Hi everyone!

I’m trying to determine if there is interest in a cousins’ reunion! I have long wanted to get us all together, and the importance of this potential event takes on new significance since the passing of Mike F.

I have attached two documents - one is a survey to gauge interest and a second is a map of where we are all located currently.

I would be thrilled to hear back from all of you, even if it is just to say that ‘No, I’ll pass’. Due to the complexity of the travel and arrangements we are looking probably 2009.

Wouldn’t it be great to reconnect? And it wouldn’t be the same without you and your family.

Please note: I am only sending this to the immediate cousins and Aunt Sue and Uncle Leon. If you have grown children and would like me to contact them directly, please send me their contact info on your survey (name, address, email).

Also - I am missing an email for Pat Farrell !! and my email for John Marcotte, Dawn Heidebrink and Gary Nelson keep bouncing back. Does anyone have more up to date info? We can’t leave anyone out!!

Also, Renee can you coordinate info gathering for your dad? I’m assuming he does not have an email….like my mom.

Please, take a moment to fill out the survey and send it back to me. I would really appreciate it.
Thanks!

Julie Delgado (Schwab)

I am also missing Pat’s email address. I am not sure the email for Dawn or Gary works; if it is bouncing back on me it is going to our spam blocker without notifying me. I can see from some of Julie’s addresses that I am using old addresses for some Schwab cousins also.

I was thinking along the same lines re a family reunion, and mentioned to at least some of the Farrells that we would make sure to invite them to our daughter Maggie’s wedding. She is getting married on the 4th of July, 2009, in an informal style wedding at one of the parks in Hennepin County.

When Joanna got married we only invited the Aunts & Uncles, but would be happy to extend the invitation to a larger gathering. The Marcotte cousins can be very fun to party with…so this is definitely a possibility for us. If we want to have an event that is not wedding-centered, if we could arrange a gathering either directly before or after, it would make it more likely that my West Coast siblings would be able to attend.

I know of two possible sites nearby…there is a MN state campground an hour north of the cities that rents out two large group campsites…one that holds 300 and the other that houses 150. Each have a dining hall, individual cabins with bunks and tables and a couple of handicap-accessible cabins. There is a swimming beach and other camping amenities. You can reserve the site one year in advance and the sites go fast, but the the entire site rents out for around $150 / $300 per day. The second site is more posh. It is a retreat center owned by Thrivent. located about 2-1/2 hours north of the cities. It has a variety of accommodation…..cabins and motel rooms.

Some of the duplex cabins hold 14 per side, for a total of 24 per building; others are family style end there are single as well as suite hotel rooms. I think they are very reasonable. Once you rent a room or cabin, the entire 750 acres is available for recreation…there is volleyball, tennis, soccer, basketball & golf, there is a swimming beach, canoes & tubes, there are hiking trails, a trunk full of board games….a coupe of large hot tubs…you name it they’ve got it. The only additional recreational charges are if you want to rent a golf car, a mountain bike, or take a canoe or kayak on a float trip.

I am open to going elsewhere, but for us it would definitely have to be after the wedding. Since I have some many siblings in CA, I think logistics for our family would be easiest if it was either in Minnesota or in California, but they can tell you what their thoughts are.

Mary Marcotte