Class Reunion Planning 101 (High School or College Reunions)

Well, if not you, who else? I'm just saying, if the thought crossed your mind, then probably you're the one! But before you jump on board, be sure you can say "yes" to the following questions. 1. Are you sincerely interested in your classmates? Not that you have to communicate in detail with every last one of them, but are you interested in seeing them connect with each other? 2. Do you have an office at your disposal with a computer, access to the internet, knowledge to use it, fax, copier, and (ideally free) phone. These are all indispensible to being the point person. 3. Do you have an ability to delegate? You need to set up lines of communication and systems so that you understand how they work, and then teach others to do them, so things run smoothly. You do not have to do everything yourself - nor should you. 4. Are you organized? I am managing five teams of people: the search for lost classmates committee, the database team, the location finding team, the p

One of the most interesting things to come out of our recent class reunion was an interest in sharing information about the business skills and expertise that our classmates have. This got us thinking. While we would never use the class database as a marketing tool for personal enrichment, why not allow people to advertise on the class website for free or a minimal cost. We are currently investigating two options for classmates: 1. A list of subject areas of expertise. Need a lawyer. Click on "attorneys" and a list of classmate's names come up. Click on the names to get to their individual websites. Click on "plumbers" and a list of names pops up and so on. This would be a free option. 2. Buy a full page or half page add in the website. Money for this can go to maintaining the website. Hosting costs, survey subscriptions, email blast subscriptions, etc. When we get closer I'll share more on this subject. In the meanti

Ryan Hutchins, writer for the Star-Ledger, recently wrote an article for the newspaper about a 16-year-old high school sophomore named Joyce Holly who lost her yearbook. That was June, 1979. She left it in a Somerset (NJ) County Park after a North Brunswick High School marching band picnic. Flash forward, 30 years later and the yearbook has been recovered thanks to Somerset County Sheriff, Captain Jeffry Thompson. It appears that Sheriff Thompson was retiring after 28 years and wanted to clear out his office, and the book was on his shelf. "I just held on to it because I said: 'You know what? That means something to somebody.'" The book was found by park police 30 years ago, but Holly couldn't be found. Even with Google, Facebook and other online search engines, Holly's whereabouts remained a mystery because she started using the name "Jaye" as her first name and she moved out of New Jersey. But with retirement approaching, the Sheriff got s

Some of the members in our Linkedin .com Group "Reunion Planners (High School, College, Family, Corporate)" have mentioned that short reunion cruises are wonderful alternatives to land-based reunions if you're near a major port city.   Linda Hilson of cruise planners, All Points Beyond  https://www.allpointsbeyondtravel.com /   tells me that there are several options. First, there are dinner cruises like those provided by World Yacht, http://www.worldyacht.com/ , which circles Manhattan. You depart at a certain time and return 4 or 5 hours later, having had the time of your life. But that's it. No down time together to relax. Strict in and out times, etc. Then there are two-day cruises to nowhere. Imagine going out to sea for two overnights, all meals included. It's a party on a beautiful ship where your reunion group can take part in festivities all weekend long. This type of cruise departs only a few times a year out of major cities and may not coincide with

Why wait 5 or 10 years before you get together for another class reunion? You should encourage classmates to put together mini-reunions any time or anywhere. Using the internet and Facebook an informal mini-reunion can spring up orchestrated by anyone who wants to reach out and say: "Hey I'll be here on this date and at this time. Meet me there." One of my friends, Vicki, has become the class ambassador. She travels a lot, and when she's in a major metropolitan area, she makes an announcement to her friends on Facebook that she'll be there and voila a party happens around her at a local restaurant or bar. It's truly amazing. Another friend, Barbara, knows she's planning a vacation in Fort Lauderdale in the Spring, so she has organized a mini-reunion welcoming other classmates to join her there for a weekend Luau. In this case she has 6 months lead time to generate enthusiasm and get commitments from the class. Steve has a band, (Steve and Steve),

I recently came across a New York Times blog called "Bits," written by a recent college grad, Jenna Wortham, who posed the question, "Who Needs a College Reunion? I've Got Facebook." http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/03/29/who-needs-a-college-reunion-ive-got-facebook/ . She was invited to her five-year reunion and adamantly stated that she had no intention of going because Facebook kept her up to date on each and every classmate she cared about. She knew who married who, what their children looked like, what gainful employment they had, what community groups they supported, and so on. And there's no doubt that she was keeping tabs on everyone that was important to her. But I have to extrapolate forward 10, 20, 30 years and wonder if she'll still feel the same way then? Somehow the passage of time, the frailty of the human body, and the growing nostalgia for days gone by takes its toll on our curiosity, and I believe she'll want to go back to se