Reunion, Reunion, Reunion!

My "reunion season" is officially over. I had a lot of fun at each one of the three reunions I attended. In some ways, they were VERY similar - and in others, very different.

At the first one - in Spokane - the students put it on and the first night it was held at a "tavern" - but really it was held at the large gathering space OWNED by the tavern so it was cool that it was just the attendees, and not a bunch of other people randomly walking in and out of the party. They handed out goodie bags when you signed in - and they were specially made recycled bags printed with the school name and graduating year on them. Inside was a pint glass with the school name and "Class of 1989 Reunion" on them - a printed lanyard with a nicely made nametag that people could wear - a dvd of the photo montage - and some specially printed M&M's....

They had a huge table full of munchies (deli trays, breads, cheeses, fruits, and cakes) that people could graze on whilst the cash bar was kept extremely busy all night long. Above the bar was a movie screen that had the (what I can only assume was) grad night photo montage playing. The next day, on Saturday, was the picnic. Now, in Spokane, the sun seems MUCH closer to the earth than it does here on the coast, so I was about to melt. I think it was supposed to get up to 100 where I was and that's about 35 degrees more than I'd like to deal with.

There was a nice turn-out for the picnic. Most of the people went to the Friday night thing though. They DID have a sno-cone maker, so that was a nice relief to the heat. I didn't attend the golf outing on Sunday morning, only because I've golfed once in my life and I had no intention of waking up at 5am to go see if I've "still got it".

Overall, Spokane's was very organized and very well attended...and it was only $66!

Newport's reunion cost $45 and it was also put on by the students. It was all held on one day, which made it easier on people who were only down for the weekend. Saturday afternoon there was an informal picnic - where former teachers came to chat with us and the present Principal (my former Economics teacher) gave us a tour of the entire school - showing us all the new wings and updates. It was interesting to see how much things changed - as well as how many things had stayed the same.

The dinner was on Saturday night at the Embarcadero. Loads of people came - and the furthest came from Barbados! Each reunion I attended had the same "contest/quizzes". Who had the most kids, who traveled the furthest, who's been married the longest, who's got the most tattoos....I didn't win anything. Dinner was good, the conversations were interesting, and I was very impressed at how many local businesses chipped in for the prizes.

Some of the prizes were worth up to $100 and those were given out for the contest/quizzes - and the grand prize (I think there were two) gift baskets with so much stuff in them each totaled about $500! They were given out by a raffle. Some shady business had happened with the local scholarship funds and the community was rallying to raise some of the money back. Buying the tickets - the money went straight towards that amount. I wanted to wait to see if I won either of those - which I didn't. :0( I had to work that night, so I left about 9:45pm...and just missed getting in the class photo. Oh well....there were a lot of photo-ops I "missed" at Newport.

(I just want to say that in the 1989 yearbook for Newport, I was never mentioned as 1.) the designer of the front cover drawing, 2.)the basketball seasons mascot - which I even lettered in cheerleading, 3.)i was never in the photo or had recognition for being on the yearbook staff....so that's MY two cents on being snubbed...but I'm "over it" - I think)

The Olympia reunion....well, I've just gotten back from it this last week. I had a really good time, and didn't feel AS outcast as I did at the 10-year. Since I didn't graduate with this school - and left my sophomore year - it still feels awkward. Some of the people I grew up with (I left when I was 15), and some of the people I barely knew because I didn't spend time with them my freshman year. I think I missed out on some really great experiences by moving around in high school. I heard loads of stories (at the 10-year and at this 20-year) about sneaking out, parties, dances, who was going out with whom, etc. It would've been nice to have gone through these things with the same people throughout the span of 13 years.

The Oly reunion was put on (mostly) by an organization - that frankly should have done a LOT more than what they did. The cost of the reunion was pretty bloody spendy. It was $66 if you reserved before July, $86 if you waited until the end of August...which is what I did...and that didn't include anything but the dinner the first night. If you wanted to get the "memory book" it was an extra $15-20 depending on if you wanted the book and dvd or just the book (which, by the way, turned out to be pretty lame because not many people filled out their bios online so out of the 150 or so people that turned out, only about 20 people submitted a bio for the book). Also, there was a class photo, which was an EXTRA $20 on top of the book and fee. Now, THIS is ONLY the price for a single person! If you brought your spouse or friend or what-have-you, it was just under double the cost.

Clearly I had an issue with the cost....but in my defense, I'd seen what students could produce on their own, and there was no need to charge this much, for as little as we had gotten.

The students of Oly put on a good show. The reunion organizers (not the company - but the students) set up a memory table for the students that have passed-on, there was a huge table of memories of things from school (ie; yearbooks, lettermans jackets, cheerleading outfits and pom-poms, nick-knacks from stores that no longer exist in town, dance ticket stubs, etc.). They hosted the reunion (just like the others) with silly questions about family and marriages, had a photo montage set up at the front of the dining room with pics from when people were little through high-school....over-all it was a great reunion!

The next day (Saturday) was a picnic at Columbus Park on Black Lake and one of the students is the manager there (so basically she set it up - not the organization) and there were lots of activities and things for kids to play on (there were butt-loads of kids there! WAY more than at either of the other two reunions!)...lots of food - potluck style as well as a great barbecue! It was very well organized - and lots of tables for everyone to have room to sit and chat/move around.

Saturday night was an "unscripted" gathering at the Westside Bar & Grill. It was a pretty good turn-out, and a nice ending to a very entertaining weekend. Two students organized this and it showed that all you need is a place to hand out and internet access and people will come.

All in all, I had a great time at each of the reunions. I would say that - to anyone who's read this far - if you are planning a reunion, or going to attend one - be flexible. People are going to have a good time - whether or not you plan things down to the minute or if it's a big empty room with tables and chairs. As long as you put people together that haven't seen each other in years - and are genuinely interested in finding out how each other's lives have been progressing - you've got a successful reunion.

Just don't charge too much.....we ARE in a recession, you know!

:o)