In the summer of 1993, the association created a public museum in a small room on the Altoona Area Public Library’s second floor, Foreman said, noting C. Elton Crider, an alumni council member who spent countless hours organizing the museum initially, became its first curator.

Foreman said the idea for the museum came about after Mid-State Bank employees found the cornerstone of the old Altoona High School brownstone structure in a vault while closing the bank’s 12th Street office.

The cornerstone and other contents were given to the district, and after the alumni council voted to pursue the museum as a project, Crider spent more than 40 hours getting the room organized, according to an association document on display at the museum.

Altoona Area High School Alumni Association Museum curator John Fiore holds up an old Altoona Area Junior High School marching band uniform on Aug. 7 while looking through items in the museum on the second floor of the Altoona Area Public Library. Mirror photo by Matt Churella

In that document, Crider is quoted as saying, “I think this museum is worthy of attention and something in which alumni should take pride.”

The museum has hundreds of artifacts, photographs, yearbooks and other memorabilia collected from 1877 to current years, said John Fiore, the museum’s current curator, who took that role over from Crider in the early 2010s.

“The alumni association is very active in safeguarding the past. That’s basically the idea here,” Fiore said.

Some notable items, according to Foreman, include one of the first Altoona Area Junior High School band uniforms, military service medals, a jacket from the National Cherry Blossom Festival and academic achievement pins from Roosevelt Junior High, Keith Junior High and Logan Junior High.

One of the newest items is a commemorative brick from the high school’s B building that was razed years ago, Foreman said.

Curator John Fiore looks through items in the Altoona Area High School Alumni Association’s museum on the second floor of the Altoona Area Public Library. Mirror photo by Matt Churella

Foreman said district officials wanted to house the museum in the library so its contents could be accessed by the public at any time.

“We figured we needed a room to kind of showcase it, and there was no place in the high school. So that’s why it ended up over here,” Foreman said.

Then, in 2014, the room was reorganized by Altoona Area alumnus Joe Labriola, who was working at the library as part of his internship with the Indiana University of Pennsylvania, Fiore said, adding the museum serves as a historic resource for the district, its graduates and the community.

Yearly awards, events

The association also hosts several programs each year, including an alumni band night and a scholarship program, said association President Peggy Cawthern.

Curator John Fiore looks through items in the Altoona Area High School Alumni Association's museum on the second floor of the Altoona Area Public Library. Mirror photo by Matt Churella

During the alumni band night, Cawthern said former band and majorette members are invited back to Mansion Park to participate with current band members during a halftime football game.

Every year, the association awards 10 scholarships — $1,000 each — to high school graduates so they can continue their education and make positive impacts on the Altoona community, Cawthern said.

Fiore said the association interviews about 18 students, who are selected by their guidance counselors, for the scholarships each year.

“It’s a tough decision” to narrow the pool down to 10 students, he said.

“That’s a tough job, but it’s fun to interview the students and see what they like, dislike and that sort of thing,” Fiore said. “Some of them are going into education, which is positive.”

Altoona Area High School Alumni Association President Peggy Cawthern looks through a 1965 yearbook July 28 in the association's museum on the second floor of the Altoona Area Public Library. Mirror photo by Matt Churella

To date, the association has awarded over $250,000 in scholarships to students at the Altoona Area High School and the Greater Altoona Career and Technology Center, Cawthern said.

In 1999, the association created its distinguished alumni program, which recognizes those graduates who’ve gone on to achieve greatness in their personal and professional lives, Cawthern said, adding the first awards were presented in October 2000.

Awards are given out every three years, Fiore said.

“Many of the distinguished alumni live right here in our local community,” Cawthern said, adding some graduates have gone on to be successful in Silicon Valley and others have worked for the federal government.

Some are musicians and others have accomplished great things in various parts of the world, Cawthern said, noting the honorees are welcomed back to the district for a two-day event.

An old Altoona Area High School football helmet is on display with other memorabilia. Mirror photo by Matt Churella

This year, on Friday, Sept. 12, the honorees met with current high school students and talked about their careers. On Saturday, Sept. 13, their achievements were honored at a banquet, Cawthern said.

In 2015, Michael Farrow, vice chairman of the Blair County Historical Society’s board of directors who graduated from the district in 1957, was one of the honorees recognized at the association’s banquet.

Farrow said he remembers speaking with the students about his book on the theaters of Altoona. At one time, there were 100 theaters in Altoona and an additional 75 theaters spread throughout Blair County, he said.

“When I put up some of this history and showed pictures of it all, the students seemed very excited. They asked a lot of questions, and I was pleased with the reaction,” Farrow said.

Fredina Ingold, Penn State Altoona’s retired athletics director, and composer Michael Kooman were among those honored at this year’s banquet.

In an email, Ingold said she was honored to receive the recognition.

“High school taught me how to work with others and gave me leadership skills which I realized later in life,” Ingold wrote.

Kooman said he couldn’t believe it when district officials informed him that he was chosen for the award.

“The story of everything I’ve ever accomplished is a story that begins in Altoona. A lot of my early music and theater education happened within the school district,” Kooman said. “This means a lot to me, and I’m quite moved.”

All began in Altoona

At the age of 7, Kooman’s first theatrical outing was in “The Music Man” at the Mishler Theatre. But it wasn’t until after he had a show in the National Alliance for Music Theatre festival that his career took off, he said, adding two Disney executives from the animated television department saw one of his musicals in a showcase and asked for he and his collaborator, Christopher Diamond, to audition as songwriters for their shows.

Eventually, one came along called “Vampirina” and they got the job, Kooman said, adding he wrote about 150 songs, was nominated for an Emmy and then moved onto other animated shows.

Kooman said two of his biggest influences were his former teachers at Altoona Area: music teacher Kelly Detwiler and English teacher Elizabeth Happeny.

“Mrs. Detwiler was the first person to teach me music theory and I remember a whole entire world opening up in my head,” he said. “I will always remember the deeply kind, patient and passionate way she helped me understand music.”

Happeny was the first person who suggested Kooman write music for theater, he said, noting she asked him to compose an original score to the school play during his senior year.

“She was always such a champion of me and my work. I am so thankful to her,” Kooman said of Happeny.

Kooman said Altoona is a community full of “genuinely kind and caring people.”

When asked what message Kooman would give to the youth of today, he said, “Look for the leaders and the heroes in this community and connect with them for advice and encouragement.”

Foreman said the association is a grant partner for the Altoona Area School District Foundation, which then-Superintendent Dennis Murray and former Community Relations Director Tom Bradley started in the early ’90s.

“(The alumni association) supports the programming of the foundation as well,” Foreman said.

In addition, the association assists with class reunions, supports the high school’s student assistance program and sponsors a yearly bus trip to New York City at Christmastime, Foreman said.

According to Foreman, the district has over 70,000 graduates, and the information it has to assist with class reunions is only as accurate as the latest update the district receives on former students’ whereabouts.

Foreman said the district will provide reunion organizers with a list of their classmates, in addition to making venue recommendations and assisting them in any way possible.

“We’ll do tours of the high school when they want to have tours,” she said. “We try to help promote reunion events.”

Cawthern said she has enjoyed being part of the alumni association for many years and wants others to know of the services the group provides.

“I enjoy being president and it’s a great group. We have a great council,” Cawthern said.

Graduates of the district can join the association for $10 per year or they can purchase a lifetime membership for $150, Foreman said.

Those who are interested in buying a membership should contact Foreman, pforeman@altoonasd.com.

AAHS Alumni Association 2025 Distinguished Alumni

Col. Joseph J. Fraundorfer, Class of 1978

Michael A. Kooman, Class of 2002

Fredina M. Ingold, Class of 1971

Kelly M. Miller, Class of 1986

Major Harold W. Stitt, Class of 1960, being honored posthumously

Judy Filler Bright, Class of 1954

An Altoona Area High School Band jacket is on display from the 1966 Cherry Blossom Festival national championships in Washington, D.C. Mirror photo by Matt Churella

A collection of Edgar D. Long's track and field medals and ribbons are on display at the Altoona Area High School Alumni Association's museum. The museum is open to the public and is located on the second floor of the Altoona Area Public Library. Mirror photo by Matt Churella

The Altoona Area High School Alumni Association's museum contains many notable items — academic achievement pins, a collection of class rings, military service medals, yearbooks and photos. Mirror photo by Matt Churella

Lt. Ralph Stehley’s purple heart is on display at the Altoona Area High School Alumni Association’s museum. Stehley, a 1938 graduate, was killed in action Aug. 21, 1944, in France. Mirror photo by Matt Churella

Lt. Ralph Stehley's purple heart is on display at the Altoona Area High School Alumni Association's museum. Stehley, a 1938 graduate, was killed in action Aug. 21, 1944, in France. Mirror photo by Matt Churella

The Altoona Area High School Alumni Association's museum is pictured on the second floor of the Altoona Area Public Library on July 28. Mirror photo by Matt Churella