One week before they collect their diplomas, dozens of soon-to-be Eagle Point High School graduates returned to their elementary school roots.

Wearing blue-and-gold caps and gowns, 61 students were greeted warmly Thursday afternoon at Table Rock Elementary to the sight of familiar faces, beloved teachers and their old mascot, Tre the Tiger. The students paraded through their old White City stomping grounds as part of the school’s annual “Grad Walk.”

One of those familiar faces cheering the graduates out front with a glittery sign was the elementary school’s plant engineer, Lonnie O’Connor, who has worked with the school for 29 years. She described seeing the former students return as a highlight of her year.

“It’s even better when they come and still know you,” O’Connor said. “It’s nice to know we made an impact on their lives.”

A total of 144 graduating Eagle Point seniors walked the halls of their former schools from the three communities the district serves — White City, Eagle Point and Shady Cove — according to district spokesman Dean MacInnis. Roughly 200 grads will walk across the stage at 7 p.m. Friday, June 7, at the Eagle Point High School football stadium, 203 N. Platt Ave.

The “Grad Walk” tradition goes back roughly a decade, according to MacInnis, and the Class of 2024 members with roots in the White City area revisited Table Rock Elementary before moving on to revisit White Mountain Middle School.

One student with deep roots to the area was senior Katy Gallon, the current student body president and soon to be the fifth generation in her family to graduate from Eagle Point High School.

Gallon plans to attend Eastern New Mexico University this fall with a goal of becoming a trauma surgeon, but on Thursday she took in the sight of cheering elementary students and reflected on the place where her education started.

“It’s crazy,” Gallon said, thinking about her memories.

It was a chance to hug her favorite elementary school teacher, Amy Bowen.

When Gallon was in third grade, Bowen was starting her teaching career and Gallon said she was her favorite.

Danielle Slayton of White City took in the moment as kindergarteners showed them pictures they drew of graduates and older students gave her high-fives.

“I mean, it’s incredible,” Slayton said. “It’s been so long since I’ve been back here — it feels weird.”

She said the reality of graduation is just starting to set in.

The only schoolwork she has left is a final project for her statistics class.

She plans to attend Southern Oregon University in the fall.

Graduating junior Faith Akers took an accelerated track to skip her senior year at Eagle Point to study nursing at Rogue Community College in the fall, but the trip to her old elementary school was an emotional one.

“I’ve already cried once,” Akers said. “It shaped me.”

• North Medford High, 9 a.m. Saturday, June 1, Spiegelberg Stadium

• South Medford High, noon. Saturday, June 1, Spiegelberg Stadium

• Crater Schools, 8 p.m. Wednesday, June 5, at Dutch Meyer Stadium

• Ashland High, 6:30 p.m. Thursday, June 6, at the Lithia Park Bandshell

• Eagle Point High, 7 p.m. Friday, June 7, at the EPHS football stadium

• Phoenix High, 4 p.m. Saturday, June 8, at Jack Woodward Stadium

• Southern Oregon University, 8:45 a.m. Saturday, June 15, at Raider Stadium