Paying for the reunion

What reunion doesn’t need money? There are many ways to raise money if you don’t just divide all your costs and assess everyone equally. Consider some of these ideas and share your ideas with our readers. E-mail us.

Fundraising still important at 100

This is an excerpt from the Des Moines Register by Joanne Boeckman who is writing about the Centennial of the Harmelink Family Reunion in 2002.
   John Harmelink, a retired livestock auctioneer, presided over the traditional auction of handmade and other goods donated by family members. Jars of jam, hand-stitched girls' dresses and potholders, needlework, china-painted plates, metal items and other goods brought high bids.
   Aunt Jo, youngest daughter of John, was astonished that her jars of strawberry jam were selling for $25.
   “I went out and picked the strawberries myself the day I made it,” she said quietly from the back row. “But $25?”
   When a “Star Trek” hat came up for auction, the bidding went quickly, ending at Vern's bid of $100. It was an inside joke.
   “Bunch of thieves in this family,” he said. “This is the third year they've stolen my hat!”
   The auction netted $3,000, used to offset costs not covered by the registration fees of $64 per adult and $45 per child older than 3. Any extra goes for the next reunion.
  The raffle of a special quilt brought nearly $900. The quilt was designed by more descendants of John: Betty Dorsman of Sheldon, Joan Goetch of Hartley and Carol Petty of Montana.
   “Joan and I designed the quilt,” Dorsman said. “She sewed it in Iowa, I in Arizona, then we sent it to Carol in Montana and she quilted it.”
   The quilt was adorned with several symbols representing the family, including a Dutch barn with the name Harmelink painted in the dormer, tulips, the four verses of “Blest Be the Tie That Binds,” rolling hills to represent those of Wisconsin and Iowa where their forefathers settled, and stars.
   “We've reached for the stars,” Dorsman said. “We're not only farmers, but other occupations. We have many and we've gone all over the world.”
   When a name was drawn for the quilt raffle, it went to Sondi. “It was so awesome,” she said.
“You'd think it would be rigged that I won, but the gentleman who drew my name was a minister.”
He was also a Harmelink.

King family is creative
    Carolyn R. Clark, Kingsley, Iowa, King Family Reunion writes, “We put out disposable cameras to get an assortment of pictures to put on disk and CDs so family members can buy them. The past reunion I had a Family Tree Throw Blanket made with grandparents names and wedding dates on CD. All of the names were embroidered on the blanket. We sold tickets and held a drawing. It was a huge success.
I also had a family calendar sample made for orders. We are putting together a family medical booklet and a family cookbook. I'm already embroidering a family tree picture now for the next reunion.”

Michael Jordan helps Curtis/Butler Family Reunion!
   Joan Waters, Charlotte Hall, Maryland, Curtis/Butler Family Reunion, was excited when she wrote, “Oh, we had a fantastic fundraiser selling tickets to a local basketball game, one of Michael Jordan's last games. We made over $950! A family member was able to buy tickets really cheap, months in advance of the game. We tacked on a few bucks and were still able to resell them at $20 below face value. Our planning committee divided the tickets and hit the streets. The pitch was that it was one of Michael’s last games with the Washington Wizards. The money goes entirely to the reunion. It paid all costs for family matriarchs and a disabled member, for banquet hall rental, DJ, nametags, goody bags, door prizes, youth essay awards.”

Raffles … Raffles … Raffles everywhere
Raffles to grow
   Clara Conner-Petty, Conner Family Reunion, from Toledo, Ohio, reported that they do a 50/50 raffle where half of the money goes to the family who will host the next reunion as their seed money. And the other half goes to the name drawn.

Strasser ingenuity
   The 2002 Strasser Family Reunion in Merrill, Wisconsin, did their first raffle to cover costs. Over 130 descendants of Gotffried and Catherine (Weixelbauer) Strasser attended from Wisconsin, Minnesota, Illinois, New Jersey and Washington.
In the past Strassers had an auction but sometimes there were so many items to auction it took up a good part of the day. Homemade items were hottest in the raffle. Some of the homemade big hits were bird feeders, birdhouses and wood benches (for lake viewing). Kids raffle items included a movie package with microwave popcorn, candy like jujus, 2-liter bottle of soda and a new or popular movie all in a big popcorn bowl. They made enough to put $200 in the bank for the next reunion. 
    Laurel Strasser Stine, Merrill, Wisconsin, reported “Reunions take so much planning but we are still getting thank yous in the mail, it is worth it. Seeing everyone reminiscing and enjoying themselves and the beautiful weather is wonderful.” 

Meanwhile, in Texas …
   Arliss Treybig, El Campo, Texas, writing about her Burt(t)schell Family Reunion.
Donna and Jack Bridwell, West Point, Texas, volunteered to take on several jobs. Donna happened to have an antique raffle ticket “hopper” and wanted an opportunity to use it. Therefore, the job of handling the raffle and silent auction fell to her by default. They did a great job of organizing both activities — from gathering items to displaying them. Their son Dusty made signs for the raffle and silent auction. Gayle Banschbach of Midland sold raffle tickets.

Pantry Pleasures - Generations of Home Cooking
by Joan Waters
    The Curtis/Butler Family cookbook fundraising project was a great success. The cookbook was dedicated to the memory of departed family members, and invites all to taste a bit of our family tradition.
    This collection of over 100 family favorites leaves you with a sense of the rich heritage instilled in the Curtis/Butler family to be passed from generation to generation. Well-sprinkled among the flavorful recipes, there are Scripture verses, and Quotable Quotes that many of us heard over the years, especially from family matriarch Annie Curtis (my mother). Our fondest memories would not be complete without a few pictures scattered throughout the cookbook. The Black Family Pledge, by Dr. Maya Angelou, is featured on the back cover.
    The Curtis and Butler families became forever entwined by the marriage of (my parents) Bernard Curtis and Annie V. Butler. Brief family descriptions are included and 1947 trivia, the year my parents married. Both families are deeply rooted in historic St. Mary's County, Maryland (about 40 miles south of Washington DC).
    This was the first fundraising project for our family. It was a long-distance project. My niece, Juanita Curtis Kelsaw, Indianapolis, Indiana, designed the cookbook cover and layout. My daughter Jill and I compiled and typed recipes, scanned photos and emailed everything to Juanita who sent the final project to the publisher. We raised $300 for our 2003 Family Reunion!
This is feedback we received about the cookbook.
   “...You and your family really did a fantastic job putting this together. I truly enjoyed reading the stories and the recipes are also great. I will be trying some of these for Thanksgiving... Thank you so much for inviting me to share your family memories. What an honor... Anyone who has the privilege to read your stories is truly blessed.”
   “I was very happy to see the Sour Cream Pound Cake recipe on page 95. It sounds so much like the pound cake my mother used to make for me every year on my birthday. I lost my mother 19 years ago, and have not had this cake since, because I did not have the recipe. I knew most of the ingredients, but did not know how to put them all together. It is so important to pass on family recipes...”
    One said: “... I just had to send you a “pat” on the back, a hug, a congratulations for completing your family recipe book. This is a beautiful book you and your family put together. I really enjoyed the stories. I particularly liked your story about you and your grandfather and your grandmothers “What Is This World Coming To,” it is an eye opener. I can tell there was a lot of love put into this book... By the way y’all forgot one thing in the recipe book ... PEACH COBBLER! I need a good recipe for peach cobbler.”
    A co-worker of mine was so excited to get her cookbook. She tried the recipe for Crusty Corn Casserole from Monica Gloster and loved it!! and brought me a sample to taste. She told me that tears came to her eyes as she read the stories and saw the pictures.

    From start to finish, the project took about four months. Most of the time was spent in getting recipes from family members (three months).
We solicited recipes, stories, pictures and advance orders from family members via mail and email. Since folks ordered up front, there was no money out of pocket.
My 14-year-old daughter and I typed recipes and stories, categorized them and emailed them to my niece. I scanned photos and emailed them along with the back cover poem, dedication page, etc. She formatted everything and submitted it to the publisher.
    We highly recommend Walters Cookbooks in MN. They were so helpful! They have cookbook kits to help put together a cookbook; www.custom-cookbooks.com.

About the author
Joan Curtis Waters lives and works in Southern Maryland, and calls herself a “Family-aholic.” She has been reunion coordinator for the Curtis/Butler Family since 1985, and spearheaded their family cookbook project. Joan is studying Communication at the College of Southern Maryland.

100-year-old recipes
    Four generations of the New Jersey-Pennsylvania area Buck Family met for the first time in recent memory near Lenoir in the western North Carolina mountains. The family's favorite recipes were one focus of the reunion. Family members compiled traditional family recipes going back to grandmother's day. Some of the favorites are 100 years old. The recipe booklet made an excellent reunion souvenir.
    The cookbook listed favorite foods of family members, most treasured ways to prepare foods and some tips about how to make the favorites. The 32-page book of Buck family foods contained some Pennslyvania Dutch favorites, seafood choices, breakfast dishes, and tasty desserts. Five generations of Bucks attended the reunion and all had comments about the book.
    Many were favorites of childhood, made by grandmothers, while others reflected fast food offerings of the present. The book also was a cultural indicator of the family backgrounds during the last century, the changing tastes of its members and the shifting culture of America.
    Many of the recipes recalled family stories and those who contributed them told family experiences about each. Cookbook editors were Ruth Buck Clark and Kathie Buck using recipes submitted by family members.
About the author
Forrest S. Clark is a regular contributor to our reunion information. He lives in Kissimmee, Florida, and is active with his 8th Air Force reunion.

Cookbook tips
    Joan Airey, Manitoba, Canada, reported that one Airey Family Reunion fundraising project was a cookbook and she shared these cookbook hints.

• Set the deadline a month before you really need recipes because some people will put it off to the last minute.
• Our cookbooks were professionally printed, which several of us paid for and were repaid when books sold.
• You could also pre-sell cookbooks for money to print them.
• Our 250 cookbooks sold out before the reunion was over.

Toomer souvenirs are tops
   The Toomers can inspire anyone creating comprehensive family reunion guides. Their 2000 family reunion souvenir journal begins with a letter from the mayor of Berlin, New Jersey, followed by a reunion program. Family history excerpts include details of how the family came to New Jersey, a slave deed detailing ancestors’ purchase and the story of how they got the Toomer name. Family biographies and a collage of these members provide a sense of history and accomplishment in the Toomer family. But there’s more, a guide to family members buried in the East Berlin Cemetery with a map of the plots and a two-page history of Toomer Family Reunions documents celebrations back to the 1960s. One of our favorites is the picture page street signs of Toomer Road in Pittsboro, North Carolina, and Perry, Georgia, and Toomer Avenue in West Berlin, New Jersey! The closing pages of the guide feature updates on births, deaths, graduations, marriages and other points of interest. Memorials for family members and ads help cover the costs. The final two pages list the living members of the Toomer family.

   That's an impressive book for any committee to produce, but the Toomers didn't stop there, they also produce Toomer Family Birthday Calendars. Each month has different pictures and facts about the family and, of course, the names of individuals born on each date. The calendar is a geyser of family knowledge and the planning committee deserves great credit for gathering the information along with compiling birthdays that probably encompass 75% or more of the calendar dates. 
Listen to a podcast about how the Toomers made their Family Birthday Calendar.

   These projects were used as fundraisers several different ways. The journal ad pages raised some of the money; calendars are sold at reunions. The price of calendars went up each of the three reunions they’ve done it. This year it will cost $15 which they’ve promoted in newsletters and will continue to promote at the reunion.
Reported by Shamele Jordan, Lindenwold NJ

   Eva Melton, Crestview, Florida, reported that with 60 people at their reunion they raised $1,200, though Melton thought that might be a bit too much fundraising (an interesting twist). They auctioned a beautiful quilt handmade by Melton’s mother. It was a big favorite and sold many raffle tickets. Everyone wanted it! One of Melton’s brothers brought a whiskey bottle filled with change. Everyone bought a chance to guess how much money was in the bottle. The winner donated the bottle to the reunion fund and it was auctioned to the highest bidder.
    Virginia E. Aitken, Havelock, North Carolina, says her Werdel Family Reunion charges a non-refundable registration fee, so that in the event of cancellation, incidentals (postage, paper, envelopes, copying fees, name tags, door prizes and table decorations) are covered. Their rates are $5 for one person, $10 per couple, and $15 for a family, regardless of how many members. There are NO complaints about fees.
    As an incentive for early registration, Werdels were given the option to send in half of the total amount due and pay the balance at the reunion. Many chose to pay half early, which was instrumental in establishing cash flow.
    A small amount was added to the price of the cocktail party, dinner, bus trip and t-shirts to cover incidental costs such as gratuity and tax required by the hotel, set-up and bartender fees if beverage consumption did not reach a certain dollar amount, and a VCR they rented to show family videos.

We found the following fundraising ideas on “The Dollar Stretcher” website, www.stretcher.com:

One family holds a silent auction for several family artifacts, such as photos of great-grandparents or special events from years ago, hats which belonged to an uncle or special family books. Some people bring their crafts, and even the kids bring things they’ve made. All proceeds go to a family college scholarship fund for interest-free loans to family members. One year a husband, brother and father participated in a 100+ mile bike ride and collected pledges for the scholarship fund. The fund has been going for years and has helped over one hundred children go to college.

Another self-supporting reunion stages an auction to raise money to rent the building they use. The things people bring (the sillier, the better) and the auction (the sillier the auctioneer, the better) are a lot of fun.

Barbara Black, Evadale, Texas, reported that most Black Family Reunions are financed by members donating food and drinks. Everyone pitches in and brings something for Sunday dinner. A few years ago, a niece started a raffle. Family members bring items which are spread on tables early Saturday. Tickets are 25¢ each or 5 for $1.00. Half of the ticket goes into a numbered bag corresponding to the number on the item. Winning tickets are drawn at specified times. Last year, the drawing took well over an hour; some people went away empty-handed, while others were overloaded. That money is earmarked for supplies (coffee, cups, etc.) for meals. Mementos of the reunion also are available for sale, with profits going to the reunion fund. Black’s daughter began a reunion calendar two years ago, using pictures from the family website at MyFamily.com, with profits going to the fund. Last year, Black’s son made cassette tapes of music played by family members over the years. A sister and her family had a singing group that produced an album, while others have made cassettes from time to time.

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