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The Top 10 Most Commonly
Asked Questions.
and the #1 most
commonly asked question is
You're thinking about your next class
reunion. It's coming up, you've spoken to a few former classmates, and are
wondering what to do about planning the next reunion.
Several ideas are rummaging through your head: Should I get involved again? Do I
have the extra time to give to such a project? Is it too much work?
Who's going to help with all the details? Will I have enough people to
help plan it? Should we hire professional planners? Where will we get the money
for up-front costs? How do we raise the initial funds to pay for postage,
stationary, printing, phone calls, etc.? These are just some of the
considerations that should be addressed before making any final decision...
Your
list may vary, but consider this...someone has to initiate the process, alumni
are looking forward to a great reunion and you can make it happen. When you
decide to hire professional planners, all you have to do is form a committee to
make decisions, provide direction and oversee the process, your planner will
handle the rest.
Who should plan a class reunion?
Anyone! Most classes that do not have
a reunion, don’t because someone thought that so & so was working on it.
Just because you were not the president of your class or the head cheerleader or
voted most likely, does not mean you can't plan your reunion. Anyone can put his
or her class reunion together. Get one or two of your fellow classmates together
and away you go!
How many people should be on a reunion
planning committee?
How many do you want? You can have 1
to 100 of your classmates on your committee. But if you want to keep things
simple and done in a timely manor, you need to keep it small. 1 to 10 people
will do just fine, but the choice is yours. Just keep in mind too many cooks in
the kitchen may spoil the dessert and you don’t want to spend a month arguing about
what color envelopes to use for any of your mailings. You will only end up
having your 10-year reunion 5 years too late! Also, it is always a smart idea to
get people from different "clicks" to participate on the committee.
The band people will be less likely to attend your reunion if the committee is
made up of only jocks or the ROTC people will be less likely to attend your
reunion if the committee is made up of only the beautiful people. You want to
have someone to represent all the different groups in school. If you adopt the
attitude that you only want certain people from your class to come to your
reunion, you have made a major mistake in taking on this task. “ A
mistake that will come back to haunt you later.”
How soon should we start planning our
reunion?
It's never too early. Give yourself at
least 6 months. But you can start 2 years in advance. Just keep in mind the
earlier you start the better the results. Some people have jobs that require
them to plan their vacation time a year in advance. So keep that in mind for
those classmates that live out of town and have to plan ahead.
How do I locate my fellow classmates?
There are many ways to locate
classmates. The phone book, internet, friends, neighbors and relatives. This
will be the hardest part of planning your reunion. It will take a lot of time
and can run into a few dollars as well.
What type of reunion should we plan?
A few years ago a local gentleman
planned his 25-year reunion on a cruise ship that was leaving from Florida for
the Bahamas for a week. The ticket price ran into the hundreds per person.
Needless to say only about 20 people out of a class of over 400 ended up
attending. So just follow the old K.I.S. - Keep it simple! Nothing outrageous,
gaudy or flashy. Remember, the idea is to get together with old friends. Not to
show off how much money you are willing to spend on attending your reunion. You
need to make it affordable for EVERYONE to attend.
When should we have our class reunion?
The summer months are the best. People
who have children find it difficult to travel during the school year. As much as
they may want to come to their reunion, they are not going to pull their kids
out of school to attend. Avoid holidays at all cost. People make family plans
for most of the summer holidays. Labor Day, Memorial Day and the 4th of July are
no good. It may seem like a good idea at the time, but believe me it's not.
Where should we hold our class reunion?
Hotels & Country Clubs are the
most popular. Remember, to have a good reunion you do not need to hold it at the
Peabody Hotel. Is it nice? Yes! Is it expensive? You bet! The most important
thing is to have a good turnout. Holiday Inns are perfect. Not too expensive and
the staff will most likely be more caring and helpful than those staffs at
bigger, more expensive locals. Just make sure you have plenty of room, eats and
a fully stocked bar.
Why
should we have a class reunion?
To remember your days of youth. To
relive those experiences that you shared with your friends. Remember rolling
someone's yard with miles of toilet paper? The Junior/Senior prom? Fifty's Day
and the Sock Hop? Graduation? This is your chance to let those old high school
friends know what those times meant to you. Good or bad!
How often should we have a reunion?
Some classes have a reunion after only
5 years and every 5 years after that. However the most popular and successful
reunions are 10, 20, 25 & 30 year. Then every 5 years after that.
How much money will we need to get started?
Money! It's what makes the world go
round. And it comes in very handy for putting together a class reunion as well.
You will need money for:
Hotel/Party Room Deposits
Most places will want between $500 and
$1,000 (non refundable) deposit 3 to 6 months in advance of your reunion, to hold a room for the
event. Remember that you and/or your committee will be responsible for any money
due to the establishment that does not get covered by the attendees. In other
words, if you plan on 200 people attending and break down the cost per person,
then the establishment will charge you accordingly. If you only have 50 people
show up and pay, then you have to pay for the other 150 that did not show out of
your pocket!
Caterer
MORE MONEY! Many
people like to have a family picnic on their reunion weekend so that they can
show off their children to their old classmates. Most caterers’ will want a
deposit.
Entertainment
MORE MONEY! A
DJ or Band will require anywhere from 20% to 50% deposit well in advance of the event.
From our experience we would recommend a DJ versus a band, but if you have your
heart set on a band there are a few details to consider. Not only will
the cost be much higher, but in most cases they have a limited number of songs that they
can play, it is hard to turn the volume down on a band so that you can hear what your old
bud is saying. For every person that likes
live music, you will have 10 people who do not. What you do want
at your reunion is someone who can play requests and has access to a wide
variety of music, from oldies to contemporary, from country to Big Band. Not
everyone likes the same music. Just because you like live bands or want only
music from when you where in school does not mean that everyone in your class
will feel the same. You want to have something that everybody can enjoy.
Photographer
MORE MONEY! Any
good photographer will want a guarantee in case no one purchases the pictures of
the evening's events. Be prepared to spend some $$$$.
Classmate Searches
MORE MONEY! Depending
on what options you decide to use in locating your fellow classmates, you will
need to set aside money for long distance charges, plus any additional charges
for internet options in helping locate your classmates.
Mailings
You will need MORE MONEY
for postage to send out information.
Printing
MORE MONEY! Mailings,
nametags, envelopes, directory books, flyers, and press releases. The list goes
on and on. Get ready to spend even more money.
Other costs
MORE MONEY! Decorations,
T-shirts, door prizes, and awards. You need to set aside a few dozen dollars for
this as well.
*****************************
So how can you have a class
reunion without having to spend all you're spare time working on it and spending
all this money?
In this day and age people just do not have a whole lot of extra time to spend
on putting a class reunion together. People work and have family obligations. In
fact most people feel that they do not have enough hours in the day as it is,
much less a few hundred hours to spend on the planning of your class reunion.
Not to mention that unless you have about three grand sitting around with
nowhere to spend it, planning a class reunion can be a real inconvenience.
In the 1980's Class Reunion Planning Companies, like J2
CLASS
REUNIONS, started
to pop up all over the country. They took all the work, the money and the
headache out of planning a class reunion. All that was left for the
committee/classmates to do was decide where and when, act as a support team and
have a good time. With no up front
cost to the classmates or the committee members.
This really is the way to go.
How?
It is very simple. J2
CLASS
REUNIONS charges a per person fee for their services, which is incorporated into the
ticket price. They take all the responsibility and the risk. No surprises for
you and your committee at the end of your reunion - like an outstanding bill for
$1,500.00 that you and your committee have to pay if enough people do not
show up to cover the costs.
We take care of everything.
Deposits
Mailings
Postage, Printing & Design of the mailings
Advertising in local papers & radio
A complete search of missing classmates
Customized decorations
24 hour message machine
Meeting room & choice of dinner type
DJs that specialize in class reunions
Staff to handle all check-in the night of your reunion
Professional portrait photographers to take individual and class photos the night of
your reunion
J2 CLASS
REUNIONS plans high school reunions and IS a class act!
We make everything easy for classmates by locating alumni, booking the banquet
facility and hotel, organizing the entertainment, taking care of the
photography, mailing out the invitations, putting together alumni directory, and
doing everything else necessary for a successful class reunion. We free up the
committee to concentrate on the more important aspects of a reunion like putting
the personal touches to any reunion that make it even more memorable, all the
while having fun themselves, reminiscing and get reacquainted!
J2
CLASS
REUNIONS has been planning reunions for many years. We aim to provide
professional quality reunion planning to alumni and schools. Our goal is to
promote a positive reunion experience for everyone. We strive to be the
recognized expert in the field of reunion planning and the organization that
people automatically turn to for advice and guidance.
ONE Example of a Class Reunion
Weekend Package…………$85 to $100.00 per adult person
Friday Night - A casual social gathering at a downtown bar and eatery. - and you are
only a short trolley trip from Beale Street.
Saturday Afternoon - A Catered or Bring your own, picnic for you and the entire
family. A chance to see everyone's kids and enjoy one of the cities beautiful
parks.
Saturday Night - A semi-formal event at one of the cities leading hotels or
country clubs. A delicious meal, with a cash bar. Picture nametags so you
will recognize your former classmates. A disk jockey playing all your favorite
hits. A photographer provided for you to purchase posed photos and/or a group
shot of all your classmates. Awards for the Most Changed, the farthest traveled,
etc. You will also receive a complete alumni directory with the most up to date
information on your fellow classmates such as names, addresses, phone numbers,
email addresses and much more!
Ticket Price
How much would you spend on a night or weekend on the town with that special
someone?
Dinner for 2 people?
A Movie (with popcorn, cokes, candy - all that junk you always buy at the
movies)!
Dancing (cover charges, plus a couple of drinks each and tip)?
A downtown trip to Beale Street?
Casinos (how much will you play with?)
A night at a local motel/hotel (depending on your taste)
Will there be gifts? (Flowers, candy, wine or champagne, jewelry?)
Other meals? Other incidentals? Baby sitter?
What it comes down to is this. For a nice night or weekend with that special
someone, you will easily spend much more than you will for a chance to see old
friends and celebrate!
J2 CLASS
REUNIONS will advertise your reunion!
We contact all the local radio stations, not just a select few.
We contact all the publications in town and surrounding towns.
We contact the TV stations.
We contact the school.
We list your reunion on our web site.
We get about 100 hits a week.
And not just once - we contact them every 30 to 60 days.
Searches for your classmates
We spend approximately 50 hours on the phone and on the Internet, talking to
sisters, brothers, mothers, fathers, aunts, uncles, cousins, co-workers,
neighbors, friends, and classmates - whoever may be helpful in locating your
missing classmates. The key to a
well attended reunion is in locating as many people as possible.
What about those who do not have ready cash on hand and want to charge their
tickets on their Visa, MasterCard or Discover Card? We can do it!
Need more information? Have a question? Ready to get started? Contact us today!
Ask for Jennifer or Julie
J2
CLASS REUNIONS
5695 GREEN VALLEY
Memphis, TN 38133
901-382-9932
E-mail:
CustomerService@J2CLASSREUNIONS.COM |
