Family reunions are a great way for a family to have fun and, more importantly, to bring the extended family closer together. They are also an excellent opportunity for family members involved in the family business to reflect on the family’s values and to create a stronger bond between them, which will eventually benefit their business.
Most family reunions are held once a year. They bring together the surviving great-grandparents, grandparents, parents, siblings and first-, second-, third-, and fourth-degree cousins for an entire day of fun and frolic.
Every family has its own special way of celebrating its family reunion. Most have programs and talent shows that showcase the hidden talents of family members. But do you know what part of the program has the most benefits for family members involved in a family business? Believe it or not, it's the games that they play at the family reunion.
Games are a fun way to get to know one another in the spirit of friendly competition. The most effective games are the ones that revolve around family lore because this strongly drives home the point that "we all belong to the same family."
For instance, you can have each family prepare a funny play depicting a typical day at the family business or portray how grandpa and grandma started out in the family business. This can have some hilarious results, especially when young children try to imitate the antics and idiosyncrasies of their aunts, uncles or grandparents. They can also re-create some of the most meaningful events in the history of the family business.
A favorite game for the younger family members is the "My Favorite Thing" game where participants stand in front of the group and hold up their favorite thing that relates to the family. They then explain why that is their favorite thing by citing what it means to them and their family.
At one family reunion, one of the grandsons held up an old army picture of his grandfather and explained how proud he was that the old man had fought during World War II and how that inspired him to join the armed forces. Then, one of his uncles held up a small lapel pin depicting an American flag. The uncle said it was his favorite thing because his immigrant father, a house painter, used to give out these lapel pins to everyone who hired him. Those jobs helped feed the family during their hard times. The uncle said the lapel pin always reminded him of how much his father sacrificed for them and how hard work can eventually lead to success.
There's also the question-and-answer family lore game where everyone can participate and try to outdo each other in answering questions about the family based on certain categories. For example, there can be a series of framed pictures of ancestors and the question is "whose picture is this?"
There can be a series of questions about memorable moments in the family with questions such as "What were the first words of Uncle Fred when Junior was born?" or "Why did the school principal call Aunt June when Jenny was 12 years old?"
There can also be a series of questions about family rules with questions such as "When was David allowed to drive the family car?" or "How old was Aunt Bessie when she was allowed to date?"
Families can create their own unique games revolving around family traditions, rules, secrets, values and the like. The main thing is that the games are geared towards family bonding.
In these instances, the family reunion succeeds not only in strengthening the bonds that family members share but also in making everyone aware of the rich family history. These family reunions bring out some interesting and poignant stories about the family which can serve as the basis for the family’s written history.
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