Should I Be the One to Organize the Reunion?
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 party planning committee, and the website designer. In addition I am taking sole responsbility for receiving payments from classmates. You don't have to do the latter, I just like seeing the checks/Paypal payments roll in.
5. Do you have enough free time to stay on top of things? Depending on what phase you are in, it can take from 1 - 3 hours a week - and I imagine as we get closer to the next reunion date, it may take more time.
6. And finally - do you like being in the limelight? Because nothing beats the gratitude you'll receive and all the attention you'll get from your classmates who really appreciate all you've done.
So go ahead. Volunteer for the job as Organizer. You'll have a great time.
Comments
Yes, my tongue is in cheek, but not really. I took on the task of heading up the effort for the Livingston N.J. class of '68 40th. We had previous reunions and all were great, but they all have a different feel. Ours did deteriorate in all sincerity. The 10th was run internally, the 20th, 25th, & 30th [ the 30th was horrible, I lied when I said they were all great ] were handled by reunion companies. I'd avoid those like the plague.
Our grass roots effort for our 40th sprouted legs and just ran down hill, gravity and love powered, to an experience enjoyed by 275 people,
Back to the topic. If you're inclined to take it on, do it. Plan on putting together a team that means something. Sure, some will work harder and better then others, but realize all strengths will rise into their own place of import. I personally am a " tech-no idiot." We ended up with two great minds filling that important spot. Proper use of todays technology is a very necessary tool.
We had an invincible feeling once all jobs were defined. Sure we fought, disagreed, but worked it all out.
Bottom line, as I said "do it." STARTING EARLY is paramount. Recognizing that it is a ton of work is also very important. Never say never. Make plans for ancillary events [ we did a Friday night welcome dinner, a Saturday AM tour of our H S, our Saturday PM " Big Show " complete with an entertaining video that our committee worked on for over a year, and finally a Sunday AM " Goodbye " brunch.] WHAT A WEEKEND !! ALL well attended, appreciated, and enjoyed top to bottom by the vast majority of our attendees.
Roll up your sleeves, USE THE PHONE [ e-mails are great and important but if you have people with good phone presence and sincerity..........me.....and one other dedicated soul in our case ] and make it happen
Let me know if I can help, as I seem to really like this stuff. You will too !!!.....now get to work
Lou Fink
notrealbright@gmail.com
We are currently in the early stages of our 20-yr reunion and our biggest question is: Reunion Planners or Not? This issue has been dragging on all summer and our committee has a few questions we would like to ask you, Marilyn the Reunion Guru (and Lou!).
If we organize the reunion ourselves...:
- where do we get the money for the deposits (particularly for the hotel for the big shindig)?
- can we function with no bank account, just the personal account of one committee member + a Paypal account? (this is what you did?)
- have you ever used any ticketing services like Eventbrite or Ticketleap or did you just depend on Paypal and Checks? Did that ever cause a problem?
We used a Reunion Planner for our 10-yr and those of us who were behind the scenes were disappointed with their services. The one we are talking to now seems much moire professional but they are still trying to sell us the idea of a $40 memory book (their profit center, I guess) and that just chaps our hides!
We are sure we can do this ourselves, but we need some hand-holding...
We need guidance! THANKS =)
That said, they can be helpful in locating venues for you and booking DJs, and manning the registration desk etc.
Why don't you take a shortcut and contact the classes above you to see what they did for their recent reunions? If they had positive experiences, you might do well to copy them. If they used a reunion planning company with happy results, you might want to follow their lead.