Yes, scores of memorable moments transpired in the Milroy High School gymnasium over the decades … but a wedding reception?
Editor’s Note: This is Part 3 of a series reflecting on Milroy’s public school, which is closing after this school year and consolodating with the Tracy Public School District.
BY SOPHIA GAUL
reporter
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THIS IS THE GYM THAT HAS BEEN HOME TO EVERYTHING. EVERYTHING HAPPENED HERE.”
When Milroy School Secretary Robin Hauger spoke about the space — the Milroy Public School gymnasium — she was thinking about more than just great sports victories.
Every member of the Milroy community has at least a few memories from the school’s gym. That classic wood-paneled floor and those well-worn bleachers may have been upgraded a few times over the years, but the bones have remained the same, and the memories will never die.
From buzzer beater basketball games to community meals, the town of Milroy has made good use of the school’s gymnasium. Now, students have gym class three times a week, spending a bit of their afternoon away from their desks and getting some of their endless energy out.
The space has provided more than typical activities for long-time Milroy residents Joe and Doris Cauwels.
Married in the spring of 1962, the couple celebrated their 64th wedding anniversary this March. Their ceremony took place at St. Michael’s Church, which had just opened its new building on Main Street after months of construction. The basement, however, was still being completed when the Cauwelses were in need of a reception hall.
“Our wedding wasn’t this huge thing,” Doris said. “It didn’t take so long to plan like they do now. Although, we did have quite a few guests.
We needed a large space.”
They could’ve had the reception in Marshall or Tracy, but with the ceremony being in Milroy, having the reception somewhere near was a much better option. Doris’ mother had the idea of asking the school if it would be possible to rent the gym for the occasion.
“I still have the check my mom wrote out to the school,” Doris said, holding the slip of paper dated March 6, 1962. “It made sense. I don’t know where else we would’ve had it.”
It cost $25 to rent the space for the afternoon, equivalent to about $275 in today’s money. Doris herself was a graduate of the school, and three of their four children also graduated from Milroy.
“It was a small school, even back then,” she said. “We’ve always been a small community.”
Most subjects were taught by the same handful of teachers, and each class was a tight-knit group.
Over the years, Doris has spent plenty of time in that very same gym, and she said she can still remember the pure happiness of that day each time she crosses the threshold to attend a basketball game or other event.
She can even recall exactly where the table for her and her new husband was, where the punchbowl sat, and how the cake was arranged.
And until 2024, she was back in the same building each and every school day, helping out in the school lunchroom. Beginning in 2010, she went in on weekdays to help the other cooks on sta serve lunch and do dishes.
“I still remember how we celebrated when we got peanut butter toast for lunch when I was in school,” Doris said. “Being in the lunchroom, I got to see how happy kids were for certain meals, too.”
From one of the most memorable days of her life to a mundane weekday lunch, Doris has spent countless hours walking through the halls of the Milroy school. And she wouldn’t have it any other way.
Looking back through her wedding album with a smile, Doris said, “It was unique. I don’t think anyone else used that gym for something like that.”
“Just thinking about that day keeps me young.” Joe added, smiling. “And that’s real good, to be able to remember such good times.“
