To the Editor:
I would like to acknowledge the great towns-people and vendors in Winter Park and Fraser on helping our family reunion of 48 people (all ages), do a road rally “scavenger hunt” on July 13th. Without a sense of camaraderie on the vender’s part, we would never have had so much fun and great stories to tell for years to come. It was a celebration of big anniversaries and many landmark birthdays. We started the planning for our scavenger hunt in March 2018 and used google maps and MapQuest to get the names of famous landmarks and items we could make clues about. Six teams of 3–4 adults each, and 3 kids, ages 4 to 16, really had fun. It was a lot of work ahead of time- with all 6 teams having a separate set of clues and routings. The online site Pinterest® also helped with creative ideas. It lasted 2.5 hrs. (and yes, it did rain that afternoon a bit); It was never meant as a race, but rather a way to accumulate points. The family all got into it, asking perfect strangers for autographs, landmarks and information. A special thanks to the owners and employees of Murdoch’s Hardware, Charlie’s Frozen Treat Shop, The Village at Winter Park resort, Goodies Ice Cream, Randi’s Irish Pub, Frazer Public Library and Town Hall staff, Hernando’s Pizza Pub, Winter Park Visitor Center, and others. The funniest things were the 15-second videos. Things like the teams singing Gene Kelly’s well-known song, “Singing in the Rain” with an umbrella open over team members heads, were a hit! Needless to say, those younger than 35 years, did not even know what that was about. The Winter Park Lodging Company with the Trailhead Lodges also provided great accommodations! A rousing night of family jeopardy also created lots of team competition. We have many good people to be thankful for, and wanted to let you all know that we are!
Sue Malloy – Vail, Iowa
