Welcome to the John B Nelson Family from Ironwood

Dear Nelson Family,

Before you know it, June 27 will be here when the Nelson family will gather at Chanticleer Inn in Eagle River for their reunion. The excitement is building!! We look forward to renewing our friendship and spending some time together at this beautiful resort. I’m sending this e-mail to those who have already made a reservation, as well as those who may consider at the last minute to come. Please do. Chanticleer still has plenty of rooms available. Call them at 1-800-752-9193 to make your reservation. Some have even decided to come earlier so they have more time to enjoy the resort. Consider that, too.

Here is a tentative schedule, but feel free to suggest changes that would add to the enjoyment of our family.

Friday, June 27

It’s so much fun to be around the parking lot in the afternoon as people begin to arrive. The welcome hugs are too numerous to count. We’ll have supper in the dining room (order off of menu, charge to your room) After supper we’ll meet in the gathering room to test out a few of the snacks that people usually bring, and then each family will share how their life has been going. Also, it would be nice if you would share a special memory of one of our past reunions.

This year we would like to set up in the gathering room, a memorabilia table for the whole weekend where we can have on display photos or photo albums, scrapbooks, genealogy info or any other treasures that would be of interest to our family. You are most welcome to bring your treasures to put on display.

Saturday, June 28

Although Chanticleer no longer serves breakfasts, they are planning to serve breakfast for our family. In terms of a count, I have told them that all who have registered will come for breakfast. If you do not plan to come for breakfast, please let me know so I can change the count I have given to Chanticleer. The count affects their staffing, ordering of food, etc. Our food committee (Dianne, Rosemary, and Kathy) has arranged with Chanticleer to provide breakfast options (charged to your room) of cereal, eggs, or pancakes.

Morning and afternoon activities are still in the planning phase. At our last reunion, Meredith, Russell, Steve and Rosemary agreed to serve on the Activity Committee and they would very much welcome your suggestions. And, if you would be willing to volunteer to help with any of these items, it would be very much appreciated. Just to throw out a few ideas, here are some to think about:

1. Morning or afternoon coffee at a designated place when people can visit and enjoy one another. Also, this could be a time to go over old pictures.

2. Bring along a recipe to share, and a time will be set when the recipe exchange can take place.

3. Go on a pontoon, boat, or Pirate Ship ride. See: www.pirates-hideaway.com

4. Go to the new nearby miniature golf course for some fun, and maybe even a contest???

5. Join a group to explore the shopping in Eagle River and possibly have lunch in town.

6. Have an intergenerational scavenger/treasure hunt, egg toss, water balloon toss, etc.

7. Play bingo.

8. Brian will bring his projector and share pictures of past reunions. If you have old pictures on a jump drive, a CD, or your laptop, bring them along and we can include them at a time set to review old pictures. Also, you would enjoy going to the family website he has developed at www.jbnelsonfamily.com.

9. Some might want to go on a morning walk before breakfast.

We know that you want free time to just enjoy the beauty of Chanticleer, but we do want to have some times when we are interacting and enjoying one another. So, we look for your advice, so we don’t over structure or under structure.

We are on our own for lunch, and we have really enjoyed the Beer Garden for a brat or hamburger and watching the boats go by.

In the evening we’ll have supper in the dining room (order off menu, charge to your room). After supper we’ll meet in the gathering room. What we will do is still in the planning phase. We might use the time to review old reunion pictures projected on the screen, play board games, enjoy some skits, funny stories, or jokes if anyone is inclined to offer their talent for that. Suggestions are welcome!!

Sunday, June 29

After breakfast in the dining room, we’ll have a morning worship service. I’m kind of leaning that this will be quite informal but to focus on how much God and family mean to us. At this time we’ll have a special remembrance for Lucille and Arnold and Ruth who have passed on to be with our Heavenly Father. Let me know if you’d be willing to help with this service.

After the worship service, we’ll gather for the traditional group photo. Torrey is willing to take the picture but he could use a helper to enlist cooperation from everyone in posing for the photo. We’ll do a photo of the whole group, and then a photo of each generation.

For the rest of the morning and the afternoon, we’ll possibly have some of the activities listed above.

After supper in the dining room, we’ll meet in the gathering room for our traditional “white elephant” exchange. So, please bring a wrapped white elephant that you feel will generate some competition and good laughs. Depending on time and interest, we’ll gather for some board games. Please bring a board game that you’d like to use to involve others and to teach them how to play.

Monday, June 30

We’ll have breakfast in the dining room, pack up, and say our “good-byes”. That’s always the tough, but a touching part of this memorable event. Until we meet again!!

Looking forward to your suggestions. Feel free to give me a call or send an e-mail.

Dean

608-332-2403 (cell)

Hi Nelson Family Relatives,
Before your calendar gets filled up for 2008, be sure to reserve Friday, June 27 - Monday, June 30, 2008 for the Nelson Family Reunion at Chanticleer Inn in Eagle River, WI. I received in today's mail from Jake Alward
,

owner of Chanticleer, a computer print out of the rooms and condos reserved for us for that time period. This is "evidence" to confirm the reservation and should avoid any double booking. Jake has reserved for us all the rooms and condos that we used this year. When you make your reservation, be sure to say it is with the Nelson Family Reunion, and reservations will be made on a first come first served basis for your choice of lodging arrangements.

Thanks for Steve and Amy Lewison for checking out "The Grand Lodge and Water Park of America" in Minneapolis. Here is what Steve wrote in an e-mail to me. "In summary "The Grand Lodge" is NOT a likely candidate since lodging rates add up to twice that of Chanticleer ($179/night) plus the expense of a family meeting room restricted to catered food. (These costs likely exceed savings on the need for rental cars.)...I really like our reunions at Chanticleer. For sake of future options, I will continue to tune into resort options that may offer us a "rooster room" gathering solution for future generations - a focal gathering point for the kids and active people (pool, water-park...), less travel from a major airport, and better handicap access."

As we agreed at our family meeting, a better way to handle evening meal preferences will be for people to order off the menu. Late in 2007 we'll firm up a package price for breakfasts after our committee (Rosemary, Dianne, & Kathy H.) has outlined the breakfast menu preferences and submitted them to Jake for a package price.

I had asked Jake if we will be able to get the 2007 preseason lodging prices for the 2008 reunion. Since lodging prices have not yet been set for that time period, he is not willing to make such a commitment at this time.

I have verbal commitment from Jake that we can have the Conference Room for the weekend, and I'll try to get that is writing.

Volunteers for the Activity/Skit Committee are: Meredith, Russell, Steve, and Rosemary. It's nice when each year we can have something new going on like this year we arranged for the pontoon boat ride. So, we look forward to some new ideas and plans from this committee. Let me know if you would like to join this group and help them with the planning to make it the most fun reunion ever!!

Other Nelson News:
As far as I know, everyone made it home safely after this year's reunion, and I'm so thankful for that.

Congratulations to Russ and Patty Linville on the birth of their son, Ryan Pate Linville, born 7/5/06. Update your Nelson family records accordingly.

Thanks to those who sent me corrections and updates to the genealogy report and/or the family address spreadsheet. By the way, Esther and I will have a new e-mail address as of the afternoon of August 3, 2006. It will be: deanesther@tds.net

Special thanks to Jean and Clarice for donating the funds from the sale of the remaining Nelson Family Cookbooks. This provides us with a fund of $130 to be used for postage and other expenses in planning our reunions!! I'll be exploring with Torrey the use of some of those funds for his cost for film and processing the reunion picture and the possibility of mailing it to you. You'll find the 2002 and 2004 pictures on the website he made for that purpose, http://nelson.apecamp.com/, and hopefully the 2006 pictures will be there soon.

Hope all of you have been well and keeping comfortable during this hot weather. Questions and/or suggestions are always welcome!!

Dean
608-824-0427
608-332-2403

No.	Date	Facility	Location	Number attended. Please advise.	Were you there?
1	July Advise 1955	Little Girl's Point	Lake Superior, Ironwood, MI
2	July Advise 1962	Little Girl's Point	Lake Superior, Ironwood, MI
3	July Advise 1968	Richards Resort	Eagle River, WI
4	June 20-23, 1980	Chanticleer Inn	Eagle River, WI
5	June 18-20, 1982	Chanticleer Inn	Eagle River, WI
6	June Advise , 1984	Chanticleer Inn	Eagle River, WI
7	June Advise ,1986	Chanticleer Inn	Eagle River, WI
8	June Advise,1988	Chanticleer Inn	Eagle River, WI
9	June 22-24, 1990	Chanticleer Inn	Eagle River, WI
10	June 19-22, 1992	Chanticleer Inn	Eagle River, WI
11	July 15-18, 1994	Lakewoods Resort	Cable, WI
12	July 12-15, 1996	Sugar Loaf Resort	Cedar, MI
13	July 10-13, 1998	Indianhead Resort	Ironwood, MI
14	July 7-10, 2000	Black River Lodge	Ironwood, MI
15	July 12-15, 2002	Black River Lodge	Ironwood, MI
16	June 25-28, 2004	Chanticleer Inn	Eagle River, WI
17	June 16-19, 2006	Chanticleer Inn	Eagle River, WI	49
18	Friday, June 27 - Monday, June 30, 2008	Chanticleer Inn	Eagle River, WI