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Fairbanks Family in the West Reunion, July 29,
2000!
Saturday, July 29, 2000, saw the big
event of the year - the Fairbanks Family in the West Reunion. Our theme
this year was "Family Unity for the Future." Here's a quick
run-down of some of the events:
 Things
got started early on Saturday morning at This is the Place Heritage
Park. We met at the Social Hall for breakfast and a welcome from
Co-President, Leah Poulsen. Those who were feeling adventurous went on a
wagon ride around the Park or toured the Fairbanks home, exploring even
the rarely-seen upstairs areas.
At mid-morning the group went on a safari
to another location: an LDS ward house on Sunnyside Avenue. There we
were surrounded by talent of our great artistic family, with many
displays set up for our enjoyment. Some of these displays included
paintings, needlework, and quilts from Carolyn Barrani and Joseph N.
Fairbanks.
Just before lunch a business meeting was
held. Leah Poulsen related intriguing stories about some of our famous
and infamous relatives.
One of the highlights of the day was the
opportunity to hear the outstanding musical and poetic talents of
members of the family. The variety and the performances were remarkable.
They were: Bonnie Jean McDonald, piano, Joan Reynolds, piano, Ginger
Fairbanks, piano, James and Georgia Fairbanks, vocal duet, Chandelle
Fairbanks, violin, Annette Kirk Harmon and Allison Kirk Daniels, Piano
and Cello duet, and Douglas Fairbanks, poetry reading written by his
father Farrall Fairbanks.
 The
icing on the cake was the chance to see slides of artistic works by
Avard Fairbanks, with commentary by Grant Fairbanks.
With about 100 people in attendance, this
was definitely a reunion to remember. A BIG "Thank you!" goes
out to all the family members who took care of the little ones in the
nursery. These young Fairbanks children really enjoyed themselves by
making crafts and participating in carefully planned activities. Thanks
too to those who did all the work of setting up, preparing and serving
truly wonderful food, and cleaning up. Special thanks to all who shared
their talents of music, poetry, arts and crafts. We are very grateful to
the family committee who put in a lot of hours to get the word out. And,
of course, "Thank you" to all who came from near and far to
make this a day of "Family Unity."
By David Poulson
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