I'm not suggesting they eliminate it. Obviously there are some people who are interested. I just think if it's been years since you've last contacted someone then you probably don't care what's going on in their life. There are people from highschool I used to be friends with, but we grew apart and moved in different directions. I don't want to be mean, but if I haven't made the effort to stay in contact with them, their lives don't mean much to me.

I think what I'm trying to say is that you don't need to make an announcement to everyone and their mother because the important people in your life, and most likely the ones that will be sharing in your happiness will already know.

Also, I think the use of the term "commitment" or "marriage" should be up to the people making the announcement, not the editors of the paper/magazine/ whatever.

Exactly! I like the idea of knowing where, for example, the sisters who were seniors when I pledged are in their lives. We aren't close, but we're sisters and I would want to hear good news in their lives. Thanks to my alumni magazine, I've been able to reconnect with older sisters, hallmates, and friends who graduated earlier--I'm grateful for that opportunity!

After all, isn't that the point of an alumni magazine?

My college uses "marriage," as the vast majority of announcements I've seen are for heterosexual couples; I imagine the Massachusetts ruling will change the way such things are worded for same-sex unions.

It's never up to the individual couple. It's the heading of the section. You're obviously not going to put a marriage announcement next to a birth announcment, even if it's from the same year. It'll look unorganized to most people. You have the "general news" section, marriages/commitments/whatever you want to call it, births and deaths.

Also, I think many people ARE interested in seeing what happened to people they've lost contact with. I recently had my 5 year reunion and saw a couple of girls I hadn't seen/spoken with since graduation, and caught up on news. I found out that one girl, who transferred to another school was pregnant (she's married, btw). Sure enough, a few months later, I received the school's Old Girls magazine and news of her baby's birth was printed there. Also, you might want to find out info about people who were "school celebrities" (students who had high profile leadership positions) who were not in your year. For example, the Boarder Captain (boarding school prefect ("prefects", for those who might not know, are senior student leadership positions, usually with specific portfolios (Head Girl/Boy/Prefect, Games Captain, Arts Prefect, etc) elected by students in the spring (for the following academic year). Some positions may be appointed by faculty. In some schools, prefects are in office for two years (meaning that half the students are in grade 11 and the other half in grade 12). This system is common in private schools, especially those based on the UK system) who graduated the year before I did recently married.

Edited: Spelling mistake!!!

The alumni magazine for my college lists everything by class year, so you'll see something like:

1970s
Mom GeekyPenguin is pleased to announce her daughter has transferred to Marquette to continue the family tradition of a Jesuit education.

Mom's Roommate just moved to Texas where she is proud to announce she and her husband (Mr. Dude, Comm '77) are expecting a baby right in time for March Madness.

Rich FinanceGuy is now the head of Boring Company, Inc, based out of Chicago. He's made millions in the commodities market and will be endowing a scholarship for a boring finance guy like himself.

Suzie Soandso has recently passed away after a battle with cancer, and we mourn her loss. Please keep her family in your prayers.


We all like it better this way because my mom really doesn't give a crap about the class of 1930.

Is your mom hot?

-Rudey

She's pretty good looking for a mom - but I think my dad would fight you for her.

Plus she hates expensive jeans. ;)

You took this too far.

-Rudey
--TOO FAR!

So they list all news from grads (from the same year), no matter what it is? Like you'd have a birth annoucement right after a marriage announcement, for example?

Right, that was exactly the point of my example. It's actually done by decade.

my school does it similar to that, but by graduation year.

Now, look at your point from the complete opposite angle. How many "marriages" are not actually "commitments"... I could jot down a list that would be a country mile long, and that would be from just my town. I think "Commitment" is being to assuming, unfortunately.

Can we not mention things like marriage and committment? They make my head hurt thinking about them.

Neither Marriage nor committment, much like death and taxes is good for a man so it doesn't much matter how we announce it.

Ours is actually 2 seperate sections. We have one section where it goes year by year, and will list like Geeky Penguin's...

1971
Jenny A has taken a high-level position with Big Name Firm

1993
Bobby B has been elected to the school board of his town.

And then a seperate section that's lumped together, just under the title "Marriages" where it will list

Suzy Doozy (98) to Jack Smack (96)
Bill Hill (99) to Anne Mann (no year if not an alum)

etc.