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History
Opeongo High School: Forged Through Co-operation
Opeongo High School may not be the oldest in the Renfrew County District School Board family, but it enjoys a proud history nonetheless.
In the mid-1960s, a discussion arose about how to best serve the students of the Eganville, Cobden and Douglas areas. At that time, there were three schools in existence: Eganville Catholic Continuation School, Eganville District High School, and Cobden District High School. It was argued that to have one large high school would be better for programming options, giving students a wider array of choices to meet their academic needs.
Although the theory was sound, the practice of coming to an agreement about this new school was incredibly difficult. The Cobden/Eganville School Board met and dissolved several times before finally establishing that a school would be built and opened in 1968. Members of the Board were: Duncan McLaren (Chairman), Elmer Reinke (Vice-Chair), Delmer Bennett, Wilmer Brose, Raymond Childerhose, Jack Devon, Hartwill Dunlop, Harry Hill, Donald Kelly, Paul Reckzine, Albert Verch, WJ Mills Warren, Alfred Wigmore, Arvo Kiviste, Peter O'Gorman, Don Whillans, and Aenid McMaster.
A celebration of our 40th Anniversary was held on Friday September 26, 2008, and in attendance was our founding principal, Mr. Don Whillans. His words to the crowd of past and present staff and students spoke well to what Opeongo is all about.
"Our lasting and your lasting achievements can be found every day in every student, every classroom, every event, every essay, every game, every team, and every competition. It can be found in every student and every teacher, for you have made a significant contribution to the mosaic and personality of Opeongo. This coming together of people, that is what Opeongo is all about in the first place; traditions and customs from three different schools that produced Opeongo High School with its own unique, dynamic personality, and therein lies your strength."
Other past Principals include Wilmer Matthews, Romeo Levasseur, Tony Cuccaro, Jim McGregor, Alanna Emon, Stephen Blok, and Amy Johnson. Past Vice-Principals include Frank Wooton, Bill Donaldson, James Haskins, Garth Gilligan, Mike Lemay, Bob Albert, Mary Ulisko, Mike Shulist, Terry Hughes, David Prange, and Bo Stelmach.
