Many of you have wondered about what's going on behind the scenes.  Why we are having multiple events instead of a traditional event.  Why some posted events have been removed, etc.  That's what this page is for, to answer some of your questions and for you to feel a part of the process.  And by reading this page you will be.

 

You have noticed we've scheduled several reunion events throughout 2017.  Exciting?  This came about when quite a number of classmate Friends responded to my inquiry on Facebook asking if anyone knew what we'd be doing for the reunion.  In response to that post, many put out their ideas and offered their expertise for our use and disposal.  With that I thought, why can't we utilize all of these suggestions and offer something exciting and unique beyond the traditional banquet room reunion.  This will give us alumni a choice of the event(s) that we'd like to attend, taking into our own consideration the cost, locations, and dates.

 

So I was asked to be the coordinator of all this.  A committee was formed (see below) and it seems I've become the spokesperson.  I may be perceived as the one running the show but I assure you, I am not the leader, the boss, or the control freak.  I don't make the decisions, the committee makes them and I carry them out.  I created a reunion website to be the focal point to keep things simple.  It was to be a consistent location for all event details, queries, and registrations.

 

We had a few offers to be part of the committee but most of us felt a small committee would be more effective in actually arriving at decisions.  After all, the hosts were organizing their own events.  So we arrived at the few committee members consisting of the hosts of each event and me, as coordinator.  And all are, of course, '67 alumni in case you don't recognize someone.

 

Gail (Holton) Berk as coordinator

Linda (Montgomery) Douglas with a Baja cruise

Debra LeForge with a cocktail party

Mary Ann (Mooney) Mattingly with a dinner gathering at her house

Eric Metz with his winery tour and luncheon

 

Our first decision was to decide between a multi-event or a traditional banquet event.  There were pros and cons on both to consider.

Traditional banquet event

It's the 50th reunion, it's got to be a dress up affair.  This would be a cocktail setting with dress requirements accordingly: Cocktail dresses and ties.

     Pros: If you can still fit into your fancy dresses, here's a chance to wear one.  One event would attract all that could attend.  No classmates divided between multiple events.

     Cons: It would be only one calendar date of the entire year and there would be those who couldn't make that date.  Some may not have suitable attire or no longer fit into something suitable they may already own.  Ticket price too high.  You'd only have approximately 4 hours to meet and talk with classmates.  Stick a dinner in there and there'd even be less time for classmates.

Multiple events

The hosts of each individual event had all determined they'd have a casual affair.

     Pros: Suitable attire would already be on hand.  Surely there is at least one event out of several that meets your interest, price range, and availability.  If you take a liking to a classmate you might see them again at another event.

     Cons: Smaller settings mean less capacity for those who choose a given event.  Therefore, you may not see someone at the event(s) you attend but who might be at one you do not attend.

 

So the multi-event reunion was unanimously decided.  For those of you who'd argue for a traditional banquet room event, we appreciate your point of view but it wasn't the majority vote, not by the committee and not by the Facebook alumni in the discussion.

 

Classmates divided?  It's not like out of 50, 20 would be at one event and 30 at another (not taking into consideration the likelihood many classmates would attend multiple events, not just one).  The reality is probably more like out of 50, 45 would be at one event, 35 at another, etc.  You can contact your own friends and see which they'll be going to.

 

So to continue, we jumped for joy over making our first decision as a committee...until one member asks, "But isn't the idea of a reunion to get as many together in one place as possible?"  The majority agreed that we should add an event, something akin to traditional and promote it as the "main event." 

 

Three of us offered to host such an event and temporarily contracted the Anaheim Hilton's ballroom for 200 people, you may remember this being posted on this website.  We worked on this for two months with several hotel reps that were not the best in P.R. work.  It's the Hilton!  We expect better treatment than this.  Nevertheless, in the middle of negotiations we queried the mass (you are the mass) and got exactly 26 responses including their guests!  It was at that point we determined how acute was the apathy among us and took down the hopeful event from the website.  And along with that reason went the cost that this would have become.  For those of you who worked on the 10th and 20th, I'll step out on a limb and tell you the prices have probably multiplied by 5 times or more since then for a comparable event.  Ticket prices for alumni would have been $150-$200 per person.  Take that, those of you who wanted traditional.

 

Then Mary Ann (Mooney) Mattingly decided to leave the committee and remove her gathering from the multi-event group.  She had some disagreements with the decisions the committee made in areas where her event wasn't coordinating well with the others.  I made the decision to disclose this here only after she made some very unkind remarks in the Facebook group about how her event was managed and how badly she thought this multi-event reunion was progressing.  The majority of our classmates think otherwise.  She has now announced her own gathering as a separate entity and is no longer associated with this multi-event group.  If you are interested you will have to contact her directly with your RSVP's and payments.  For her contact information see the Etc. page of this website or look for her reunion on Classmates.com.

 

After Mary Ann left the group, Jim Feick then stepped up with his connections with the American Legion.  We started to see this as the possible "main event" everyone thought we should have.  I, too, was able to pull together a catamaran luncheon on Sunday of the same weekend.  Debra rescheduled her cocktail party for Saturday to complete a full weekend of events.  We hope this appeals to those from out of town and justifies their long journey back to California.  But, too, the locals can pick and choose which they want to attend.  Although we don't yet have Eric's winery chimed in for attendance at this time, the Newport American Legion event promises to be the "main event" with the leading number of attendees.

 

With respect to the reunion weekend, Debra's cocktails will be in the evening.  Therefore, the majority of Saturday will be open for you to make your own plans.  Some of you may want to leave yourselves with some personal time with family or self-discovered excursions.  Others, having made re-acquaintances at previous events, may go off in groups or couples and enjoy time together with long lost friends.  Some will enjoy reaffirming their love of the beach so don't forget the sunscreen for those who have replaced your California tans with farmer tans.

 

So as of Mary Ann's departure and Jim's arrival we have a revised committee:

 

Linda (Montgomery) Douglas with the Baja Cruise

Jim Feick with the Newport Beach American Legion

Debra LeForge with the Sunset Cocktails

Gail (Holton) Berk with the Harbor Bay Cruise

Eric Metz with his Winery Luncheon and Tour

 

We know we can't please everyone (we didn't even please the entire committee) but we hope that by offering you several events, you will find what works best for you, your travel plans, your busy schedule, and where you think you'll have the most fun.  And let me be clear, you are all invited to as many of these events as you choose to attend.  It's your reunion.  Some events have limited capacity but it will be noted in the description of the events.  If you're concerned about missing out on seeing a classmate, contact them privately and ask which event you can meet up with them.  You can also query them within the Facebook group (see Facebook below).

 

I am simply the coordinator.  I have deep gratitude for those who not only offered to host an event but have invested their time in the research to make it a memorable event--Linda (Montgomery) Douglas, Jim Feick and Fred Scuncio, Debra LeForge, and Eric Metz--'67 classmates, every last one of them.  They handled the hard stuff.  I am also very glad to have had the pleasure of working with such a cooperative and helpful team who made my job easier in the brainstorming and orchestration of these events.  Debra LeForge has been my right hand man and go-to gal all the way.  Please be sure to thank them for their unrelenting work when you see them at an event you may attend.

 

I hope to, once again, meet up with you old fogies and youngsters-at-heart at many of these fun events in 2017--The Year of the 50th Reunion!

 

​