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Family Reunion Planner Survival Tips
Dr. Laurence A. Basirico, professor of sociology at Elon
University, researches and teaches about family reunion relationships.
He is one of seven siblings, married, has three children, and
participates regularly in his family’s reunions. Featured on NPR’s “Talk
of the Nation” and in most major newspapers in the country, he is the
author of The Family Reunion Survival Guide: How To Avoid Problems
With Your Family Without Avoiding Your Family (http://www.identitypublishing.com).
Here are some “Relationship Boosters” from his book, especially
important for destination reunions.
Identify a reunion theme that
connects all family members. Shared experiences and memories
are a powerful source of unity for any group. Organize your reunion
around a theme that everyone in your family can relate to. Family
ancestry, a milestone such as a golden anniversary, or even a sports or
cultural event can serve as common thread. Be creative.
Plan activities that focus on the
commonalities that family members share. Activities that
reinvigorate cherished family moments strengthen bonds. A table
displaying old family photographs, a night of swapping stories about
colorful deceased relatives, photo albums or videos of key family
events, or games that require deep knowledge of the family’s past are
only a few ways to blend the family together.
Elicit input from everyone who is
going to attend about time, place, and activities. This gives
all the family members a sense of ownership for the reunion rather than
simply being an attendee. It makes the planning process an integral part
of the reunion, extending it, and getting everyone to interact, well
beyond the time that everyone spends together.
Consider enlisting the help of a
professional reunion planner. While every family member’s
reunion suggestions should be heard, a non-family member such as a
travel agent or cruise planner, can offer non-biased expertise about the
range of experiences suitable to a family’s particular interests. It
makes the planning more fair and avoids the possibility of plans made in
anyone’s self interest at the expense of others.
Recognize that there may be some
pre-reunion jitters and take steps to help curtail them. For
some, uncertainty about what to expect at the reunion, about how they
are remembered, about how people have changed, or about how they might
fit in can create some anxiety. Plan activities that allow everyone to
feel like an important part of the family and let people know beforehand
about these plans.
Develop some activities that
require that family members work together and to depend upon each other
to complete the task. Besides shared experiences, another way
to build unity is through interdependence. Regardless of peoples’
differences, completing a task together, such as planning a meal,
playing on the same team during a game, making a family skit, or working
together on any project creates a sense of accomplishment and
togetherness.
Don’t underestimate the
importance of planning, organization, and structure. The
research clearly indicates that successful family reunions don’t just
happen. A survey of readers of Reunions Magazine found that the highest
levels of satisfaction at the end of a reunion were reported by people
who said that their reunions were the most planned, structured, and
organized. Painstaking planning is proven to pay off!
With input from everyone, make
important decisions, rules and boundaries prior to the reunion.
All of us have lifestyles and daily living patterns that make sense in
our own adult lives and families, but these might be different from
other adults in the reuniting family. It’s essential that rules for
daily living be discussed and compromises be reached prior to the
reunion rather than during the reunion.
End of
article
Source:
ASTA Travelsense
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The above
information is presumed to be timely, but may not be up-to-date
and is subject to change without notice.
Information source:
Travelsense.org. an ASTA web site.
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