Attendees react with delight during the March 28 “Aces Night Out” event held for alumni and friends of Owensboro Catholic Schools at the downtown Owensboro Convention Center. COURTESY OF OCS
‘Thank you for the memories’ – Owensboro Catholic Schools celebrates 75 years with ‘Aces Night Out’
BY RACHAEL MCFADDEN, SPECIAL TO THE WESTERN KENTUCKY CATHOLIC
On March 28, 2026, in the west ballroom of the Owensboro Convention Center, overlooking the mighty Ohio River, an equally mighty milestone was being celebrated.
On this beautiful spring night, a sold-out crowd of 600 guests gathered to celebrate 75 years of Owensboro Catholic High School and Owensboro Catholic Schools in this community. Alumni, friends, staff and supporters gathered to celebrate the Owensboro Catholic story, honoring the people and families who built the legacy and those who help sustain it now and for the future. Not everyone in the room graduated from Owensboro Catholic, but everyone in attendance had a passion for the mission and respect for the work that takes place inside the OCS schools.
The OCS administrative team, led by Natalie Hayden, OCS director of advancement, began working on the vision for the 75th anniversary last year. The essence of the event was to be celebration. As the committee formed and work began last fall, 32 sponsors jumped on board, with Independence Bank partnering to be the premier sponsor. The energy and enthusiasm from the community was overwhelming and by midwinter the original 450 tickets were sold out. The committee worked with the Owensboro Convention Center to add an additional 150 seats as the requests for tickets continued.
As guests arrived to the ballroom, they were transported down memory lane with a Decade Walk of memorabilia from the 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s and 2000s. Each decade’s creative team sought to bring back the nostalgia of clothing, entertainment, sports highlights and school spirit from each
graduating era. The Decades committee reported that as they reached out to classmates for items, former Aces eagerly showed up with storage bins full of collectibles, each item carrying a story of their “good old days” at OCHS. The display drew high praise from attendees and even impressed the event-savvy convention center staff.
Inside the ballroom, guests were treated to a plethora of green and gold, a warm and delicious meal, shopping at the ACES pop-up store, a photo booth and photo ops with mascot, Snoopy: The Flying Ace.
As with any celebration of a milestone, there is the business of making sure that there are many more milestones to commemorate, and this night was no different. The sustainability of our Owensboro Catholic Schools is, and always will be, work that we must attend to. Safe, modern learning spaces, with energy efficiency for cost savings, along with maintenance of our infrastructures are all critical to the future of our school system.
Guests were invited by guest speaker, Bob Marrett (Class of ‘61) to donate to the future of OCS and all that was being celebrated in the ballroom that night. Emcees Kevin Kabalen and Chip Pride then challenged the crowd to engage in friendly competition to see which class and which decade could raise the most money for the evening. WonderBoy Media kept the leaderboard going during the night to urge on the supporters during the event. As the business of competitive fundraising set in, the dance floor opened to “dance through the decades,” celebrating the Twist, The Hustle, the Macarena, the MoonWalk and other timeless dances. The OCS Spirit Flag and Spirit Stick even made an appearance. And even as the night set on the celebration, the room was still full of people telling stories, reminiscing and people talking about getting together for the next celebration.
Those attending the event expressed a resounding thought as they left that evening: “Thank you for the memories.” As the Owensboro Catholic Schools administration looks forward to the next 75 years, they want to be certain that there can be many more of these sold-out nights to celebrate and continue to plan for a strong and enduring foundation. If you would like to help with the mission of securing a solid foundation, please contact Natalie Hayden at the Owensboro Catholic Schools central office at (270) 686-8896.
Displays with prom dresses, school spirit wear, movie posters, sports memorabilia, and more are seen during the “Aces Night Out” event at the Owensboro Convention Center on March 28, which was held in celebration of 75 years of Owensboro Catholic High School. COURTESY OF OCS
Originally printed in the May 2026 issue of The Western Kentucky Catholic.
