WA Reunion Handbook

Attachments (A-F):

The following are provided for your use in planning reunions for Wasatch Academy. Please feel free to use this as a resource. If you have additions, changes, or suggestions please contact the WA Alumni Office.

Sample Letters (Attachment F)

(Hobson Black, the class representative for 1982, created the following sample letters. He emailed the first three letters to WA Alumni Office where they printed them on letterhead and then mailed by US Postal Service. The letters were in support of the 20th reunion. Thanks Hobs!)

INITIAL MAILING:

May 2, 2001

Class of 1982 alumni or parent,

Greetings to one and all. It certainly has been a long time since we were all involved with WA. I'm sending out this letter to let you know that our twenty-year reunion plans are in full swing. This is going to be one event that you definitely don't want to miss.

I recently traveled to WA with my wife Connie and our two children, Ruby-3 and Pearson-1, for the 2001 Founders Day Celebration. Not only was I able to rekindle my wonderful memories of WA, I was able to get some things ready for next year. Like blocking fourteen rooms at the Horseshoe Lodge in Mt. Pleasant.

The details of our big event will be forth coming in a follow-up letter. Right now I am just trying to make contact with ALL of our classmates to ensure we have a great turnout for the reunion. So please fill out the card and send it back ASAP so we can get everyone to attend our twenty-year reunion.

WA has a great web site that you can update your records on. You can also post messages to let you classmates know your latest news. To get there go to www.wacad.org and click on Alumni News, to leave a message click on Tiger Tracker.

If you are a parent of someone that attended WA, and have received this letter please fill out the card with their information and return it to WA, or forward this letter on to them.

I am truly looking forward to seeing you all to reminisce about old times, and find out what everyone has been doing over the last twenty years!

Your Class Agent,
Hobson Black

SECOND MAILING:

October 20, 2001

Greetings fellow Wasatcher! Are you ready to party? Make your plans for April 19-21, 2001. The Class of 1982 has a new concept in Alumni fun. I have secured the Main Street Bed and Breakfast to be our party headquarters! This will provide us all with a place to meet, greet, and eat.

The B&B is located at 179 West Main Street, just 2 blocks north of campus. We'll have a sign-in sheet so you can see who as already arrived. We will also have snacks and beverages on hand to welcome you weary travelers to Mt. Pleasant. Because I want this to be the best reunion ever, I'm providing all the food, beer and beverages out of my own pocket. Any donations will be greatly appreciated.

Another thing that I have arranged is to have Wasatch students watch your children at the B&B so the adults can socialize. There will be a separate room set up for the kids - loaded with toys, videos, etc. You can also leave your kids there while you tour campus if you so choose.

Thursday, April 18th:
My family and I plan on arriving late in the afternoon to enjoy a quiet evening and make sure everything is ready for the weekend. If anyone would like to join us, you are more than welcome. Just let me know ahead of time and we will work out the details.

Friday, April 19th:
Throughout the day the mighty Class of 1982 and their families will be arriving. This is your first opportunity to hang at the Main Street B&B.

Saturday, April 20th:
Wasatch will provide the regular schedule of events for Saturday. There will also be a Class of 1982 luncheon at Alice Dorm. This year, because we're such a cool class and because I'm such a good class representative, Wasatch has agreed to open the schoolhouse rooms and the dorms. You will be able to show your friends and family where you lived while at WA and tell more of those exciting "When I went to Wasatch…" stories. Then, of course, the alumni banquet will be Saturday night. We plan to have everyone back to the B&B after the dinner to party and reminisce.

Sunday, April 21st:
I expect everyone will be departing on this day. Please feel free to make breakfast or lunch plans with your renewed friends. That's always a good way to wrap things up! Before you checkout of your hotel, go ahead and make a reservation for next year's Founder's Day weekend.

So send in the reply card or call Wasatch at 1-800-634-4690 ext. 32. And talk to Laurel to add your name to the list of alumni that are planning on attending. The first letter generated a lot of response. At last count there are around fifteen that have said that they were definitely going to be there! The class of '87 will probably join in our festivities to celebrate their fifteenth reunion.

By the way, I have blocked fourteen rooms for April 19th and 20th at the Horseshoe Mountain Lodge (seven singles and seven doubles). The cost of each room is $47 plus tax for one king bed, and $52 plus tax for two queen beds. To reserve your room, call the Lodge at 1-800-462-9330. Tell them that the reservation is under Hobson Black, and you would like to secure your room with a credit card. These rooms are for Class of '82 alumni, friends and family only, and will be held until April 12th. After that date, I will assume that you have made other arrangements, and the extra rooms will be given away or canceled. For those who are not familiar with the Lodge, it is close to the school and by far the best accommodations in the area.

Yours truly,
Hobson Black
Class of '82 Representative

THIRD MAILING:

January 30, 2002

Dear Fellow Classmates,

Well April is just around the corner and our twentieth reunion is fast approaching. For those of you that have forgotten the details or have set aside my previous letters here is a quick rundown of the activities.

April 18 (Thursday) - My family and I will be arriving to set things up. Anyone who would like can join us. Just let me know.

April 19 (Friday) - Most will be arriving. You can get settled into the hotel and then come over to the Bed and Breakfast or vice-versa. We will be having an informal get together at the B&B with munchies and beer or whatever.

April 20 (Saturday) - The school will be providing a lunch in Alice Dorm. After that we will be free to explore the campus with the School Building and dorm rooms having an open house from 1:00 to 3:00. The Founder's Day dinner starts at 6 pm. Cocktails will be available at the Main Street B&B around 5:00 pm. After the dinner there will be a party at the Main Street B&B. The Class of '87 will be joining us to celebrate their 15th reunion.

April 21 (Sunday) - Everyone will be saying their good-byes and heading off to various parts of the world.

As of this letter the following people have confirmed and are planning on attending: Sally Jackson, Hobson Black, Suzanne Drennon Aranson, Alicia Hopkins, Lonnie Ellis, Eric Rounds, Kathy Wright Herbst, Jeff Jenkins, Waka Shibata, John Ringholz, Criss Sudar, Mike "Sturman" Garren, Eric Anton, John DiFiore, Dee Dee Shoop Sabin, Diana Mae Johnson Blome (Class of '82), Christina Parik, and Michelle Lancaster Kiefer.

These people have been in contact, but are unable to commit:
Bernie "Junior" Webster, Andy Carnesi, Eldon "Siewiyumtewa" Kalemsa, and Randalin Baldwin Van Alstine.

The following people I have a lead on but have not talked to:
James Buerk, David Coleman, Laura Brandt Fife, Matt Gerek, Keri Vickery Goldsmith, Kenichi Imai, Chris Minor, Drew Hunt, Mel Sabour, and Masaharu Yamagishi.

I have no idea how to get a hold of these people:
Jill Lewis-Johnson, Stephanie Simko Kelly, Galil Saley, Luis Vargas, Tracy Ramsey, Loren Smith, and Veronica Piana De Lavala. If you know where to find them or know of someone who is not on the list please contact them or let me know.

If you have received this letter and have not confirmed, get it together and GO! All you have to do is send in the reply card to the Alumni Office or call 1-800-634-4690 ext. 32 (Laurel Brown) or e-mail me at: hobsonblack@hotmail.com. It is important that we know if you will be bringing children and what their ages are so we can plan accordingly. We will have a Wasatch student available Friday afternoon and all day Saturday for the childcare at the Main Street B&B. They will have games and videos set up. There will be a collection bowl so you can pay whatever you think is appropriate.

There are several people on the confirmed list that haven't called for their room at the Horseshoe Mountain Lodge. Their phone number is 1-800-462-9330. DO NOT expect to just show up and be able to get a room. I am releasing the extra rooms after the 12th of April, and have been asked about them already from other WA alum. So CALL TODAY. Also, I would like to have an idea of when everyone will be arriving. That way when people arrive they can see when others will be there. You can let the Lodge know an approximate time when you call for your room. Or you can let Wasatch or me know directly.

The Main Street B&B is located two blocks north of campus on Main Street and 2nd West. Their telephone number is 435-462-9623. You can reach me there after Thursday night. Please call if you need assistance or get hung up somewhere.

I am really beginning to get excited about this and I hope you are too. I am sure that we are going to have a wonderful time and it will set the standard for all other reunions to follow.

This is going to be the best reunion EVER!!!

See you there,
Hobson Black
Class of '82 Representative

FOURTH MAILING:

(The fourth mailing was a joint effort sent on March 3, 2002 by Hobs and classmate Sally Jackson via email using www.classmates.com or the WA Tiger Tracker website.)

Hey (personalized)!

...Hobs is at my house and we're emailing you off of his account on classmates.com....

Hope you're going to make it to the reunion. Can you believe it's only about 7 weeks away! Hobs has done a great job and l~o~t~s of people are planning to show up. He should go into private investigation…he's tracked down people that no one has heard from since graduation. He's got all kinds of stuff planned for us plus just time to catch up.

If you're coming, don't forget to bring photos, yearbooks or other memorabilia to share. There will be a CD and tape player there in case you have any music you want to bring. I've already started digging my photos out. I wonder what everyone looks like now…man we were so young looking then!

Also, don't forget to make your hotel reservations SOON. So far only 3 rooms have been reserved. Hobs will be releasing the rest to "anyone" on April 12, so make sure you reserve yours soon! The hotel number is 1-800-462-9330.

On a personal note, it'll be great to have everyone there as I finish up my 2nd term as Alumni President. Who would have thought?

If you have any questions let me (sallio-bird@msn.com) or Hobs (hobsonblack@hotmail.com) know.

Looking forward to seeing you and catching up!
Sally Jackson

RESPONSE CARDS:
A response card with the following information and a return address to WA Alumni Office accompanied all US Postal mailings: