After navigating tough times, the Louisville Alumni Association is in a better position to celebrate the years gone by for years to come.

It’s hard to remember that things were so quiet just a few years ago.

The Louisville Alumni Association had to cancel the annual Alumni Banquet in 2020 and 2021 amid the COVID-19 pandemic, and coming back for 2022 brought new costs and headaches.

But things are much more lively now. The Association secured a three-year source of funding to cover the costs of the Banquet, partnering with local investment advisor Leibman Financial Services. The firm is sponsoring the Banquet through 2025.

Between this sponsorship and the much-appreciated support of other community groups and many individual donors, the organization is not only recovering—it’s poised for a brighter future. 

Over 100 Louisville alumni and guests gather each May for the annual Alumni Banquet. A committee of volunteers dedicates a few months every year to prepare the catered event, which they host from the high school commons area and gymnasium. Louisville celebrated its first graduating class in 1896, making 2024 the 128th year LHS has welcomed a new class of graduates into the alumni fold.

In the spirit of a reunion, those gathered take time at the Annual Banquet to recognize special groups of alumni. Honored classes this year include those celebrating 10, 25, 40, 50, and 60 years since graduation. (This means everyone gets to party like it’s 1999… and ’84, ’74, ’64, as well as 2014!) The committee will also recognize the oldest alumni in attendance as well as those who travel the farthest.

But the Alumni Association isn’t just about remembering the past. The group is also committed to building a bridge for the future. Banquet attendees pay to reserve their seats at this annual event, allowing the Alumni Association to offer competitive senior scholarships to those graduating each year.

In 2023, the Association was pleased to present the awards to Piper Meisinger and Kole Albert, both of whom were surrounded by generations of alumni from their own families.

The Banquet also invites members of the Louisville School Foundation to share updates about their activities supporting the district and its teachers and students. The Foundation generously provides funds for the Alumni Association’s mailings each spring.

The Association has also worked to grow the activity that happens between each banquet, too: the Alumni Facebook page now offers more ways to stay in touch and up-to-date. Posts on the page feature fun flashbacks from the school’s yearbook archives, especially for those recognized classes celebrated each year.

Partnering in Community

Banquet sponsor Leibman Financial Services was founded in 1996, at the Leibman kitchen table in the Eastwood neighborhood. Since moving to the storefront at 228 Main Street in 2000, the business has only continued to grow—within the community of Louisville and beyond.

The team’s goal?

“We’re here to help people connect their money to their real life,” he said. The team at Leibman Financial focuses on research, client communications, and actively managing investment portfolios “for the long haul.” Whether the goals involve retirement, travel, or other adventures, the team focuses on individual security selection to help fund the things that matter most in clients’ lives.

Beyond Main Street, Leibman Financial also has a thriving digital presence, at 228Main.com. The address honors the firm’s roots. 

“Now it’s a place and a space,” Mark said. “We are a ‘local’ business on a small-town Main Street, and we serve clients in 22 states and manage $150 million in assets.” 

None of it happened overnight. At the start, Mark and his wife Cathy had four kids, a mortgage, and an ambition to keep the checking account above zero. Cathy ran the first licensed in-home daycare in Louisville, making them a pair of entrepreneurs. 

As the kids moved through daycare and then Louisville Schools, Mark and Cathy stayed active in the community. 

“Some of my fondest memories are the things we did with our neighbors,” Mark said. Of note were their years working on the Platte River Days festival in the ‘80s and ‘90s, serving on the school foundation and village board, and witnessing the genesis of the Louisville PTO. 

When the school sorely needed modern playground equipment in the ‘80s, Cathy led a campaign to raise funds that the school board could match. The high school industrial tech. teacher oversaw the equipment’s installation, and with the help of hundreds of Louisvillians, the project was a success. The momentum is what convinced a core group of people to form the town’s first parent-teacher organization. 

Even after more than two decades, the business continues to build its community connections.

“When I saw that we could be of service by sponsoring the Alumni Banquet, it was an easy ‘yes,’” Mark said. The business is still enmeshed in the town, and the family is still enmeshed in the business: two Leibman children and one Leibman in-law now co-own the business with Mark. 

Caitie, the youngest Leibman, serves as the business’s Communications Director. “Our involvement feels like a given,” said Caitie, herself a 2007 Louisville alum. “The business, the town, the schools—none of them exist in a vacuum. When any of us shines, we all feel the glow.” 

What’s next?

• “Like” and follow the Alumni Association Facebook page for updates on the 2024 event (@LPSLionAlumni) 
• Consider making a donation to the Louisville Alumni Association or the Louisville School Foundation 
• Update your contact information with the Association: you can use the form here