Family Reunions

FUN, FAMILY REUNIONS

Estes Park and Snow Mtn. Ranch (YMCA of the Rockies)

1-17 bedrooms, with kichen –full ammeneties, $4,000-8,000 per week for large groups.  Smaller groups around $500 (3 bd) to $900 (6 bd)

Activities:

                Challenge Courses                           Snowshoe Hikes               Yoga

                Climbing Wall                                     Photos by Dill                     Dog sledding*

                Campfire Rings                                  Swimming pool                 Playgrounds

                Craft & Design Center                    Basketball                           White Water Rafting

                Horseback Riding                             Mountain Biking               Tennis

                Tennis                                                   Archery                                                Zip Line

                Disc. Golf                                             Roller Skating                     Indoor Game Rooms

                Guided Hikes                                     Miniature Golf                  Fly fishing and Fishing

                Nordic Skiing

                                                                               

Aspen Grove Family Camp – near Provo, Utah

This is an expensive camp but very fun if you have the means.  It is an all-inclusive camp primarily for LDS families.  Rates go from infant $232 per week to adult $568 per week.  They also have a family lodge (26 people) for $1600.  I am not sure if this is per week or per day.  They have four two-story lodges, each containing eight bedrooms, five bathrooms, living room, sm. Kitchen and large loft.  Each lodge has six queen beds and thirteen twin beds.  Bedding is provided.  Maximum occupancy is 32 people with a minimum of 26 people during the summer months.  They provide lodging, meals, activities and educational programs for campers of all ages.  They do all the cooking and cleaning so families can spend time together.  They also host fun and energetic family activities.  They also have plans where you do your own cooking.  They also have individual campsites.

Some of the activities include volleyball, basketball, paintball, ropes course, crafts, pool, lectures, talent show, parachute flipping, Frisbee golf, obstacle course, sack racing, archery, wall climbing, family meetings, family history stories, just dance, hiking, crafts, watermelon eating contest, archery.

Large Groups of 50 or more – for an afternoon picnic

Parks

Reserve a nearby park, where you can host a potluck picnic or even bring your own picnic.  This type of Family Reunion is best for extended families of several generations.  You can organize games for the different age-groups, have blow-ups for the little ones.  You can have outdoor games such as “Capture the Flag” Three legged race, watermelon eating contest, obstacle course, basketball, volleyball, water balloon volleyball, water fights, frisbee golf  and just time to visit and take pictures!  It is best to center the reunion near the majority of family members with as few as possible having to travel far. 

HOME-BASED REUNIONS

Smaller family groups can spend a longer time together and you can base your reunion around one home or several where different family members can stay either in private accommodations  or with family members.  Then you can have day time activities away, such as water activity, a mountain , picnic, hiking, climbing, rapeling, caving, or zip line.  Families can also meet at the park for above activities, have a service project, family talent show, treasure hunt, scavenger hunt, family dance, amazing race, cooking contest (pizza making night) board games etc.

The above option works well when everyone helps!  Each family can be in charge of one activity, one dinner, one breakfast.  Also when teamed up with another family, one family (or couple) can cook and another family (couple) can clean up.  This takes the burden off the host family (families).  The assignments are based on the number of families.

Personal Experiences

My extended family has had a reunion every year since the 1940’s.  This was primarily because my mother’s family were immigrants who had left all their family behind in Europe.  As the children married and had children of their own, they met together once a year usually at someone’s home for a few hours on the 4^th of July holiday weekend.  Occasionally, we would have a pool at one of the homes but not always.  We always had lots of food, laughter, picture taking and fun.  Reunions don’t have to be complicated, but someone has to take charge and get everyone organized, send out invitations, set up tables, get ice, that sort of thing.

Later on, as the family got bigger with the next generation, we went to the park idea.

For my own family reunions, we have had several.  The first, we rented a three bedroom condo in Park City.  We were there for three days, everyone brought food and drink, games and stories of our year, missionary pictures.  ALWAYS TAKE PICTURES!

We have had more than two Christmas reunions.  These are harder because you have to work all the Christmas activities around being together.  We had a Christmas White Elephant game which was a lot of fun.  We also centered these reunions around our Christmas birthdays.  There were lots of things going on every day.   Our sons-in-law wrote a song to the tune of 12 days of Christmas with 12 Poopy Diapers to Change!  It was the hit of the reunion.

We have had two major summer reunions which were both great fun, making lots of memories and closer relationships.

Included in the activities were Chatfield Reservoir where we picnicked, had access to a boat where we went tubing, and other water games.  We went to the mountains one day where our son rigged up a zip line.  We had a service project which was a scavenger service.  We had a list of possible services and went around my neighborhood offering the homeowners a choice of services we would do for them.  We all had matching shirts and divided into three groups.  Another day, grandpa took everyone to the museum to see the Pirate exhibition.  Another day we went to the “airplane park” in Littleton where my kids grew up.  We had so much fun playing in the creek, riding the train, having a water fight with all the kids around Grandpa and Uncle Mike, exploring, and playing park games like “missionary tag” and capture the flag.  We had a picture day to record our being together, and a talent show around the campfire in the back yard.

This year, our reunion included the service project of dividing into three teams wearing specific color shirts.  Each team took $20.00 and went to find as many gifts for our three missionaries that were the same color as our shirts.  It was a race and the first team back home got a prize.  The gifts were then packed up and mailed to our missionaries.  This helped us include them in our reunion.  We also took a picture of each team to put in the box.  We also went rappelling this year in Castlewood Canyon. 

Other Options:

Some families travel to some great location such as the beach or a cruise, or visit an ancestral  home.  Whatever you decide to do, it must be within the families’ capabilities.  But do not let financial concerns hold you back from doing something.

1.        Make it accessible

2.       Make it convenient

3.       Don’t make it last too long 2-3 hours or 2-3 days

4.       Keep it simple

5.       Keep it fun

6.       Do it regularly

7.       Always take lots of pictures

8.       Create memories

To Print:

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