2021 Membership Drive
Written by Galion Alumni Association Board   
Saturday, 20 February 2021

2021 Membership Drive 

2021 has arrived with a lot of uncertainty and unanswered questions.  This, of course, includes a lot of organizations such as schools, churches, and organizations like the Galion Alumni Association. Questions, such as where do we go from here and how does the future impact the efforts of our organization?  The most important issue for the Galion Alumni Association is finding younger Galion Alumni to take the reins of the organization by accepting to serve as officers and board members to guide a positive energy in providing support to the Galion City Schools, the Galion Community and Galion Alumni, past, present and future. The second issue is supporting the efforts to fund and build a Performing Arts Center (Auditorium) that is capable of providing an acceptable arena for the theater and music departments of the Galion City Schools.  When the time comes to move this project forward, it will require the efforts of many different groups, as this is a very large and ambitious project.  To do this, we need your support through the renewal of your membership in the Galion Alumni Association.  Your continued participation will be greatly appreciated.

Membership in 2020 was at 143 dues paying members, of which 88 are Lifetime Members.  There were no new Lifetime Memberships during 2020.  Most of our annual members are individuals or couples that maintain their memberships year after year.  We would like to encourage those members that are local to participate by attending the monthly meetings and becoming a member of the Board of Directors or participating in the activities of the Alumni Association.  There is always the opportunity for all to relay suggestions for activities that would appeal to you.  Alumni Association information and activity updates may be found either on the Galion Alumni Association website or Facebook page.

Galion Alumni Association

2020 Update

Activities during 2020 were severely curtailed due to the CIVID 19 restrictions. Fund raising efforts were curtailed as were the requests for project funds.

Income:

The Alumni Association did maintain the sale of 300 Club Tickets, but fell short of all tickets being sold.  For those not familiar with the 300 Club Ticket, it involves the sale of 300 tickets at $20.00 each.  At each home game during football and basketball seasons, two tickets are drawn to determine winners of $100.00 each.  Those tickets are then returned to the container and are eligible for future drawings during the season.  Due to COVID restrictions, there were no drawings held during the 2020 football season, but the drawings were started for the 2020/21 basketball season using a modified system to ensure that a total of thirty tickets were drawn.  Membership dues provided the other source for revenue for 2020. Total income for 2020 was $6853.86.

Expense:

Money was spent to promote the Association through an ad ($100.00) in the Drama Department program. A $250.00 donation was made to a sports travel fund.   Expense Items this year included $64.00 for Post Office Box fees and postage and $125.00 to maintain our Chamber of Commerce Membership for 2021, $2782.78 for 300 Club drawing winners and ticket printing costs. . Fees for our 2021 website hosting were $287.88.  Total expenses for year totaled $3609.66.

The Galion Alumni Association continues to be a participating member of the Connections Weekend Committee.   This Committee is responsible for the production of the Galion Connections Weekend which was to be held October 15-17, 2020, but was canceled due to the COVID 19 restrictions.  Plans for a Connections Weekend event have not been formulated for 2021.  The Alumni Association plays a large role in the Hall of Fame event and encourages the submission of nominations for Galion High School graduates that deserve recognition.  Nominations for the 2021 Hall of fame inductees are due by June 1, 2021.  The Connections Weekend Committee maintains a file of nominations submitted, but not selected from previous years for future consideration.  All of the Connections Weekend events are open to the public and are not restricted strictly to Alumni.  Please join us.

The Connections Weekend is intended to serve as a fund raising vehicle to provide funds for building a Performing Arts Center on the Galion City Schools Campus.  This is an extremely ambitious undertaking continues to be a priority project as this will be a multi-million dollar project and will require some large donors to step forward. Planning is in process for establishing a formal fund raising drive with the help of several 2019 Inductees to the Hall of Fame. 

You are encouraged to visit the Galion Alumni Association Facebook Page or the Galion Alumni Association website.   The Alumni Association Board generally meets once a  month unless there is a cancellation or rescheduling. The meetings are currently being held at Ralphie's in Galion, usually at 6:30 p.m., on the third Monday of the month.  All who wish to participate are cordially invited to attend.