As we get closer to the Reunion date, there will be times when I will need to collect money.
My goal is to keep the costs to a minimum and to set up various options so that you can either be involved or not depending on your desires and availability of funds.
I know the reunion is not until 2024, but it takes some time and we are all dealing with unknowns. However, I will keep everyone up to date on all expenses and needs. I don't want to have a big debt at the end of this event and have to collect money. If for some reason, like another pandemic occurs, and we have to cancel it. The reunion fee is a very small cost for the reunion. Travel and lodging will likely be the biggest expense for most people. Make sure you purchase travel insurance, if that is a concern.
There will also be the following other costs. If there ends up being more, I will keep this list updated:
Reunion Fee - $25.00 per person This money will make up our general budget. This will be used handle administrative expenses, such as signs, ID Badges, swag bags, etc. This also represents a commitment on your part to attend. At the end of the reunion, any money left in the general budget will be split between all persons who paid the $25 fee and attended the reunion. If you do not attend the reunion, this money is forfeited.
Banquet Dinner - $62.00 Total cost per person - This covers our banquet room, tables, chairs, setup, teardown, cleanup and our dinner. Our room rate and complimentary hospitality rooms are based on the fact that people are going to eat and they established a minimum food and budget for us to get the rates we have.
Banquet Dinner Deposit - $30.00 per person - This will be collected by January 5th, 2024. The $30 deposit is non-refundable amount (to me as the organizer and you as the attendee). I have to turn this downpayment into the hotel. If you attend the reunion banquet dinner then it is used as a deposit toward the meal. If you do not attend the banquet dinner, this amount is forfeited.
Banquet Dinner Final - The Final Dinner Payment of $32.00/person (difference between the Total Banquet Cost and the Banquet Deposit) will be collected by March 5th, 2024.
Travel - This is on your own. Planes, trains or automobiles, however you plan to get here.
Hotel / RVPark - This is on your own. You will book your rooms and pay the hotel directly. We have a room rate in the block of rooms at the Inn at Opryland. If you book early enough you can get rooms for the reunion and also 2 days prior and 2 days after if there is availability at the time you book. The rooms will book fast in Nashville, so you don't want to wait too long to get this done. I will also provide some other hotel options which will be nearby. I am also going to work with our campers and see if we can get everyone or most everyone who plans to camp together. Work with me, before you book something. We intend to get a hospitality room at the primary hotel, but we want people to be able to get to it easily from other hotels if necessary.
Hospitality Snacks and Beverages - We will not be having snacks and beverages in the hospitality room. I took a survey of the group and based on the prices of drinks at the hotel, and the survey of our crew members indicated that more than 90% of you said no. If you want snacks and drinks, then keep them in your room and bring them down with you when you come to the hospitality suite.
Excursions - My plan is to schedule several group excursions over the time period of the reunion. If you don't want to participate on the excursions and avoid the cost, then this will be free time for you.
Ball Caps - these will be an additional cost and paid in advance if you want to purchase them.
I will take payment and orders until FEB 21st if you want the $18.50 price (there is a discount for the embroidery for orders over 50 hats).
I am placing the order for the hats on the Feb 22nd, So it is a firm deadline. We have to have time to get the hats ordered and embroidered to have them by the reunion.
Any hats ordered and paid for between Feb 21st and Mar 31st will be $20.50. We may or may not be able to have those by the reunion. If I don't have them by the reunion, then they will have to be sent to you, so there will be an additional shipping and handling charge and I don't know what that will be at this time.
Check out the Reunion Ball Caps - If you would like to see what the caps look like.
Order Ball Caps - Form to order ball caps
See Report of Ball Caps Ordered by Feb 21st - See the status of your order and who has sent payments
See Report of Ball Caps ordered between 2/21 and 3/21 - See the status of your order and who has sent payments
Pictures - We will have a photographer come in and take group and couples pictures.
Please see the Photography Page for more information about the pictures and cost.
When I collect money, I will do so in 4 different ways. Make sure you have one of these available prior to collecting. I have chosen these, because they are all very reliable and provide good tracking mechanisms.
Zelle - This is a bank-to-bank transfer tool. If you have access to your bank on line, there is a good chance they use Zelle as a way of making transfers to individuals. Check with your bank to see if you have it. In Zelle, you can send to my phone number - 615-202-7635
Checks - A little old style, but it works just fine. Make it out to Scott Vaden and send to my home address 1160 Cavaletti Cir W., Gallatin, TN. 37066
Venmo - You can setup a Venmo account at Venmo.com. My account is listed as @SDVaden. Last 4 digits of my phone number are 7635
Paypal - I have Paypal now setup so that it doesn't charge a fee. Make sure you use the "friends and family option" for all payments or else it will charge you a fee. My account is listed as @SDVaden. Or Use This Link
Item Cost
Reunion Fee per Person $25.00/Per
Banquet Dinner Deposit $30.00/Per
Banquet Dinner Final $32.00/Per
Reunion Ball Cap $20.50/Per
I believe in full transparency when it comes to money I collect from anyone for anything. I find it cuts down on many problems. Hopefully it also gives you a sense of security. You are putting your trust in me to handle your money properly, and I want to maintain that trust. Actually I find this to be the most time consuming part of handling a reunion, but as of yet, I have not figured a way around it. Because of this, I maintain several records of the funds collected and spent.
Receipt Log - When I receive your money, I try and log it as soon as possible so that you are aware I have received it. Sometimes checks can get lost in the mail or Venmo, Zelle and Paypal are not setup correctly, so this is a quick way for you to know whether I received your payments.
Total Payments Received - Once the money is logged it also shows up on this report. This gives a total amount of all money organized by attendee's name.
Within a day or two, I also update the Registration Report. This shows who is registered for the reunion and money they still owe for Reunion Fees, Banquets, Ball Caps and a total paid or due. This report just breaks down your payment due or paid by category. (There are also separate reports for Reunion Ball Caps. You can find that on the main Reunion Website page under the ball caps section. )
After this gets done, I also put the information into Quicken which I use to manage all my personal finances as well as the Batfish Account. So I have several records of funds and I ensure that all the balances are in agreement. This is why you will see some accounts with small balances like .48 cents, etc. I want everything to balance to the penny and I usually don't sleep well unless it does.
If you ever discover that something doesn't look right or there is a difference in my records and yours, contact me immediately and I will investigate and help us get it cleared up. Like I have said before, I don't want to deal with money once we get to the reunion. All this needs to be handled long before we get there.