Look at All those Gaels!

Catch a glimpse of Saint Mary's College of California Summer Reunion Celebration.

September 13, 2023

By: Eleni Kvochak

On July 21st, campus was sitting pretty awaiting the arrival of countless gaels to come back home. Each guests came readily prepared for three days of action packed celebration! Behind the scenes, the Alumni Engagement team worked with gusto in the weeks leading up to Reunion Weekend.

As I work closely with Philip, I attend many planning meetings with him prior to the main events. In these meetings I record important notes, perhaps ask questions, or even give opinions.

Additionally, we created name tags for the Alumni with corresponding graduation year and donor tags. It was quite a specialized process, but we sprinkled fun into every minute. Expanding further, we created Swag bags for the alumni guests.

Throughout the weekend, I was in charge of the check-in process. We utilize the platform of GiveSmart to register walk-ins and a standard excel sheet to check off registered guests. When each guest was checked-in we offered a Swag bag and catchy pins to wear if they were called to do so. These pins stretched from "I met my best friend or spouse at Saint Mary's" to "My Kid is also a Gael." Throughout this process, it was imperative to stay calm. As large rushes arrived, I reminded the team to maintain their happy smiles and allow each guest to feel welcomed and at ease. Thus, bringing forth a hospitality hack!

Hospitality Hack: Be excited while greeting each and every guest! More often than not, your attitude will set the tone for their entire experience.

When people arrived, I made sure to be excited, welcome everyone back and engrave in brief conversation. Within these conversations, a plethora of connections were made. One guest new my mother and father, another expressed their pure love for Saint Mary’s, and one even stated she worked in the Alumni office during her time at the college. Reunion highlights the pride people have for this school. They were gifted life long friendships, memories, and lessons.

An alumni stated, “You girls be sure to soak up every single minute, I would not trade my experience for anything!” Throughout each interaction, I was reminded the utter importance of conversation. Within a simple dialogue, I learned the history of the college, listened to hilarious anecdotes, and remembered just why I too love Saint Mary’s so much. As each guest was checked-in and ready to enjoy the weekend, it was time to dance the night away under the beaming Chapel

lights.