Message from the International Executive Board
Chapter Anniversary Celebrations: The Ideal Opportunity for Renewed Alumnae Engagement The next time you look for ways to re-ignite the volunteer spirit in your Alpha Phi sisters, consider throwing a party – a chapter reunion party. Anniversary celebrations provide opportunities to re-engage chapter sisters who are “lost” or no longer involved and to rekindle friendships. Alpha Phi has recently highlighted some significant milestone anniversaries, including 100 years for Missouri (Omicron) and North Dakota (Pi) and 50 years for Oklahoma City (Delta Delta) and Maryland (Delta Zeta). But you needn’t wait until those major milestones; celebrate your chapter at 5, 10 and 25-year marks as well! How does one get started? Experienced planners suggest the reunion committee establish an alumnae outreach group early in the process. Pat Jones Stevens (Omicron-Missouri) suggests the group develop “era captains” – women who take responsibility to contact all alumnae from a four- or five-year time span nearest their collegiate years. With each era of the chapter under the direction of a specific captain, alumnae can contact their closest chapter sisters and then seek connections to less active alumnae through their original
contacts. Who was your big sister? Your little sister? Your roommate? Gradually, the list of alumnae contacts improves and the network expands. Pat cautions, “Be sure to give this process plenty of time. We started five years out!” Karen Scheffling Avore (Delta ZetaMaryland) suggests the reunion committee contact alumnae early and often through as many channels as possible, such as Facebook, LinkedIn, email, a reunion website, telephone and “Save the Date” reminders in regular mail. “Find several reliable, responsible volunteers to take on these tasks,” says Karen. “It was a lot of work, but the more volunteers (before and at the event) the better!” Sometimes all it takes is a phone call or email to re-engage, then those sisters contact other, less active alumnae with whom they are in touch. Shirley Clegg Dieker (Gamma Xi-Wichita State) advises, “You have their attention now, so any chance you get, include a list of alumnae for whom the committee no longer has contact information.” “After the reunion, the long-term benefits remain for years,” says Marcia Jones Lane (Omicron-Missouri). “We not only increased our giving, but we added volunteers to our house corporation board and committees. The renewed interest in the chapter benefited all.”
It’s never too soon to begin planning your chapter’s next reunion! To help you get started, visit alphaphi.org/alumnae/reunion to order the Alpha Phi Reunion Planning Guide at no charge. This helpful guide provides step-by-step instructions on location selection, programming, meal and hotel arrangements, and everything you need to get your reunion underway. For additional assistance, contact the Executive Office alumnae department at 847.316.8940 or alumnae@alphaphi.org.
Best Practices for Reunion Success Veteran reunion planners offer their advice on “best practices” to keep in mind as you and your sisters plan your next reunion.
Start early! A major milestone celebration may take three to five years to plan and execute, and a year or two for smaller time intervals. Engage the house corporation board / chapter property committee, local alumnae chapter, collegiate members and college / university officials immediately. Develop a vision of the celebration and a timeline for planning the event. Consider building a reunion around a rallying point such as a major house renovation or chapter room expansion. Break the work into logical groups, such as: communications (logo, advertising, newsletters), era (history, outreach), programs (program planning, speakers, flow), registration (registrations, statistics), retail (early sales of merchandise to raise funds, celebration merchandise sales), finance (budget, accounts payable/receivable) and hospitality (hotels, rentals, site management, catering). Recruit key alumnae to head up the committees. Develop “era captains” to help contact every alumna from the chapter from a four- or five-year timeframe. (This may take many months to complete, so begin early.) Contact the Executive Office alumnae department for their tools and suggestions, as well as connections to alumnae from other chapters who have held similar events. Plan a number of events over a weekend to allow alumnae to participate as their time and budgets permit. Keep the committee in regular communication using project management tools. Communicate frequently with the collegiate chapter, and engage them in the preparations from the very beginning of the project. Document plans, expenses, successes and lessons learned for the next reunion committee.
Spring 2012
Alpha Phi Quarterly
7