Project Background Info

The Jamaica H.S. '82 Alumni Project started as an informal brainstorm over dinner in December 1996 between myself (Dave Ratisher) and Noel Eldridge, while I was in Noel's new (at the time) hometown of Washington DC on a business trip.  We had not seen each other for some time, and got to talking about how it would be fun to see if we could use the Internet to track down old classmates and exchange life stories.  I also used this idea as an excuse to learn how to build and publish an Internet Web Site.

I started out by using an Alumni Directory that Ken Trell (asst. principal, now retired) back at Jamaica had published around '95-'96; at the time there were only about 5 or 6 names listed from our graduating class.  I branched out further by using Internet search engines such as Yahoo and AltaVista, targeting classmates with unusual names.  I also located some broader Alumni sites with name registration engines.

Once I had the first incarnation of this site published (and those of you who have been with me on this from the beginning can see how much it has evolved since then!), I registered it at many of the major Internet search engines.  As a result of this, many of you have located this site on your own.

Thanks to the explosive growth of the Internet over the past few years, and with the help of several accomplices (you know who you are), our list has grown considerably, and continues to expand...and our 20th Year Reunion on August 3, 2002 was a great success!  And of course, it's been incredibly gratifying to know that this project has helped many old friends re-establish contact after they may have drifted apart for many years.

Everyone's continued support is greatly appreciated!  Questions, comments, or feedback, please EMail me!

-D.R.

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