October 2014
Hey Cuz!
Greetings from the Washington, D.C. Crew, your hosts for the Downing Family Reunion 2015! This will be an UNFORGETTABLE experience! We have a tremendous reunion planned for you— so in the words of D.C.’s own Marvin Gaye - Let’s Get It On!
First, here are the basic facts; then we will share all of the event details with you:
Reunion Date and Location:
Event: Downing Family Reunion - 2015
October 2014: Information Arrives!
Reunion Registration – CLICK HERE
Date: Wednesday, July 8 - Sunday, July 12, 2015
Location: The Residence Inn (by Marriott) National Harbor
192 Waterfront St
National Harbor, MD 20745
(Oxon Hill, MD)
(301) 749-4755
Hotel Reservation (Downing Group Rate) – CLICK HERE
The National Harbor (http://nationalharbor.com/) is an awesome waterfront resort destination nestled along the Potomac River at the southern tip of Maryland, overlooking northern Virginia and Washington, D.C.!
Hotel Information:
The host hotel for the Family Reunion is the Residence Inn (by Marriott) National Harbor. We have negotiated a room rate of $159.00 per night plus tax (Regular price - $369 per night). This room rate is well below the standard rate for any hotel located in the National Harbor.
Additionally, each suite includes:
− Daily, full buffet breakfast for each room guests
− Free internet access
− Fully equipped kitchen, with a full sized refrigerator, sink, cook top with oven. This is a bonus if you would like to purchase food items and prepare them in our room.
On-site parking is $13.00 per day.
This hotel will sell out so please click below or call now to make your reservations. We have a limited block of rooms and can only be given more rooms if the given rooms are reserved.
HOTEL RESERVATION – CLICK HERE
or
Make your hotel reservations under the ‘Downing Family Reunion’
By calling the hotel directly:
1-301-749-4755 or
1-800-331-3131
Travel:
AIRPORT(s) - The hotel does not provide airport shuttle service.Reagan National Airport – (DCA)
7.8 miles South of the Hotel / Baltimore/Washington International – (BWI)
37.5 miles North east of the Hotel / Dulles International – (IAD)
36 miles North west of the Hotel
SuperShuttle
(800) BLUE-VAN (800-258-3826)
http://www.supershuttle.com / GO The Airport Shuttle
800-776-0323
http://www.theairportshuttle.com/
TRAIN - 6 miles South of the Hotel
AMTRAK / Alexandria, VA (ALX) / 1-800-USA-RAIL
(1-800-872-7245)
www.Amtrak.com
CAR – Exit 2A off of Interstate 95 / 495; next to Woodrow Wilson Bridge in MD across from VA/DC
The Residence Inn
National Harbor / 192 Waterfront St
National Harbor, MD 20745
(Oxon Hill) / (301) 749-4755
Hotel Reservation – Click Here
Reunion Cost:Reunion Registration – CLICK HERE
Ages 10 and older: $150.00 per person
($175.00 after May 15, 2015)
Ages 3-9: $125.00 per person (The Boat alone requires FULL price ages 3 & Over ($135))
($175.00 after May 15, 2015)
Ages 2 and under: FREE
Downing Elders: FREE – Registration costs covered by the hosts for:
Bedellmus Downing (Uncle Dellmus), Richmond Downing (Uncle Billy), Leamond Downing (Uncle Blue), and Evelyn Lillard (Aunt Tene Baby).
Full payment must be received by May 15, 2015, if not, the reunion costs for any adult or child will be $175.00. This price is the true costs of the reunion per person. However, the Maryland Crew has worked diligently to offset the true cost of the reunion so that everyone can attend and enjoy a wonderful time together!
Payment Options:
1. “Obama Special” – Those who participated in the 2014 Family Reunion and paid
early, received a one-time special discount on the 2015 reunion price (option closed).
2. Pay in full before May 15, 2015.
3. Pay in three (3) installments:
· 1st Installment Due: December 1, 2014
· 2nd Installment Due: March 15, 2015
· 3rd Installment Due: May 15, 2015
4. Pay $175.00 in full after May 15, 2015
Payment Options:
Pay Online – We are proud to announce that we have a new and convenient way of paying for the reunion! Payments are now being accepted online on our Downing Family Reunion, 2015 website through PayPal! Just click on the payment link above and follow the on-screen instructions!
REGISTER for the REUNION and PAY NOW – CLICK HERE
Pay by money order (Please Do Not Send Checks) – Make your money order payable to: the Downing Family Reunion. Please remember to keep the other portion of your money order as your receipt. Reunion Registration (Print & Mail) Form – CLICK HERE
Mail your money order and registration form to:
Tawnya and Daron Fullwood
913 Jennings Mill Drive
Bowie, Maryland 20721
Your Downing Family Reunion, 2015 Package Includes:
Private Yacht rental forDowning Family Banquet / Maryland Crab Feast
& Fish Fry / Chartered Bus Transportation
Thursday & Friday
DJ / White House Tour / Venue rentals and
set up materials
National Harbor Shops,
Dining & Entertainment / Wednesday – “Meet and Greet” Food & Beverages / Maryland Live! Casino
Smithsonian Museum Tour / Thursday – Hospitality Suite
Food & Beverages / Arundel Mills Mall
National Monuments Visit / Friday – Family “Social Hour”
Food & Beverages / Dave & Busters
Arcade /Restaurant
T-shirt / Souvenir Bag / Souvenirs
WELCOME WEDNESDAY: July 8th Hey Cuz!
Wed. July 8th / EVENT / NOTESMorning / Breakfast (Hotel Provided) / Residence Inn
Midday / Six Flags America Theme Park (On your own) / Upper Marlboro, MD
Late Afternoon / Reunion Begins – Meet & Greet / Hospitality Suite
Evening / Pool Party / Residence Inn
Arrive Wednesday afternoon for the Downing Family Reunion! Check-in time at the Residence Inn Hotel, National Harbor begins at 3:00 p.m. Come to our Hospitality Room for the “Meet and Greet” so we can catch up with relatives and friends, pick up your souvenir bag and reunion materials. Finger foods, snacks, and drinks will be provided for your arrival.
Since you are arriving early, some may like to visit nearby Six Flags of America amusement park, which is about 20 minutes from our hotel. The visit would be on your own, because our itinerary is action packed with other adventures we have planned for you! Use Wednesday evening to preview Reunion events provided in your souvenir bag and prepare for lots of fun!
THROWBACK THURSDAY: July 9th A Taste of Maryland!
Thurs. July 9th / EVENT / NOTESMorning / Breakfast (Hotel Provided) / Residence Inn
Mid-Morning / Arundel Mills Mall
Dave & Busters
Maryland Live! Casino / Baltimore, MD
Afternoon / Crab Feast & Fish Fry / Park
Evening / Annual Auction
Family Game Night / Hospitality Suite
Wear a Downing Family Reunion t-shirt from a past reunion of your choice! Your t-shirt will spark lots of great memories about past reunions, and will have some saying, “Where is my shirt like that?” This is optional, so if you do not have a t-shirt from the past, then let your collection begin this year and continue for years to come!
Our day will begin with a hearty, complimentary buffet breakfast. We will then board our chartered buses, which will take us to Arundel Mills, located in Hanover, Maryland. It is Maryland’s largest retail and outlet shopping, dining and entertainment destination. At Arundel Mills, you can participate in the following great adventures:
− Adults ages 21 and over (with ID), can visit, Maryland Live! Casino where you can play slot machines and table games;
− Children and adults can enjoy Dave and Busters where you can play arcade games, bowl, shoot pool, and eat;
− Everyone can enjoy shopping in the Arundel Mills Mall with over 200 stores!
For our next adventure, no visit to Maryland is complete without dining on world famous Maryland Blue Crabs! Therefore, prepare your seafood taste buds for our very own crab feast and fish fry! If you don’t already know how, you may want to look online to learn how to “pick crabs” so you can get right to ‘em at the crab feast!
Thursday evening will be our annual auction, with money collected going towards the Alzheimer Association, Kidney Foundation, and the Sgt. Michael Hill Scholarship Fund. Helping such serious matters is always so much fun with Freda, Van, and our “bookkeeper” Soiesette!
Following the auction, we will have “Family Game Night”, complete with prizes and trash talkin’. All will have fun!
FREEDOM FRIDAY: July 10th A Taste of DC!
Fri. July 10th / EVENT / NOTESMorning / Breakfast (Included) / Residence Inn
Mid-Morning / White House Tour
Smithsonian
National Monuments / Washington, DC
Afternoon / “Social Hour”
Speed Downing (Our twist on Speed Dating) / Hospitality Suite
Evening / Board Walk Jazz
DC Entertainment / Nightlife / National Harbor
Resort Amenities
Bring your patriotism, comfortable walking shoes, and plan to wear your new Downing Family Reunion, 2015 t-shirt. After enjoying another full, hot complimentary breakfast, we will visit Washington, DC, our nation’s capital! Patriotism will abound when we see the majestic monuments to include the new Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. monument. Discover and learn as we tour an internationally famous Smithsonian Museum! But wait…there’s more!
We will take a tour of the White House! How exciting it will be to visit the site of world power, and the home of the First Lady and President Obama and their family! Because any visit to the White House requires a background check, anyone who wishes to participate in the tour will need to complete the included form and send it back to us. For those who do not wish to participate in the tour, you will be able to visit surrounding touring areas until the White House tour has been completed.
When we return to the hotel, we will have a Family ‘Social’ hour with several rounds of Speed Downing (our twist on Speed Dating), where we will spend a few minutes getting to know a relative, switch seats when you hear the timer, then get to know another relative.
During the evening, continue to enjoy all the wonderful dining and entertainment options that are available to you at the National Harbor! Many options are free such as boardwalk jazz and fireworks! There is fee to ride the National Ferris Wheel, however, it is has climate-controlled cabins and amazing views of the city and Washington, DC, in the distance!
SOULFUL SATURDAY: July 11th “Downing Family White Party!”
Sat. July 11th / EVENT / NOTESMorning / Breakfast (Hotel Provided) / Residence Inn
Mid-Morning / Business Meeting / Hospitality Suite
Afternoon / On Your Own / Various Activities
Evening / Downing Banquet – Private Yacht Party / White Party - Potomac River
Enjoy your delicious, hot complimentary breakfast, then those who are interested can join us for our business meeting where we will review our reunion budget and officially decide reunion destination for 2016. Then, enjoy the day on your own! Here are some things you may consider doing: taking college tours, taking the free shuttle to the Tanger Outlets, visiting Six Flags America, or take advantage our the National Harbor location by enjoying the shopping, sight-seeing and dining. However you enjoy the day, be back to the hotel in time to get dressed for our Downing Family Reunion Banquet! But hold on! It’s not our traditional banquet setting, nor our traditional dress to impress—this year, our setting will be aboard our very own chartered private yacht named the National Harbor! That’s right, our very own dinner and party cruise! Also new this year, we are giving our banquet a theme. The theme is a “White Party”! Which means, wear your all-white (or mostly white), dressed-to-impress outfit! Since this is a White Party, men can be dressy casual. Therefore, a tie is not necessary, unless it’s a part of your look!
SEE-YOU-SOON SUNDAY: July 12th Until We Meet Again!
Sun. July 12th / EVENT / NOTESMorning / Breakfast (Hotel Provided) / Residence Inn
Mid-Morning / Blessings and Hugs / Hospitality Suite
Afternoon / Cook-out / The Fullwood’s Home
Fill up on a great, hot complimentary breakfast before departing home. In the hospitality room, we will have a brief blessing along with our hugs and “see you soon” well wishes. For any family members who have a late departure or who will be remaining in town a little longer, the Fullwood family will host a cook-out at our home.
All information included in this letter, in addition to website links for the hotel, Reunion Registration, and other events, can be found online Family Reunion Information can be found online at www.TheDowningFamilyReunion.myevent.com
We are thrilled to be the hosts of the 2015 Downing Family Reunion, and we are looking forward seeing everyone soon!
With Love,
The Washington, D.C. Crew
Tawnya Fullwood / Alton Chesson / Corrine Moody / Bernard Smith / Freda & Frank Turner (Satellite)Daron Fullwood / Glenda Hill / Valencia Moody / Alicia Smith
REGISTRATION FORM
(Please complete with your money order and mail to Tawnya & Daron Fullwood 913 Jennings Mill Dr Bowie, MD 20721)
Contact InformationFirst Name: / Last Name:
Phone1: / Phone2:
e-mail1: / e-mail2:
Address:
City: / State: / Zip:
Registration Information - $150 per person ($175 for all after May 15th)
AGES 10 & Over / Amt. each / AGES 4 – 9 / Amt. each
YOU are
Guest # 1 / $150 / Guest # 1 / $125
Guest # 2 / Guest # 2
Guest # 3 / Guest # 3
Guest # 4 / Guest # 4
Guest # 5 / Guest # 5
Payment Information:
(Check Payment Method) / Total Adults: / Total Kids:
☐ / Pay Online / ☐ / Pay by Money Order / ☐ / Pay in (3) Installments / GRAND TOTAL:
T-Shirt Information / Small / Med. / Large / XL / 2X / 3X / 4X
Adult Sizes
Children Sizes / Small Medium or Large ONLY
Enter the quantity for each size needed in the blank spaces provided
COMMENTS
Office Use ONLY
Date Rec’d: / Rec’d by: / Amt.
If someone asks you if there is a “banquet only” registration, please let them know that we will not be able to accommodate “banquet only” registrations since our chartered private yacht has limited capacity, and the yacht seating is being reserved for those who are attending the entire reunion. Please encourage them to join us for entire reunion so we can all have a great time together! It is going to be worth it!