McDonald Clan Weight Loss Challenge!

The McDonald Clan Weight Loss Challenge is designed to increase your physical activity, improve your eating habits, and lose the pounds, all while competing for a monetary prize. The challenge begins on Friday, January 1, 2010, and will end on Thursday, July 1, 2010, the day before the reunion starts.

Here’s how it all works:

Participants record their starting weight and starting measurements (specific directions will be given on how to do that to those who enter the competition). Those numbers are then reported to an independent party who serves as the competition's official recordkeeper. In addition to reporting those baseline numbers, you will keep a record of progress for yourself. Weigh-ins will take place every other Friday, beginning January 15, 2010, with your first weigh-in.

A percentage calculation of over-all weight loss will be used to determine the winner. Ultimately, participants will be on their honor when reporting weigh-in and measurement totals. The calculation will be figured to the 100th percent. In the case of a tie, the number of inches lost and will be factored in. For example Jasper’s weight is 220, Gertrude’s weight is 200. If Jasper lost 40 pounds, he lost 18.18% of his total body weight. If Gertrude lost 40 pounds, she lost 20.00% of her total body weight. So, for Jasper to have the same weight loss percentage as Gertrude, he would have to loose 44 pounds. For someone weighing 140 pounds, they would need to loose 28 pounds to hit 20.00%.

All numbers are to be reported via phone or e-mail to Lisa Curtis, (916) 875-4070 or CurtisL@saccounty.net. She is a health educator and fitness expert for Sacramento County who has agreed to confidentially keep all records, and complete the necessary calculations to determine the winners. She will distribute two progress reports approximately 6 weeks apart so all participants can view each other’s progress in the form of percentage totals.

Participants must register by Friday, January 15, 2010. The entrance fee is $50.00 per person, due on the first day of the reunion, Friday, July 2nd, 2010. The winner will be announced on Saturday morning, July 3rd. Prizes are based on anticipated participants and subject to change according to final entries:

1st place $600
2nd place $200
3rd place $100
4th place $50
"100 Percenter" Award $50 (highest participation in reporting their bi-weekly numbers)

For those wishing to participate or who have additional questions, please send Karen an email (kornerkutter@hotmail.com) and she will send you additional information and forms to help you in your weight loss and to officially enter you in the competition. We hope we get a lot of participation, after all who doesn't want to look good for the reunion?

Friday July 2nd Catered Dinner

On Friday, July 2nd we will be treated to a meal by Heritage Peaks Catering. The reunion officially begins at 3:30 p.m., with dinner served at 6:00 p.m. It's a chance to relax after your family's journey to Albion.

The meal will include:

Beef and vegetable lasagna
Tri color vegetable pasta salad
Twice baked bacon potatoes
Flake layer dinner rolls
Salad bar service
Fresh fruit
Apple, orange and grape juice, & milk

Come hungry! No need to worry about setting up or doing dishes, its all taken care of.

Additional Accommodation Information

Continuing the theme of last month’s post, the kitchen and bathroom facilities at Campus Grove are first rate, much like what one would find at any newer hotel. Each room has a bathroom sink, and easy access to a toilet; additionally the first floor rooms have showers in them, while the second floor rooms share four private showers accessible through the main hallway. One first floor bathroom and one first floor room and attached bathroom are ADA accessible. There are eleven toilets and eight shower stalls at Miller Hall. Please check the floor plan for specific details. Remember you will be responsible to bring your own linens (towels, bedding, and pillows) and toiletry items.

In the May 2009 post we assigned each family the responsibility for one meal. The kitchen has two ovens, two dishwashers, a large refrigerator, a large two basin sink, and a full set of dishware along with various pots, pans, and cooking utensils. If you need a specific kitchen apparatus to prepare your meal please plan to bring it with you. For an overview of the kitchen and bathrooms be sure to view the photo gallery on the Campus Grove website.

It is everyone's responsibility to keep Miller Hall clean and tidy during our stay, and to police the area before we check out on Monday morning.

Sleeping Accommodations

A large part of the appeal of Campus Grove was the sleeping accommodations. The fifteen dorm rooms and large third floor gameroom at Miller Hall can comfortably sleep 80+ people. The Glen and Elizabeth McDonald clan currently includes around ninety individuals from roughly 25 families; after speaking with the Campus Grove owners and seeing the space ourselves, we can assure there is enough room at the inn. While room assignments will not be made until all registrations have been received, it is clear that each room will likely have more than one family sharing the space during the reunion.

We would invite you to take a look at the layout of Miller Hall to get an idea of the sleeping quarters. If your family is interested in camping on the grass outside the hall with a tent or RV, this can be done as well. Please let us know if you would like to do this. Each family will also be responsible for bringing their own linens - bedding or sleeping bags, pillows, towels, and washcloths.

The Reunion Registration Form will have a few questions about sleeping accommodations and any special requests or needs your family might have. Lastly, please let us know if your family will be attending the reunion but not staying at Miller Hall; note however that this will not lessen the reunion registration fee for your family.

Family History Program Redux

The work of gathering photographs and documents for the Family History Program on Sunday July 4th continues. While in Idaho last month, I scanned over 150 items to potentially use in the video presentation. Thank you to Scott & Nan, Brent & Nancy, Jay & Darla, John & Shelley Thomas, and Troy & Stacy Hamilton for letting me look through their family scrapbooks and records. I know there still is additional material out there, so please refer to the March 2009 post for more info about the project.

The second phase of the program is to ask each family unit to send me ten to fifteen photographs that document their family. The images should reflect the history of the family and their varied activities and interests. Please do not only select studio portraits, include things like family camping trips, graduations, Church events, etc. Each picture does not have to show all family members either. Get together for a Family Home Evening and select your favorite images. For those families with married children, remember your children are selecting pictures of their family as well, so let’s try and keep the overlap to a minimum.

Once you’ve selected the images, I would request that you send me two things, the digitized copies of the photographs and caption information about each photograph. If you need help digitizing or scanning your images, ask the younger members of your family – they may be more technologically savvy and can assist. If you do not have the capability to do the scanning yourself, places like Walgreens, Rite Aid, and Kinkos can assist you with doing this. Please have the photographs scanned at the following settings if possible - 24-bit color, 300 DPI, and in a TIFF file format. Of course if the photographs are already digital images, then the task is much easier.

Please also spend the time to include a write-up about each image. Nothing too long or extravagant, just answer the basic who, what, when, where, and why questions for each image. This will prove important in the future. As an archivist I can tell you nothing is more frustrating than having an amazing photograph with no descriptive information. Once you have all the images and their captions ready, send it all to me on a CD or DVD.

Our mailing address is:

Dylan and Karen McDonald
2421 36th Street
Sacramento, CA 95817

These images will be compiled into a digital scrapbook DVD, along with a DVD video about the Glen and Elizabeth McDonald, and a copy of both will be given to each family at the end of the reunion. I hope that this will be a great way for us all to reminisce and get better acquainted with each other. The deadline to submit material is March 1, 2010.

One Year and Counting!!!

Yesterday, Karen and I visited Campus Grove with Stacy and Taylor Hamilton to review firsthand the accomodations and surroundings. Wow - we are even more excited about next year's reunion. The four of us walked through nearly every room at Miller Hall and spent time reviewing the furnishings of the bedrooms, kitchen, game room, and bathrooms. The place is even more spacious than the photographs on the website suggest. The surrounding grounds offer horseshoe pits, tetherball courts, a sand volleyball pit, fire spits, picnic benches, a hot tub, and an above ground pool. The campus' original sidewalks are still in place providing plenty of paths for riding bicycles.

The town of Albion is nestled in picturesque small valley at the base of Mount Harrison just a fifteen minute drive from Interstate 84. Although the population is only around three hundred, there are several cafes, small markets, gas stations, and the Marsh Creek Inn (a bed and breakfast). For larger shopping needs, the town of Burley, with a Walmart, Albertsons, and numerous fast-food resturants, is only a twenty minute drive away.

After driving through the town we headed up Mount Harrison to Lake Cleveland, an old glacial lake. The drive to the lake is only about thirty minutes and the view of the valley below is stunning. There were still snow banks just off the paved road. Although we were unable to drive all the way to the lake, as the Forest Service does not open the upper road until the July 4th weekend, we have been told by locals it is worth the trip up.

One year and counting. Hope to see you all during next year's Fourth of July weekend!

Reunion Photos

A professional photographer will be on hand to take group and family photographs as part of the reunion registration fee. The photographs taken will include the entire group, extended families, individual families, the four brothers and spouses, all Glen and Elizabeth's grandchildren, all Glen and Elizabeth's great grandchildren, etc, with all of us in our reunion t-shirts. Each family will then recieve a CD with all the images taken by the photographer.

The photo session will take place either on Friday, July 2nd or Saturday, July 3rd. Our photographer, Steve Mendoza, will also be available for more formal family photographs if you so request. There will be space on the registration form to request having additional photographs taken. Steve photographed the Clark Family Reunion at Brent and Nancy's home in the summer of 2007 (see above photograph) and everyone was happy with his work. Please visit his D/C Photography website for more information about Steve.

Got Food?

What's a family reunion without good food! To keep the costs low and spread the fun, each of the four brothers and their families will be assigned a meal. These meal assignments include the planning, purchase, preparation and set-up, as well as the clean-up afterward. The kitchen at Campus Grove is limited, although it has two ovens, two dishwashers, pots, pans, and dishes. However, depending on the type of meal you wish to serve, come prepared with the proper dishware and utensils. Please also note that there is only one refrigerator, so storing all the perishable food will require families to bring along coolers and ice. There are grocery stores in the Burley area as well, so you need not travel to Idaho having packed a large meal (unless you really want to). The meals will be self-serve, as the entire family will not be able to fit in the dinning area; some will choose to eat outside or in the third floor game room. For now plan to serve at least 50 adults and 25 children (although final numbers will not be determined until next May).

From the list below you will notice that the Friday dinner and all breakfast meals will be taken care of as part of the registration fee. The brothers and their spouses should please take the lead (or delegate) in making sure their family food assignment is met.

Friday dinner: Catered

Saturday breakfast: Continental
Saturday lunch: Kim and Diane McDonald Family
Saturday dinner: Scott and Nan McDonald Family

Sunday breakfast: Continental
Sunday lunch: Jay and Darla McDonald Family
Sunday dinner: Brent and Nancy McDonald Family

Monday breakfast: Continental

Albion Area Outdoor Attractions

If your family wishes to extend their vacation beyond the family reunion, below is a list of attractions in the Albion area that might be of interest. All are within a 40 mile drive of Albion; please follow the links for more details. Be sure to bring your hiking shoes, mountain bikes, swimming suits, camping and fishing gear, binoculars, and cameras to enjoy these great outdoor activities.

City of Rocks National Reserve
This unique geologic area became a landmark in 1843 for California-bound emigrants. They left wagon ruts across the landscape and their signatures in axle grease on Register Rock, Camp Rock and many others. A few granite pinnacles and monoliths are in excess of sixty stories tall and 2.5 billion years old. The smooth granite faces offer exceptional rock climbing. This unique area offers scenic walks near the historic California Trail and opportunities for wildlife watching, photography, world-class technical rock climbing, hiking, mountain biking, picnicking and camping.

Pomerelle Resort
The triple chairlift operates for scenic chairlift rides to the top of the mountain for a 50-mile panoramic view of the Magic Valley and beyond. Enjoy hiking, nature walks and mountain biking. Pomerelle is equipped to accommodate mountain bikes on the chairlift for your biking adventure. Our outdoor grill will tempt you with "Mountain Man" hamburgers, "Woody's Big Dogs" and ice-cold refreshments. Volleyball and horseshoe pits are also available.

Durfee Hot Springs
Durfee Hot Springs is a naturally heated pool with no added chemicals. The clean and soothing hot spring, and beautiful scenery is just outside the town of Almo.

Lake Cleveland
At 8,200-foot elevation, with 29 campsites on a gorgeous lake in a mountain cirque, one of two that exist south of the Snake River. The west end has a wheelchair-accessible trail to the lake. For an interesting side trip, take the turn to Mount Harrison lookout, and get a great view of the surrounding country from the tall tower. Stable for equestrian use; enjoy birdwatching, canoeing, fishing, and hiking.

Massacre Rocks State Park
Situated on the Snake River, just off Interstate 86, exit 28, Massacre Rocks State Park is open year round and covers approximately 1,000 acres. The park has a 40 unit campground with water and electrical hookups, 4 sleeping cabins, restroom buildings with hot showers, a visitor center, access to the Oregon Trail wagon ruts, over 12K of hiking trails with maps, a self guided nature trail, and a boat launching area. Summers are full of fun to be had fishing, boating, hiking, exploring, and bicycling. Weekend campfire programs are held from Memorial Day through Labor Day, Canoes and Kayaks are available to rent for fun on the river, and special events are routinely held. Bird watching is exceptional here as well, with over 200 species identified annually. If botany is your bag, we have about 300 species of plants for your enjoyment.

Family History Program

During the reunion, on Sunday, July 4th a special program about the Glen and Elizabeth McDonald family will be shown. Produced in collaboration with Rainwater Productions, the video program will include snippets of old home movies, rarely seen photographs, and interviews with Jay, Kim, Brent, and Scott on their memories of growing up on 7th Street in Nampa. Copies of the DVD will be presented to each family at the conclusion of the reunion.

In order to make the presentation as comprehensive as possible I am asking for your help in gathering any photos and video/audio recordings of Glen and Elizabeth that your family might have - slides, Super 8 film, anything. I will be visiting Nampa, Idaho (late June, early July) and Salt Lake City, Utah (mid-August) this summer and hope to view any material collected. I only need to scan the original photographs, and am not asking to keep them. Moving images and audio transfers can be done fairly cheaply to digital formats. Please contact me directly about any material you might have and we can make arrangements to copy them (dylanjmcdonald@hotmail.com). Your assistance is critical in making this reunion project work - any leads on who may have suitable material is appreciated.

What's It Gonna Cost?

One of the first questions we've been asked is how much is the registration for the reunion going to be? While we do not have exact numbers, and likely won't for several months, we do want to give everyone a ballpark figure so that they can begin saving. We've determined that the most equitable way to spread the costs and encourage participation is to charge by families, not by individuals. A family is defined as parents and their non-married children. So registration fees depend on a couple of factors.

First, the final cost will depend on the number of families that attend - the more that register, the lower the cost for everyone involved. This gives us all another reason to motivate those who may be on the fence about participating.

Second, the finalized agenda of activities, meals, and souvenirs for the three-day event is unknown right now. With the event still 16 months out, prices for rentals and food are not yet set.

We are making every effort to keep the costs down and hope to make this as affordable as possible. The selection of Campus Grove offers a central location for most everyone, and a facility with accommodations for the entire group. This alone will greatly keep costs down for everyone, particularly when compared to other reunion sites available.

We anticipate registration to be between $250.00 and $300.00 per family. Each family will have to determine their travel costs separately. If your family starts this March, saving or putting away $21.50 a month, it will add up to $300 by April 15, 2010 – the date registration will be due.

Get your kids involved early on and schedule family activities that support preparing for the family reunion. Have a “family reunion garage sale” or lemonade stand in the summer. Perhaps even sell a few things on eBay. Take the family over to a neighbor's house for some yard work with all the proceeds going to the reunion fund. Maybe host a car wash one Saturday. There are a lot of ideas and a lot of time to help get financially ready for the reunion, so all you have to think about is having a good time with your relatives!

Contact Information Needed

Keeping track of all 26 families in the Glen and Elizabeth McDonald family is quite a task. We have been compiling a list of family contact information and need your help in getting it all complete. Please send to dylanjmcdonald@hotmail.com the following information for each member of your family:

Name
Mailing Address
Home Phone
Cell Phone
Email Address
Birthday
Anniversary (if applicable)

We will use this list to keep everyone updated about reunion plans. Email addresses will be added to the websites notification list, so any time a new post is made, you will receive an email informing you of it. The list will also be made available upon request and given out at the reunion. The contact information will not be posted on this website.

Save the Date Reminder

An official announcement about the upcoming reunion is on its way. Your family will be receiving a "Save the Date" postcard in the mail in the coming week. Please share it with all the members of your family and begin plans to attend.

In the coming months we will post more information on the location for the reunion and the activities planned. In brief, our gathering will be at the Campus Grove in Albion, Idaho. The site is a former college campus, Albion State Normal School, midway between Boise and Salt Lake City. The teacher's college closed in 1951 and sat vacant for many years until purchased in 2007. The new owners have begun remodeling the campus and turned it into an event center to host family gatherings, weddings, and reunions. You can visit their website at www.albioncampusgrove.com.