State of the Reunion 1st Qtr. 2024

If you did not get to Grand Rapids in 2023 you missed another great reunion. The Amway Grand provided us with a beautiful venue and exceptional service. The Devos Center served a tasty meal at a very reasonable price. This is a destination that I think everyone would go back to again and again. Our final attendance numbers were 750 down from 807 that was registered. That is not unusual and happens almost every year. Our guys have every intention of attending but sometime life gets in the way.

We originally had 2 hotels to choose from for 2025 but the hotel in Little Rock notified us of an error in their promised capacity that forced adding a second hotel a block away. So that left us with Tulsa as the only choice. Some members wanted to add Las Vegas to the choice but it was too late in the process to do that. It takes two years to send out Requests for proposals, decide who has the best to offer and is the best fit for us, cull the choices down to 2-3 to choose from and take it to the membership for a vote. Tulsa has much to offer and from what I have seen it will be a good choice. More info on 2025 will be published in coming issues once we sign contracts.

There are always questions as to why we choose the sites for reunions. I need to cover some of the basic requirements we must consider. First, are there enough rooms to secure and at the right price. Parking cost is a big consideration and sometimes that alone can be a reason to be eliminated, that has happened. Our contracts include a minimum number of guest room nights consumed and is the basis for all our concessions. That determines the size and number of our meeting rooms and if we reach the contracted number, they are comped, if we do not, we must pay a rental fee. There is a minimum food and beverage dollar amount that we must meet, if we do not, we pay a penalty. If we do not sell a certain amount of beverages at all our bars, we pay a fee. There are always service charges, and we can often negotiate that. This is only a small sample of requirements that must be considered and determines the location we choose depending on what we can negotiate. We pay for audio /visual services for each meeting room and the banquet. This almost always requires a certain amount of back and forth to get the best price. This is not the full cost but plays a large role in determining registration fees and what members pay out of pocket at the hotel.

In the past 3 years COVID has affected our attendance and the hotels gave us a lot of freedom to not make our minimums. A $100 registration fee still did not cover the actual cost, so we subsidized that cost with a transfer of money into the reunion account to encourage members to attend. That subsidy is not sustainable and has been reevaluated for 2024. Our costs are very much affected by inflation, just as we are in our everyday lives. Registration for 2024 will be $120. This still isn’t the full cost of the reunion, but we want to continue to make the cost as affordable as possible for everyone.
 
For 2024 Omaha Nebraska was chosen last year. Hotel reservation:
Hotel: Hilton, Omaha 1001 Cass Street Omaha, NE 68102

Dates: September 2,2024-September 8,2024

Room rate: $137 per night +taxes

Room reservations by phone: 402-998-3400 or 1-888-943-2768

Room reservations on line: https://book.passkey.com/e/50691621
Code: ARMOR / 11th ACVVC

Registration fee: $120 per person

Scooter Rental: Mobility Omaha- 402-804-8668, On line: www.mobility.plus.com/Omaha/