Family Photo Tree
Number of People: 2
2010 Phil & Pat Hurzeler
We used CVS, the Internet Center, and the messenger again this year, which worked well.
We brought our own posterboard and pushpins to display the photos.
We also brought blank cds, envelopes and markers so we could make up souvenir cd's with all the photos to sell at the fundraising auction. We sold five of these for $5 apiece. Also included on the cd is the conferee list (nice to have in electronic form so you can search it).
In addition to the digital camera you of course need to bring a laptop computer. For software we downloaded Picasa (free) so we could label each person's name inside the picture.
The biggest obstacle is getting families together- the kids all scatter!
While taking pictures you need to take notes so that you have a name to go with each face on each picture. Big family groups, not wearing name tags, with differing last names, and with day-hop add-ons absent from the conferee list, can make this challenging.
This is a fun job- you get to meet everybody.
Some folks asked for emailed copies... maybe to make family Christmas cards.
Budget: $--- We would like to keep it under $120
In 2006 and 2008, Tim Barmann sent digital images via internet to the CVS in Portsmouth. The finished photos were returned to Star via Pel Runner service coordinated through the Lobby Store. This proved to the the most economical way with cost coming in under $70 including the Runner fees to the Lobby Store.
Below is the old version.
The goal is to create a collection of photos showing all conferees and family groups. Each photo should be labeled with the names of the people shown in the photo. These photos are continually added to a collection in the main lobby. The purpose is to provide shoalers an opportunity to associate names and faces. Starting EARLY, on the dock, on the boat, Saturday on the porch, etc. is important. Posting photos quickly is equally important. At the end of the conference, families may take their photo home.
A few weeks before the conference, get a list of the conferees from the Chairs so you can familiarize yourselves with this year’s attendees and have a check-off list for completed photos. This will allow to more accurately estimate how much paper you’ll need.
In 2003, the Family Photo Tree went digital. Prior to 2003, Polaroid instant photos were used and names were handwritten onto photos or labels. Now with digital photography, there are many ways to produce and display photos.
Early in the conference week (Saturday evening) make an announcement that pictures are being taken of family units (indicate where and when). You may wish to explain that it is fun and helpful to see who goes with whom. Feel free to be creative in your approach to announcements and to picture taking! Post your picture collection somewhere in the lobby where the Island staff approves. You can make the display look like a tree if you want. In the past, pictures have been placed on poster board or pinned to a mini quilt or attached to ribbons and hung to the right and left of door entrances entering the Snack Bar and Dining Room.
OPTIONAL: It has almost become a tradition to create and burn CD’s containing the family photos and other island scenes with the idea of placing them for sale at the All Star ll Art Auction with profits to go to the same funds as the Auction. Making a CD for the next year’s chairs is also helpful for identifying people whose names ring a bell but don’t bring to mind a face. For this reason it is also quite important to put the names of the people in the photos on the CD.
Family Photo Tree 2008: Tim Barmann
Mary Haslinger, 1990, C&C 1996 S & B 1997, K&D 2000, MELD 2002, T&I2004, B&J 2005, B&D 2009
