I am still trying to keep everyone in the loop. I just got off the phone with Giselle and she will be making the arrangements with Carnival Cruise for August 9 Cruise to the Eastern Caribbean – Miami, Grand Turk, Half Moon Cay, Nassau & Miami.

By this weekend, Giselle will establish our cruise with Carnival and the handling of deposits and payments will be made directly to Carnival Cruise. Carnival establishes a direct relationship with each passenger and will provide additional information about the cruise periodically until the cruise date.

I know some people were concerned about the cruise being over a year away, but it gives us the best opportunity for prices. We will provide information on cruise insurance and suggest that it might be a way to alleviate concerns for a trip in advance. We also encourage you to request your vacation time from your employers at this stage. Most people understand family reunions and the advance planning time.

Once Giselle locks in our cruise this week, we will have 30 days to get the deposit to Carnival Cruise. We currently have about 24 rooms requested through the survey. Giselle is going to hold 40 rooms for our family reunion. So if you did not respond to the survey but still want to attend the cruise you have that option to send your deposit within 30 days. If you do not send it in within 30 days, you can still obtain one of the rooms, but the prices are subject to go up and you will have to pay the price at the time you make your deposit.

Right now, we need from those who responded to the survey, the official name and contact information for yourself and everyone traveling in your room.

For EVERY PASSENGER we need:

1. Full Legal Name as it appears on your Passport/Government ID:
2. Address
3. City/State/Zip
4. Telephone #
5. Email

Please send to BruceSmail2009@gmail.com

This weekend, look out for an email with further instructions on sending your deposits.

The date that most people selected was the August 9-14, 2010 Cruise. Please visit the Carnival Cruise link for more details on the specific cruise. Please note that Giselle works with a company that has a special relationship with Carnival and her prices are less than what is posted on the website.

We will be in touch regarding final pricing for the rooms selected in the survey.

Click this link for more details on the August 9th Cruise.

Carnival Cruise

Greetings Family,

As promised, the Planning Committee is announcing the details of the Thelemaque Family Reunion 2010. Giselle, Nanette, Simone, Louis, and I have met and researched possible venues for the family reunion. After considering the options, costs, and location, we decided that the best bang for our money is a cruise sailing from Miami, Florida.

Giselle has experience coordinating travel and specifically with cruises on Carnival Cruise Line. She has been able to acquire a special cruise rate which is somewhat lower that the public price for these cruises. I know that some people may be a little bit unsure of spending a few days on a cruise ship, but it is my understanding from seasoned cruise goers that you generally can’t tell you are on a ship. It is our hope that as many family members can join us on the first big Thelemaque Family Reunion. We have generations that have never met, so this is an excellent opportunity to reconnect the many ties that bind us all together.

We need this event to work. It can only work with your participation and involvement. The first big step is confirming the cruise. I designed a very quick online survey which should take less than 5 minutes to complete. We need everyone to complete the survey. While we have a done a decent job of getting many email addresses, I am sure we are missing family members. Please check with your family members and see if they received this email. If not, please send me their email so I can add them to the list and also send them a copy of the survey. You may also forward this email and ask them to click on the survey link. If anyone has problems getting to the survey, just send me a quick email at brucesmail2009@gmail.com and I will send you a direct link to your email address. You can also call me at 340.642.7776. The survey is due on Friday, June 19, 2009 by 5:00 pm.

The second big step is sending in a $25 deposit per person by July 9th. The rates are locked in and we have 30 days from the lock in date to make a deposit. As you will see in the survey, we have locked in rates for inside cabins and ocean view cabins on levels 1 & 2. While the most expensive option is $340 for a 5 day cruise, we are more than a year away and that averages out to about $30 a month for the next 12 months. Cruise rates are per person and based on double occupancy. In other words you and your roommate pay $340 each for a total of $680 for the cabin. Some people may be interested in suites and balcony cabins. If this is the case, please indicate that on the survey. The prices will be higher but it is still an option that could be included in the planning. Cruises also include all meals (not drinks) and activities on the cruise. You also need to cover travel to Miami and gratuities for the cruise. As a group we will have other benefits too. As soon as we can have a confirmation on the cruise choice and receive your deposits, more details will be provided.

The Thelemaque Family Reunion Blog will be a central source for our family reunion details. You may want to bookmark the site and go back often for updates. If you are familiar with RSS, you can set that up and it will automatically send updates to your email.

The Survey needs to be completed by June 19, 2009 at 5:00 pm. Please visit the Thelemaque Family Reunion Survey

You can also find out more information at Carnival Cruise Line

So Family, I hope you are able to join us in August 2010 for our FIRST THELEMAQUE FAMILY REUNION. I am excited that we are already at this stage of confirming a cruise. Let’s make this happen. We have waited a long time for it to happen. It is up to you now to select the cruise and join us in 2010. Also let me re-emphasize that as you select a cruise, remember you must indicate all the cruises that you are able to attend. This way we can get a better sense of the cruise that is best for most of the family. Look forward to working with you in the coming months. Please feel free to contact me or any of the planning committee members. If you are interested in helping the planning committee, please also let anyone of know so we can let you know the next planning meeting.

Today, I launched the Thelemaque Family Reunion Blog. We will be using this free service to send out announcements regarding the family reunion. Either bookmark this page or set up a RSS so you have automatic message to your email accounts.

It is my hope that this vehicle will give you an opportunity to keep up with the planning of the event as well as share your thoughts and comments. I look forward to a successful reunion.