4/14/03

Helpful Tips On Graduation Week

• Do we wait for our Mid to send home tickets for Graduation before mailing out Announcements?
  DON'T wait...the Mids are VERY busy...the closer they get to graduation, the more on their "plates".
  Our son didn't hand us the tickets until the week of Graduation.  We had his Graduation Party a few days before Commissioning & handed the tickets out to everyone then.
• It rains, we are restricted to 4 tickets?   YES...only FOUR & NO EXCEPTIONS.   The ceremony has been rained out only a very few times.  But do think about just WHO will occupy those FOUR tickets if the circumstance does happen on May 23, 2003.
• You will simply have to let your family and guests know that if the ceremony is moved indoors because of weather, there will not be tickets for them -   but the ceremony will be televised on the local cable channel. (It will be if the weather is wonderful as well...so be sure to bring a blank tape & set up the TV back @ the house or hotel to tape the entire ceremony).
• If it is sunny, how many tickets do we get?
  

 Each Firstie gets 6 tickets in his reserved Company section - then can request an unlimited number of tickets in general seating.  So, how may tickets do you get?  How many do you need?  Just be sure that your Mid orders the number you need.

If it is important for you to have more than 6 tickets in the reserved Company Area - perhaps your Mid can ask another Firstie in his/her company who will not be needing all of their 6 tickets, etc.

--------------March 13th Message--------------

Some of you are beginning to have questions regarding the graduation ticketing procedure for Commissioning 2003. Here is an explanation directly

from the Operations Office of Bancroft Hall.

Sincerely,

Jill L. Montone

Parent Program Coordinator

U.S. Naval Academy Alumni Association

COMMISSIONING 2003 TICKETING PROCEDURE

There are no general admission tickets for the general public - tickets are only for the USNA family which is defined as the midshipmen, their

designated guests, the officers on the Yard as well as the civilian faculty & staff. Faculty & staff do have a reserved section - 4 tickets per faculty

& staff for their immediate use (not to give away to general public).  As for the midshipmen - the following holds for the midshipmen:

1. For the outdoor ceremony, 6 reserved tickets per midshipmen (reserved seat in the company seating area). Midshipmen can request as many general admission seating tickets as they need for family/guests. All family specific requests must be made by the mid; not mom or dad calling in.

parents provide final numbers to the midshipmen who then request to Hollie Boothe. This is the only way to QA the process so we are not issuing

general admission tickets to the general public.

2. For the indoor ceremony, if the Commissioning Ceremony is moved indoors for any reason, only 4 tickets per midshipmen, period. No tickets to the faculty & staff. 1000 mids plus 4000 midshipmen family/guests plus 300-400 faculty & staff that work in the Yard (no spouses/family) is max capacity of Alumni.