Forest Ridge Alumni Weekend 2026

There is something special about watching past and present come together on campus, and last weekend did just that. Forest Ridge welcomed back alumni from across the decades for Reunion 2026, a celebration of connection, tradition, and the enduring bonds of a Sacred Heart education.

The weekend began on Friday evening with the Induction Ceremony, where alumni return to campus to pin the Senior class into the Forest Ridge Alumni Association. This year, 14 alums made the trip back to take part in that meaningful rite, welcoming the Class of 2026 into a community that stretches back generations. The evening centered on the recognition of this year's two distinguished honorees.

Kendee Yamaguchi '95 was named our 2026 Distinguished Alumna, and her address to the Senior class was one to remember. An accomplished attorney and executive, Kendee's career has been defined by public service and community empowerment, including two Presidential appointments, founding Washington State's first Civil Rights Unit, and serving today as CEO of the Asian Counseling and Referral Service. Her message to the seniors was both grounding and galvanizing: social awareness must impel purposeful action, and courage matters more than confidence.

The 2026 Sacred Heart Award was presented to Mary Jenneskens '76, who is celebrating her 50th Reunion this year. Mary is, in every sense, a child of the Sacred Heart. Over the past decade she has quietly and consistently given her time and talent to the Alumni Council, coordinating events and showing up for her classmates with the kind of humble, generous spirit that defines the values of St. Madeleine Sophie. Her recognition was richly deserved.

Saturday brought sunshine and a full campus alive with the warmth of reunion. Alumni explored the school, made watercolors and ceramics alongside our art teachers, and spent the afternoon catching up with old classmates. Milestone reunions were celebrated for the Classes of 1961, 1986, 1996, 2006, and 2011, each bringing their own chapter of Forest Ridge history back to life. Assistant Director of Alumni Louisa Haslam '15 observed something that stayed with her throughout the day: "I was struck by how similar we all are as children of the Sacred Heart. Regardless of if they were celebrating their 50th or 15th year reunion, our Forest Ridge graduates are kind, intelligent, and lifelong learners. I am so proud to be an alum alongside these incredible women."

In a beloved Sacred Heart tradition, the Class of 1976's 50th Reunion celebrants, Louise Sullivan Sportelli, Mary Jenneskens, and Susan Wyckoff Pohl, were ratified with their blue ribbons, recognizing good conduct, school spirit, helpful influence, and leadership.

The afternoon closed the way it should: with an enthusiastic, from-memory singing of "Coeur de Jesus" that filled the room. Reunion weekend is a reminder of what makes Forest Ridge enduring. It is not just the traditions, the campus, or the curriculum. It is the people who carry this place with them long after graduation and choose to come back, year after year, to pour back into the community that shaped them. From the Class of 1961 to the Class of 2026, the thread running through every generation is the same: a formation of the whole person, rooted in faith, and oriented toward the world.