Can We Unify Our Approach To Improve Our Reunion Turnout?

Various people are making wonderful contributions to the goal of a great turnout for our 40th reunion. But I am starting to think that the time is passing quickly and there are great many people we have not reached as yet. Is there some way that all of us who are trying to connect can unify our approach and become a little more strategic?

This blog has had 262 hits so far, according to the use statistics. This indicates to me that there is some interest in its content. Of course we cannot tell who those people are. Some may just be surfing the net for reunions in general terms. Nine people have taken a look since Susan’s post, and our best day ever was 2/6/08. That was the day I started posting the photos. That day we had over 40 visitors. We can only speculate what this means. I hope it means we are at least getting a few people to think about the experiences we shared in college and the opportunity our reunion presents.
I know that Joanie and Kathie have done lots of effective email communication for the Express class news, Pam at the Alumnae office needs Rhea and me to write a social letter that will go out this month through snail mail, and Wendy Hilty must be getting in touch with members of our class reagrding our class gift, though I have not heard from her as yet. Does anyone want to take up Susan’s challenge? Or are there other ideas for outreach to classmates? Maybe Rhea and I can pull it all together in the letter that goes out this month…but I know we are looking to tap the energy and imagination of classmates. Please let us know your thoughts here or at our email addresses.

Possible Strategies for Susan’s Ideas

The latest copy of the Wells directory lists those who are “lost.” I know Rhea and I tried to “find” people using various strategies for the 25th; we would certainly have new options now, fifteen years later. There are some people listed in the directory for whom we have an address, but contact has been difficult in the past. There are others with whom we have never made a successful connection.

Does anyone want to compile a list; divide up the names; start working on this project? Fifteen years ago,  remember I tried to find Sally Miller, Susan Andres, Marilyn DeSevo, Helen Hardy, Pam Bond, and Marla Mudar, among others. Sometimes you do find the person, but she does not want to be found. Or she feels so out of touch that it is awkward and counterproductive. Sometimes you inadvertently bump up against emotional issues about the past. Sometimes there are just dead ends and no trace at all. There are many reasons our classmates choose to stay distant or have moved on and away; do we want to use the blog to discuss the pro’s and con’s of handling this ?

Back for the 25th I felt it would be so neat to find a few women from our class who wanted to be found. I still feel that. It was so wonderful to find Derry for example.

Your views?