Mar Vista High School Class of 1967 50th Reunion

Sunday brunch at the Mar Vista High School Cafeteria.

When a few alumni from Imperial Beach, California’s, Mar Vista High School’s Class of 1967 were deciding whether to plan a 50th reunion, we had questions. A key issue was whether we could form a committee who had the time and interest to plan this milestone celebration. In addition, we wanted to be sure the reunion would be exciting enough to attract a large number of fellow Mariners. It was important to keep the registration fee reasonable, knowing that many of our classmates could be on fixed incomes and not necessarily anxious to attend a dinner at an upscale/overpriced hotel ballroom.

A DIVERSE COMMITTEE

Based on email communication starting more than a year in advance, we knew there were enough classmates willing to help organize a 50th reunion. We soon had a committed group from New York, North Carolina, Utah, Arizona, Idaho, and California. Several had experience working on reunion committees; others were first-time volunteers.

We divided key assignments: researching alumni addresses, contacting potential venues, coordinating mailings, arranging entertainment and decorations, and organizing an auction. For the next 10 months, we interacted by email and phone calls. This long-distance approach and inability to meet face-to-face wouldn’t work for all reunion committees, but we found it to be quite effective, albeit challenging at times.

REUNION EVENTS

We agreed it should be a full weekend so alumni would have options. We hoped a majority would attend all three events – the Friday night “meet and greet,” Saturday dinner dance, and Sunday brunch.

Our goals were to have venues that were close by and in familiar locations, and to keep costs low.

After much deliberation, the committee decided the Friday welcoming reception would be at Fleet Reserve Pub in Imperial Beach, a popular local gathering place. Their kitchen facilities and helpful staff ensured we could have a frequentlyreplenished selection of hors d’oeuvres at a cost of $15 per attendee.

The Saturday dinner dance was at the Chula Vista Elks Club, also not far from our alma mater. Someone on our committee was a club member, so we got a reasonable rate. We performed due diligence, checking with friends and work associates who had attended events at the Club, to be sure the dining and dancing areas were suitable. We worked closely with the manager/staff to develop the dinner menu, and negotiated the cost so attendees paid only $25. We recruited a very talented amateur DJ (a committee member who used Spotify to create a wonderful 1967 era playlist), which minimized entertainment costs.

We had the Sunday brunch at our high school cafeteria! We thought it would be a fun place to conclude our reunion weekend, and the school administration was amenable. A local restaurant catered the food and used the school kitchen’s food warmers.

The total cost for all three events was $50 per person, which seemed extremely reasonable.

REACHING ALUMNI

Of course, a key challenge was to inform alumni of our plans. We used snail mail, email, and social media. We also used some assistance from school administration and previous reunion committee chairs. We used the Been Verified database to find some classmates. Two committee members worked with previous reunion rosters and additional information to develop the best possible mailing list. Classmates shared the most recent addresses they knew for other classmates.

We announced the reunion with a flyer mailing, followed by several email updates; some snail mail was still necessary. We set up a private Facebook page and featured the list of classmates attending, posts about reunion events, and weekly photos (which often included humorous captions) to generate interest. We shared information with several Facebook sites that had ties to Imperial Beach.

A week before the reunion, there were 140 reservations, including spouses. We knew several others would show up for specific activities.

REUNION WEEKEND

Committee members were just a little anxious prior to the start of the Friday night “meet and greet,” hoping everything would run smoothly to set the tone for the rest of the weekend. But when people started arriving and greeting each other with hugs and handshakes – many hadn’t seen each other in 50 years – our concern quickly disappeared.

As alums picked up their nametags, they saw memory boards featuring yearbook pictures as well as current photos, along with notes from those who couldn’t attend the reunion. My husband was the main weekend photographer, so he mingled with guests to take both candid and posed photos of “old” friends getting reacquainted.

While we didn’t have the entire lounge area to ourselves, the regular Friday night guests were very respectful of our event. In addition, we were able to donate the leftover food to the patrons who were still there after the reunion celebrants left.

The Saturday dinner-dance room was festooned with balloons and table decorations, along with a welcoming banner that cost only $50 from VistaPrint. Throughout the evening, the DJ played more than 100 songs popular in the 1960s and 70s. We kept the formal program simple: committee introductions, Grace said by a retired pastor/classmate and, of course, dancing to familiar tunes.

A highlight of the evening was a very successful silent auction, which helped cover additional reunion costs and a donation to the high school. Classmates’ donations included several paintings, goodie baskets of wine and food, and other items. Those interested made a secret bid, not knowing if they had won until the highest bidder for each item was announced.

On Sunday morning, more than 100 of us gathered at our high school cafeteria. During brunch, the Director of School Activities welcomed us. We presented him with a donation for a student scholarship. After a group photo, we took a nostalgic campus tour, visiting the lunch courtyard, football field, new gym and other sites.

Then everyone said goodbye and promised to stay in touch.

The following few days, we posted many photos, accompanied by such comments as:

“We were closer this reunion than any in the past. Fifty years makes you realize how much former classmates mean to you.”

“I felt like time had stood still and we were in that time capsule where conversations and experiences just resumed from 50 years before. Our reunion had a very warm and comfortable atmosphere.”

Auction items

LESSONS LEARNED

On the days leading up to reunion weekend and the week after, committee members held a debrief session via phone and email. We made a list of “dos and don’ts” to share with coordinators of the 55th reunion:

Begin planning much earlier than you think is necessary. We started almost a year before the reunion, and even more time would have helped.

Take advantage of committee members’ contacts. Who knows the manager of a local restaurant, hotel, Elks Club or other location that might give you a better deal on food and overnight stays?

Talk to other organizers of your school’s reunions. They can share ideas for potential venues, recruiting committee members, and compiling mailing lists.

Make sure you have sufficient upfront “seed” money to cover restaurant down payments and other initial costs, before the first registration money is collected.

Realize you can’t please everybody. Some people won’t like the location or the menu. Others may think the events are too expensive or too informal.

Keep reunion details visible – through snail mail, email and social media. It often takes several reminders before classmates agree they want to attend.

Ask committee members to encourage all their friends to attend. Word-ofmouth enthusiasm increases attendance.

Minimize costs by having volunteers make signs, memory boards, table centerpieces and other decorations.

If you don’t have the budget to rent a photo booth or other special attraction, try to get an alumni benefactor to make a contribution.

Review all restaurant/other facility contracts carefully. Be certain there aren’t any “hidden” costs.

Reported by Lynn McCurdy Robinson, Hemet, California.