Age-related calculations are based on individuals with recorded birth and death dates. Due to the existence of incomplete date fields(e.g., a death date listed only as “1945” or “BEF 1860”), these calculations cannot be 100% accurate.
Determine interest of family members. Send out a family poll (by e-mail or by post) to gauge interest in a reunion, get an idea of how many people would attend, and find out what dates and locations would work best.
4 Months Before
Ask for help. You’ll need to find dependable and enthusiastic relatives who could take charge of:
Finding a park, beach or other outdoor location for the event.
Planning a menu, assigning dishes and other food items to each family. Arranging for extra cooking and/or grilling facilities. Or finding a caterer.
Decorations, invitations, and signs: Putting one person in charge of printed materials will help ensure a consistent theme for the event.
Activities and entertainment: An athletic relative might take charge of the volleyball net and provide a boom box with music.
Family history: Putting together a family tree is a great way to incorporate your heritage into the event. You might also consider creating a small family newspaper to highlight recent family events, special facts, and history.
Photography and/or video: You’ll want to record this event for posterity.
Cleanup: Solicit several folks for this massive task!
Research locations and facilities.
Research places that cater to a variety of interests, age levels, physical abilities, and financial resources.
Ocean or lakeside family parks are ideal; there are things to do on both water and on land — activities to keep kids busy and lounging opportunities on the beach for grown-ups.
Many vacation areas and state parks have a “destination manager” who can help you with the details of your reunion.
Finalize the date and location. Find out what amenities will be available: drinking water, swimming pool, grilling facilities, changing rooms, indoor space (in case of rain), picnic tables, etc.
Finalize plans for reunion favors, video, family history pamphlet, or T-shirts. Family members will want something to remember this grand occasion.
Ask an artistic family member to design a T-shirt, hat, sweatshirt, or other personalized clothing item.
Pull together resources for your family history or video.
If you decide to give out favors, disposable cameras and matchboxes are two budget-friendly options that can be personalized for your event.
3 Months Before
Come up with a reunion schedule, theme, and approximate cost per person.
Send invitations.
Include finalized times, locations, maps, driving directions, costs, and a schedule of events.
Include a sign-up option for specific activities, if necessary.
Include assignments for relatives who have volunteered to bring food or other items.
Include a request for photos and/or stories you would include in the family history or video.
Include an RSVP date, along with an e-mail address, phone number, or mailing address to which they can respond. Ask family members to provide their accommodation or arrival information, if appropriate.
Follow up with volunteers and dole out tasks as appropriate.
Schedule events and activities.
Secure professionals or locations for your activities. For example, reserve a softball field, hire tour guides or yoga instructors.
Purchase items you’ll need for any crafting activities.
Schedule and plan meals.
Create a list of all the meals you’ll be eating or the food you’ll need.
Assign one food item to each relative.
Contact restaurants to see if they’ll accommodate large groups and make reservations then if necessary.
2 Months Before
Start a list of those who have confirmed their attendance, where they’ll be staying, and when they’ll be arriving.
Reserve rental equipment such as a podium, microphone, tables, or chairs.
Confirm restaurant reservations and provide your latest guest estimate.
Make final purchases.
Craft supplies
Decorations
Favors, personalized T-shirts, disposable cameras, or other items you plan to give out at the reunion.
Other _____________________________
Order copies of family history or video.
1 Month Before
Confirm with relatives who are bringing food or other supplies.
Confirm meeting places.
Confirm activities.
Confirm sleeping accommodations.
2 Weeks Before
Contact restaurants with a final guest count if necessary.
Contact volunteers with specific tasks to confirm times, locations, and the final guest count.
Photographer/video
Activities coordinator
Decorations and signage
Meals
Review your final to-do list.
Buy last-minute decorations and supplies.
Create signs and banners.
Make arrangements to donate leftover food to a local shelter or food pantry.
2 Days Before
Review reunion minutiae with committees.
Pick up any rental equipment, like chairs, tables, etc.
Prepare final payments and tips for any professionals and help you’ve hired, like the caterer and wait staff. Put these together in separate envelopes so you can quickly hand them out as needed throughout the event. Keep in mind that you can send extra tips later if their performance was exceptional. Otherwise, a 10 to 15 percent tip is customary if it’s not included in their charge.
The Day Before
Set up and decorate.
Get some sleep!
Within 2 weeks of the event, you’ll need to:
Write thank-you notes to special attendees, relatives who donated time and money, and any other people who helped make your event a success.
Develop film. Be sure to get CDs made so you can upload photos to ofoto.com or shutterfly.com. This way other family members can purchase copies of your photos.
Donate or distribute leftover favors, decorations, family history pamphlets, etc.
Within 4 weeks of the event:
Follow up with videographer and photographer to find out when materials will be ready for distribution.
Send an e-mail or mass mailing to all who attended, summarizing the festivities, thanking them for attending, and telling them where they can purchase photos, videos, or any other follow-up items from your event.
Genealogy (from Greek: γενεά genea, “generation”; and λόγος logos, “knowledge”), also known as family history, is the study of families and the tracing of their lineages and history.
Family reunions are a good way for different generations and branches of a family to come together. A family reunion gives young people an opportunity to know relatives they might not otherwise meet. It gives them a chance to create experiences and memories that can last a lifetime. Help children and youth understand how they are related to each person they meet. For example, you might say, “This is your great-aunt Phyllis. She is your grandma’s older sister.”
Tell stories about your life and the lives of your ancestors. Young people need more than facts and dates. They need the facts and dates packaged in interesting, meaningful, and memorable ways. The best way to create an interest in family history is by telling young people stories about real people. Fill your stories with interesting information, humorous details, and unusual facts that will capture a young imagination. Sharing family stories doesn’t have to be a big event; make it a common occurrence around the dinner table, in the car, or at bedtime.
Encourage children to talk to their living relatives, especially the older ones. Hearing stories about what life was like in the past helps young people connect to the past. This connection brings generations together and establishes strong family bonds.
Expert Tip: Take your children with you as you visit with a relative and teach them how to talk comfortably with older people. Explain what is appropriate and what is not appropriate.
Children and teenagers can interview relatives and record the interviews on a video- or audiotape. Questions they could ask include:
◾Where did you grow up?
◾What were your parents like? Your siblings?
◾What do you remember about your grandparents?
◾Who were your friends?
◾What was school like for you?
◾What did you do for fun when you were a child? When you were a teenager?
◾What movies and songs did you like when you were young?
◾How did you meet your spouse?
◾What important lessons have you learned in your life?
For more information about conducting interviews, please refer to the lesson “How to Conduct Family History Interviews”. For a more detailed list of questions to ask a family member, please refer to “How to Conduct Family History Interviews,” and “How to Create a Personal History”.
A surname or family name is a name added to a given name. In many cases, a surname is a family name and many dictionaries define “surname” as a synonym of “family name”. In the western hemisphere, it is commonly synonymous with “last name”, since it is usually placed at the end of a person’s given name.
In most Hispanophone and Lusophone countries, two or more last names (or surnames) may be used. In China, Hungary, Japan, Korea, Madagascar, Nepal, Vietnam, parts of India and in many other East Asian countries, the family name is placed before a person’s given name.
The style of having both a family name (surname) and a given name (forename) is far from universal. In many countries, it is common for ordinary people to have only one name or mononym.
The concept of a “surname” is a relatively recent historical development, evolving from a medieval naming practice called a “byname”. Based on an individual’s occupation or area of residence, a byname would be used in situations where more than one person had the same name.
A given name (also known as a personal name, first name, forename, or Christian name) is a part of a person’s full nomenclature. It identifies a specific person, and differentiates that person from other members of a group, such as a family or clan, with whom that person shares a common surname. The term given name refers to the fact that the name is bestowed upon, or given to a child, usually by its parents, at or near the time of birth. This contrasts with a surname (also known as a family name, last name, or gentile name), which is normally inherited, and shared with other members of the child’s immediate family.
Given names are often used in a familiar and friendly manner in informal situations. In more formal situations the surname is more commonly used, unless it is necessary to distinguish between people with the same surname. The idioms “on a first-name basis” and “being on first-name terms” allude to the familiarity of addressing another by a given name.
