Photos from the Reunion

Group and candid photos from the reunion are available on cd.  For $20, you get pictures from the entire evening.

Print only the ones you want, for cents apiece, or post on blogs and Facebook.

Missed the signup for the Photo CD?  You can still order online via Paypal (see button in the right sidebar).

Questions: arsheffield@gmail.com

Details!

Lots of people are asking...my phone is ringing off the hook, my email is dinging left and right...
This info is on this site, but here it is all together at the top of the blog.

Friday--7:30, party room off the main bar on the first floor, Moody Gardens Hotel
Saturday--7:30, ballroom on the first floor, Moody Gardens Hotel

Wear what you want both nights. Some of us are dressing up on Saturday night, but don't feel like it's required.

To park--Pull into Moody Gardens, pass the hotel (watch the signs--do not go to the convention center), and there is parking right past the main entrance to the hotel as well as across the street from the main entrance (right by Schlitterbahn).

See you there!

What to Wear?

Several people have contacted me asking what to wear to the reunion. There is no real dress code. We're going to be in a nice hotel near the beach. That means you can go dressy if you want to match the hotel, or you can go with shorts to match the beach. In other words, wear what makes you comfortable.
I will be dressing up slightly on Saturday because I don't get to wear fancy clothes often, and it's fun! Sergio does not think dressing up is much fun, though, so I'm sure he'll wear jeans.
Does that help?

Moody Gardens from the air

Larry Gregory took this photo. I'm not sure what he was flying, but I'm betting it was probably old since he's the president of the Lone Star Flight Museum in Galveston.

I thought I'd post this photo since it shows the pyramids at Moody Gardens. You can see the airport in the foreground, then the pyramids, with Galveston and the Gulf of Mexico beyond. If you look very closely, you can see the new Causeway to the left of the pyramids.

Reunion Warm-up with Slide Effect

Join Pat Beadles and his band, Slide Effect, Thursday, July 22 from 9:00-1:00 at Marguerites in La Marque. Marguerites is located on FM 1764, 1 mile east of the Gulf Greyhound Park.

If you haven't heard the band, you can find pictures and reviews here:
 The Low-Down on Shakedown
 Slide Effect on Facebook

Reunion Photographs

We have a photographer who will be taking both group photos and candid photos at the reunion. Instead of charging $15.00 per 8 x 10 photo like other photographers, he will sell you a $20 CD with the group photo(s) and candids taken throughout the night.
I'm excited about the package he's offering because we usually don't have an option to purchase candid photos, and it's not always convenient to haul your own camera around all night. He will not copyright the photos, so you can have the photos you want printed the size you want at Walgreens, Walmart, or anyplace else you prefer for literally cents per photo.
I think it's a great price and will make it easy to have fun reunion photos without worrying about where you left your camera.

NEW--Online Registration and Payment

Thanks to a friend of mine who volunteered his time to help me learn how to set up Paypal for our reunion, we can now accept online registrations!
If you want to register online, all you need to do is hit the "Buy Now" button at the top right. You will be routed to the Paypal page, where you can either pay with Paypal if you are set up to do that or pay with your credit card. You do not need to fill out a separate registration page because Paypal will collect the information we need.
You can still pay by check or money order by sending your payment and registration form in the mail, too.
Either way you want to register, let us know if you have any questions: dickinsongators1985@gmail.com.

Register before July 19

Thanks to all of you who have already sent in your registrations!
A number of folk have mentioned to me that since they missed the early registration deadline, they are just going to pay at the door, which is only slightly more expensive than paying the regular price good through July 22. That is making me PANIC!!
Why?
We have to give Moody Gardens a dinner count by July 19. We plan to order a few extra dinners to accommodate the handful of people who really need to wait and pay the door due to travel or work issues. However, if we have 20 or 30 or 40 people show up and pay at the door, we will RUN OUT OF FOOD!! YIKES!!
There are other issues, too...like making name tags and burning copies of the directory, but I'm not as worried about those as I am about getting an accurate dinner count. I can't just order a bunch of extra dinners because that money will be directly out of my own fairly empty pockets.
So please, if you know you are coming to the reunion, register before July 19 so everyone will get enough to eat. If you have questions about registration, email me at dickinsongators1985@gmail.com or message me on Facebook.

What to do in Galveston

Those of us who live in Galveston County tend to take Galveston for granted. After all, it's in our backyards. A lot of us drive there every day for work...and then drive home again as quickly as we can.
It's easy to forget what a DESTINATION Galveston can be. Thousands of people drive in or fly in from all over the country to vacation here every year. What the heck do they do?
An obvious choice—they go to the beach. Galveston beaches are not what they were 25 years ago (and granted—they are not the beaches of Cozumel, either). Developers have brought in sand to extend beaches along the seawall, and there are more amenities now. Moody Gardens has the white-sand Palm Beach (which, incidentally, is free if you're staying at Moody Gardens). If you're looking for water without sand, Schlitterbahn has a Galveston location now right next to Moody Gardens.
Galveston is still a great place to eat. My current favorites are lined up on Post Office Street—Rudy and Pacos', Saltwater Grill, and the Gumbo Bar. For breakfast, there are the Sunflower Bakery and Mosquito Cafe (only open for breakfast on certain weekends) on 14th, or, if you can handle it, there is the Bronco Burrito at the Donut Shoppe on Broadway. The best authentic Mexican food we've had lately has been at Gordita's on Seawall between 7th and 8th streets (cash only).
The normal tourist attractions—the Moody Gardens pyramids, the Colonel Paddlewheel Boat, tours of Ashton Villa and Bishop's Palace—are often overlooked by the locals. They are fun, though, even if some of them are a bit pricey. One of the best places to visit is the Lone Star Flight Museum. Larry Gregory is president of the flight museum now, so he'll be glad to see this mention!
Then there is the shopping. Don't expect a mall or the old Eibands—they are gone. But the Strand still offers a wide variety of funky shops that are fun for vacation shopping.
If you don't want to spend a lot of money, one of my favorite things to do in Galveston is to drive around through side streets and alleys to see the interesting architecture. We have a lot of creative folks who live here, too, and you can see interesting gardens, including sights like the blue bottle tree in an alley near Kempner Park or the pieces of art carved from oak trees killed during Hurricane Ike (Ball Street has several).
I hope this helps those of you coming in from out of town—especially if you're bringing the whole family for a vacation—to plan what you're going to do while you're here. I can tell you, though, as a local, that we hardly ever take advantage of what's right here under our noses. I'm looking forward to the reunion, but I'm also looking forward to a mini-vacation. So who's up for Rudy and Pacos?

—Please comment! These are my suggestions of things to do, but you may have something way better in mind. Feel free to make suggestions!

Reserve Rooms Soon

We have a block of 10 rooms reserved for our reunion, and judging by the people emailing to ask for the reservations number at Moody Gardens, I think we will need quite a few more. However, until classmates have made reservations, we can't block more rooms.
I found out this weekend from a Moody Gardens employee that other groups are blocking 100+ rooms during the same time. That means we need to get our rooms reserved as soon as possible.
You do need a credit card to reserve a room, but nothing is billed until you actually spend the night. If you change your mind, there is a window of time to cancel your reservations, too.
The reservations number at Moody Gardens is 888-388-8484. Reservations have to be made by July 2 (if you can still get a room by then). Tell them you are with the Dickinson High School reunion because we have a reduced price.
Hope to see you there!

Class Directory—Be Creative If You Want

I had someone encounter problems working with the "official" directory form. I don't really care—and I doubt anyone else cares, either—if you use the "official" form. The form was just a starting point so we would have a directory of some kind.

I think it would be fantastic if everyone wanted to be creative and send a page of whatever they felt represented them for the directory. Not everyone likes being told to be creative, however, and those people are welcome to use the form.

If you want to do your own thing for your directory page, all I ask are these things:
1. Put your name on it so we aren't guessing whose page it is (although that might be kind of fun, come to think of it).
2. If you use artwork or photos, use a format that will keep the file size reasonable.
3. If you send it back electronically, send a Word document or PDF to dickinsongators1985@gmail.com.
4. If you prefer hard copy, send it to PO Box 1782, Dickinson, TX  77539. I will scan your page.
5. Be sure it all fits on one page.

Missing Classmates

Here's the updated list of missing classmates. Please help us locate everyone!
Missing Classmates List

Send Your Photos

Lana Blair-Jones is my new hero. She has volunteered to put together a slide show to run during the reunion, so dig out those old photos!
Actually, Lana is setting up 2 shows—a "then" show and a "now" show. Feel free to send old photos, new photos, or both.

To submit a photo:

1. scan photo and save it as a JPG
2. email the file as an attachment to DHS85Pictures@aol.com
3. in your email message, identify the people in the photo if possible
4. if you would like a copy of the slide show after the reunion, let Lana know in your email.

Reunion Registration

Whew! After months of fact-finding, budget preparing, address collecting, and decision making, we finally have prices and are ready to begin registration for the 25-year reunion!
The reunion will be the weekend of July 23–25, 2010, at Moody Gardens in Galveston. The Friday night mixer will be 7:30-midnight in the Garden Cay Room (immediately adjacent to the main bar) with hors d'hourves, billiards, and big-screen TVs. Saturday night will be a catered dinner with DJ and dancing in the Moody Ballroom from 7:30-midnight. We are hoping to add a slide show if we can find someone willing to put one together.

The pricing is as follows:
Both nights: $55 before May 31; $65 after May 31; $70 at the door
Friday night only: $30 before May 31; $40 after May 31 and at the door.

You can either print a registration form here:

Registration Form

OR
You can send your name, your guest's name, and your contact information along with a check or money order to:

Class of 1985 Reunion
P.O. Box 1782
Dickinson, TX 77539

Judging by the number of emails we have already received, this is going to be a great reunion. Hope to see you there!

Moody Gardens Hotel

We visited the facilities at Moody Gardens, and they are beautiful. We will have access to pool tables and the main bar from our private party room on Friday, July 23. On Saturday, we will be in the first floor ballrooms with a complete dinner, dance floor, cash bar, and DJ.

Garden Cay Room for Friday

Ballroom for Saturday night 

For those of you who are familiar with Galveston, it might be nice to post comments about fun things to do in Galveston, the best restaurants, etc. That way our classmates living out of town have an idea of what they shouldn't miss when they get here.

Be in the Class Directory

Whether you will be at the reunion or not, we want you in the class directory.

1. Here are the steps:
2. Go to the link below
3. Download the Word document
4. Fill out as much or as little as you want to share
5. Email the document to dickinsongators1985.gmail.com

Reunion Directory Form

People who preregister for the Saturday event will automatically receive a directory.
If you are not able to attend but would like a directory, please send $10 check or money order along with your name and mailing address to:

Class of 1985 Reunion
PO Box 1782
Dickinson, TX  77539

Rooms Available for Reunion

For those of you who want to extend our 25-year reunion to make it a mini-vacation or those of you who want to be able to enjoy the reunion without driving home after hours, here is information about rooms at Moody Gardens.
You will want to make reservations well ahead of time, as July is the high season in Galveston, and hotels book quickly. We currently have only 10 rooms reserved at Moody Gardens, but we can add to those once they are taken. Obviously, the earlier we book, the better chance we have of reserving the space.
All room reservations go through the hotel's direct reservations number: 1-888-388-8484.
Double queen rooms are $189 per night; Jacuzzi suites are $310; 1–2-bedroom VIP suites are $550–$850; and Presidential and Poolside suites are $650 and up. Reservations are held by credit card, although the charge will not be made until 48 hours prior to arrival, which is the deadline for cancellations. All rooms come with passes to Palm Beach and family activities.

If We Don't Invite Them, They Won't Come

The most important part of a class reunion is the class, the people—everyone, not just the people I hung out with or you hung out with or the ones who played sports or the ones who were in the band.
Everyone.
That's why it's so important that everyone helps track down classmates for the upcoming reunion.
The new Dickinson Alumni Association has helped us out a lot. They used our last class reunion address list and sent out postcards. For alumni whose cards were returned as undeliverable, they attempted to locate them through county appraisal district records in several counties. Therefore, we are starting with a list that is more accurate than any of our past address lists.
Of course, there are still inaccuracies. Several of the "missing" people are my friends on Facebook, so I know they can't really be missing.
Below is a link to the list of everyone who currently does not have a good address in our database as of today. If you can track any of these people down, please forward contact information to dickinsongators1985@gmail.com with "contact" in the subject line. All contact information will be kept confidential and used solely for alumni association and class reunion purposes.
Thank you ahead of time for all of your help!
Help find these people:
http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dg8m85cz_0cdswwdhb

Nothing Stays the Same

If you grew up in Dickinson ISD, don't expect to drive around and reminisce about your old schools. That's because you won't find them—except for the high school, and that will hardly be recognizable.
Dickinson has been on a building spree the past decade. Primary School (later changed to Barber Elementary) was rebuilt east of the high school two years ago, and the old buildings were torn down only this past month. McAdams opened a new campus off of Hughes Road last year. K.E. Little and Dunbar have both been torn down and rebuilt on their same sites. The only original school building still standing and in use from our school days is the high school.
If you haven't seen the high school in recent years, go to the web site and take a look. The blue mosaic squares on the front of the building are gone—in fact, the whole open area in front of the school was enclosed and is now a gorgeous 2-story entry with bright, open offices and a new library. The "new" science wing, which is now approaching 20 years old, was built in the open field between the field house and the band hall.
The new stadium sits behind the high school, as does the new field house. For several years, the Dickinson softball field was the swankiest in the area, and there is now a new baseball field, too. Even the tennis courts have been refurbished.
Of course, in addition to the schools we attended, there are several others in the district now, including 4 elementary schools that did not exist when we graduated!
It's a little sad sometimes that I can't show my kids where we played and went to school. On the other hand, it's good to see the district making progress and keeping up with changing times.

25-year Reunion at Moody Gardens

Save the date! Our 25-year reunion will be Saturday, July 24 at Moody Gardens on Galveston Island.
Moody Gardens is giving us an exceptionally good price, considering the size of the space and the amenities they offer. For those classmates traveling in from out of town, Galveston offers a range of hotels, including a hotel on site at Moody Gardens, and Galveston is a great vacation destination for anyone who wants to extend the reunion weekend into a family vacation.
We will be posting more information as details are nailed down, so mark the date on your calendar and keep checking back!
Link to Moody Gardens