ABSTRACT
REUNIONS are festive gatherings that bring together people with common experiences or bonds who have not seen each other for a time or have been separated by space. They are typically held for high school and college classes, military battalions, churches, and summer camps. By the mid-1990s, about twenty-two million American adults attended class, family, military, or other types of reunions each year. As an annual or occasional custom, it is a tradition that helps build social identity in many families and organizations, especially those whose members are widely dispersed. It also comprises traditions that attendees come to expect, such as types of storytelling, games, rituals, performances, and foods connected to the identity of the group.
