Family Reunion Planning

Planning and organizing a family reunion can range from a simple gathering to a daunting task, if you are bringing large groups of distant cousins together. It is somewhat similar to planning a wedding, in some aspects, and it is nearly impossible to please absolutely everyone, but by planning well, hopefully almost everyone will enjoy themselves. Here are some tips and ideas to make your reunion as stress free as possible.

Who, When, Where... these are the three basics.

Who; Sit down with your address book, and make a list of everyone. If you have a Christmas card list separate from your address book, make sure to reference that as well. Call your close relatives and ask if they can think of anyone you may have missed. Guest logs from your wedding, or even your parents wedding can be very helpful as well. Try to obtain addresses and phone numbers for each household, and confirm that they are current. If you have out of date contact information, the Internet can be helpful in tracking down lost cousins. The more people you can get to come, the better. Try to plan ahead for extra people that may show up, such as boyfriends, girlfriends, fiancees, children you didn't know about, etc.

When; Deciding when to hold the reunion is very important, and you want to give yourself PLENTY of lead time to get things together before the big day. Possibly even a year or two ahead of time, if you are planning a first time reunion and bringing cousins from far away.

Consider how long the gathering should be. If your family hasn't gathered together in several years, it may be better to plan a week long event for those that wish to stay longer to catch up with each other. If you have a tight knit family where most members live close to each other, a weekend may work well. Family groups may be less likely to come from a long ways away, if they can only visit for a day.

Summertime is really the best season for a family reunion, as the kids are out of school and the adults usually can take vacation time away from work. The weather is nice enough to hold events outdoors, and getting a large group together for the Holidays (Thanksgiving/Christmas, etc.) is a little harder than having a smaller gathering. It can require a lot of extra planning for travel, lodging reservations, and other considerations. Many family households may not want to make a long trip at this time of year, or break their routine holiday traditions.

Where; Choose a location that is large enough to accommodate everyone, preferably central from where the majority of the people will be coming from, so nobody gets the short end of the stick and has to travel much further than anyone else. Otherwise, people may accuse you of playing favorites, and trust me, avoiding drama is one thing you should try to do at all costs.

Finding a large, open campground is always a good option. You will want a place for the kids can run and play, activities for everyone, and each family can have its own tent setup for privacy. You can set up a central cooking and eating area. Camping is much cheaper than staying in hotels, and if you plan away from major holidays, you can even reserve the entire campground, for a reasonable price. If you can find a campground at a river or a lake, you can add activities like swimming, fishing, water skiing, etc. to your agenda.

Potluck reunions are a fun way to try sampling many different variations of food. Several people may bring cold salads, but each one will be completely different, as even the same family recipe will evolve on its own. Sitting around the dinner table is a wonderful way to visit with others, and with potluck style, everyone can find something they like to eat.

One great idea for those bringing several different branches of the family tree together to a large reunion, is to color code everyone. For example, for descendants of Great-grandma Smith, have them wear blue shirts. For descendants of Great-uncle Jones, have them wear red shirts. Post a family tree chart in a central location, that shows the different colors along family lines.