Lutherhoma out….Sequoyah State Park in.

Dear Joneses:

Yesterday I received the new contract from Lutherhoma and was shocked to
find rate increases that I feel to be unaffordable. Camp Director John
Busch had assured me that the rate increases would be very modest, but I
guess his superiors overruled him. Since we have struggled over the years
to collect the $5 per person for the Saturday camp visit, I felt the new
rate of $11 for the Saturday session was over the top. Lutherhoma’s weekend
rate more than doubled… from $21 to $44. Therefore, at the risk of
ruffling a few feathers, I had to scramble to find a workable alternative
and destination for this year’s 45th Descendants of Ransom Jones Reunion.
At the upcoming event, we can discuss plans for future reunions, so I would
like everyone to come prepared with a suggestion or two on future locations.

For this year, I have booked the Cherokee Pavilion at Sequoyah State Park (8
miles east of Wagoner) for Saturday, August 20. The total charge for the
group for the weekend is $150 plus a refundable $100 cleaning deposit. Plan
on spending $4 for each person you bring age 5 and above. If our attendance
is good we can probably lower it to $3. We can have access to the building
from 7:30 a.m. until 11 p.m. The building is air conditioned and has an
attached screened-in area that should work well for overflow conditions.
The facility is 2400 square feet including the screened-in area. There are
55 chairs and 16 eight foot tables furnished. I suggest we all bring a
couple of lawn or folding chairs to finish out the requirement, as we have
had as many as 100 guests in past years. There is a food prep area
consisting of a counter some 10′ long with sink and cabinets. There is also
a residential type refrigerator. This means we need to bring ice chests to
keep the food until time to serve. Closer to time for the reunion we will
call for volunteers to bring extra ice, etc.

The Cherokee Pavilion is located some 200′ from the Fort Gibson Lake water’s
edge and there is a boat ramp nearby. Just outside the pavilion entrance is
a brand new state-of-the-art bath house with modern showers and handicap
accessible toilets. There are RV pads with electric and water available…
only a few feet away that rent for $25 per night through the headquarters
office. Some of you may wish to come down Friday night and park your rig,
and have access to your RV during the day for naps, etc…..or stay
overnight Saturday into Sunday to relax the next day at the park.

I have attached photos above, and will send a map of the park in a separate email.

From Sequoyah State Park

>Click here for larger version of the map<
Let’s make the upcoming reunion a great one and future ones even greater.
Thanks for your understanding and participation.
Larry (quite contrary) Briggs