Although Tamassee DAR School will formally celebrate its 90th birthday with its friends and community on May 30, we just couldn't let the real birthday of Feb. 24 slide past without a party. And, it was certainly a birthday party that honored the times and individuals that played major roles in the shaping of the school.

Instead of entering the same, familiar dining hall where Tamassee's children eat every day, students entered a dining room decorated in homespun mountain decor that you might have encountered in 1919. Tables were covered with gingham, oil lamps instead of the usual fluorescent lighting, and, of course mason jars filled with good old-fashioned sweet tea.

It might be familiar fare to some of us in a certain age bracket, or perhaps those of us with the appropriate regional origin, but to many of Tamassee's children, the menu of mustard greens, pinto beans, fried potatoes, onions, cornbread and buttermilk must have seemed strange culinary choices for a birthday party. The normal cafeteria line was discarded in favor of the family-style service that Tamassee students would have experienced in the early 1900s. But birthday cake is timeless, and there was plenty of that to go around.

There was even entertainment that offered both education and amusement. Dean Bare, Tamassee's executive director, and Linda Chastain, staff member from the development department, donned period costumes and portrayed Dr. Ralph Cain, Tamassee's original administrator, and Mrs. Grace Ward Calhoun, the state regent of the Daughters of the American Revolution at the time of Tamassee's founding. They used the opportunity to share the history of Tamassee DAR with both students and staff.

Tamassee DAR is planning an even bigger birthday party to share with its friends, neighbors, alumni and supporters on May 30 from 10 a.m. to 4 pm. The event will honor the heritage passed on by Tamassee's founders and will celebrate all that the school has accomplished in its 90 years in Oconee County. The day will be filled with activities of all kinds including children's games, local artists, blue grass and gospel music, clogging, a cruise-in car show, and a time of thanksgiving in Tamassee's beautiful chapel. Plans are still unfolding, but we hope you will mark your calendar and plan to join us on Saturday, May 30, a beautiful time on the Tamassee campus before the summer heat settles in permanently.