Manning was asked why she kept coming back.
"Oh, it was the kids," she said. "I really enjoyed working with the children — the students.
"You never knew what the day was going to bring. It was always interesting; sometimes it was exciting. I don't know, it was a good challenge, and it was a good fit for my personality."
Manning also said she saw progress in the students, and she found that to be very exciting.
"(You'd see) the day-to-day things that you could see that they would accomplish and goals that they would meet and things that they could do today that they couldn't do last week or last year," she said.
"You could see when they graduated that you maybe played a little role in helping them get to that point. And now when I see them out in the community it's kind of — well it is — very cool to see them."
Manning noted many former Horizon School students remain in Olds and area because there are so many organizations in the community that support people with special needs.
"It's very cool. And Olds has been such an amazing community," she said.
Elliott said the biggest change for her was the conversion of the former greenhouse to a big multi-purpose room.
She's also seen change in the school overall.
"They've added on quite a bit since I originally started teaching here," Elliott said.
The school still occupies a special place in her heart.
"It's a wonderful school, they do a lot of great work. It's challenging but rewarding for those who work here," she said. "I'm very happy to see it continuing on. It has a real purpose."
Manning and Elliott are hopeful something special will be done to commemorate Horizon School's 50th anniversary.
