Hello Members and Friends of The United States McCraw Family Association!
I hope you are all beginning to see signs of Spring where you live. I don't know about you, but to me it is such a relief to see more sun and milder temperatures!
We have a lot of news to share about the activities of USMFA and our reunion that is less than four months away. Time will fly by and it will be here before we know it.
Our 2020 Reunion will be held in Fairhope, Alabama from Friday, June 26 through Sunday, June 28, 2020. Our host, Phyllis Pittman Ledine has put together a terrific reunion. Our reunion is a great time to visit with family members from around the country, make new friends and connections with family members interested in our family genealogy, and share stories of your family with other descendants of William I. We will get updates on ongoing research to find the land that William settled on as well as our DNA project. Our Saturday night banquet will include a delicious menu and live music. Many people enjoy wearing their kilt or tartan to the Saturday night banquet. So, if you own one, be sure to bring it and wear it to the banquet.
To register for the reunion, click here 2020 Reunion to complete the registration process online at our website. If you prefer, I have attached the reunion registration form to this email. You may also register by completing the form and mailing it with your check to Tim McCraw at the address on the form.
Phyllis has made arrangements for those who are interested to meet for dinner on Thursday and Friday nights. If you are interested in one or both of these optional events, please let Phyllis know (phyllisledine@gmail.com) so that you will be added to the reservation. You will find more information about these locations at their websites and on the registration form.
Thursday night we will meet for dinner at McSharry's Irish Pub.
Now is a good time to make reservations for your hotel stay. The Holiday Inn Express on Greeno Road (US 98) will be the location of our meetings. A block of 10 rooms is being held for June 25, 26, and 27, 2020. The rooms are $109 for Thursday night and $139 each for Friday and Saturday nights. The room block code is RFC. Your Holiday Inn reservation is entirely separate from the Reunion registration and must be handled directly with the Fairhope Holiday Inn Express. The hotel phone number is 251-928-9191.
I have attached information from our Fall newsletter about the reunion, Fairhope and the surrounding area. There is plenty to do in the area so that you can extend your stay and make a vacation of it if you are able. Mobile, as well as the beautiful beaches of the Gulf are not far away.
If you haven't visited our website lately, you haven't visited at all. It has undergone a complete overhaul in the time since our last reunion, and our Webmaster, Scott McGraw, has redesigned the site and added many new features. Not only can you register for the reunion online, you may now join USMFA online at the website and/or renew your membership. Click here Join The USMFA! to join USMFA or renew your membership. I am also attaching the paper membership form to this email so that if you prefer, you may complete it and mail it to Tim McCraw with your check to the address on the form.
New for this reunion is The Carol McCraw Award of Merit. This award is designed to "honor family members who have made significant contributions to our association or to society." The first award will be presented to Carol McCraw posthumously at this summer's reunion. Scott has created a page on the website further describing the award and Carol's amazing contributions to our organization. As the primary researcher and author of It is McCraw not McGraw we owe her our gratitude for compiling a massive amount of information about our progenitor William 1 and his descendants in such a usable book. We will be presenting this award to other deserving family members every two years at our future reunions. Nominations for the 2022 award are open and you will find information about the award as well as the nominating form here Carol McCraw Award of Merit Be thinking of someone that you would like to honor in this way. It is never too soon to complete the nomination form.
By popular demand, we now have a USMFA store! Many people at the 2018 reunion said that they would like to purchase USMFA items. Your wish is our command! You may now purchase shirts, cups, travel mugs, can coolers, magnets, buttons, pillows and much more with the USMFA logo and the 2020 Reunion logo. Be sure to visit the website and our new store here USMFA Store
See you in Fairhope!
Janet Harvey
USMFA Secretary
