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- Friendships are rare to find and hard to maintain.
- This class of 1981 have managed to come together and celebrate their birthdays each year.
- They met up in their hometown in Free State to celebrate their 60th birthday this year.
Whenever social media content creators interview people in their 60s and above, they ask them their biggest regret; the answer is always, 'Not spending enough time with my friends.' However, this group of 60-year-old friends have made it their mission to ensure they maintain their friendship and celebrate milestones together. Hailing from Free State in a town called Hennenman, the class of 1981 have been celebrating every ten-year reunion with each other since they left high school.
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"We are a group of 19 students that communicate every day. We were a special group and have had a reunion celebration every ten years but decided to come together now every year to celebrate our birthdays," one of the classmates, Elize said.
This decision has led the group to celebrate their 60th birthday together this year. "With planning and communication through a WhatsApp group, we managed to have a lovely weekend celebration," Elize added. The group of classmates met up on 1 April in Hennenman at a beautiful farm called Ferreiras Rust along with their partners to celebrate.
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Joined by two of their friends who now live in New Zealand, the classmates had a real 80s garage party theme and danced the whole night. This won't be their last celebration as they are already planning to do it again next year. Their sole motivation to continue this tradition is because they're grateful for life. Elize adds, "We are so proud and lucky to have so many friends who are still alive." Their fondest memory of the friendship includes sharing love and sadness and "the excitement of growing families and still hearing old stories and jokes about back in their school days." Elize added that their reunion remains a highlight on the calendar.
