Interesting Family Reunion Statistics and Facts

When researching family reunion statistics, there is not much information to help you get an idea of just how many families in America hold, attend or avoid their family reunions. Upon investigation a 2001 survey done by Bruskin research, a market research company, which may shed some light on data in regards to family reunions. Although, this particular survey was done 10 years ago, we can safely say, give or take a little for considering interest and economical standings, the data should be relatively accurate or at least a decent base statistic. Many families view family reunions as sacred events, which hold a large feeling of tradition for their families. They use the time to reunite with loved ones they haven’t seen in a while, as well as meet new kin they may have not met before. It is a time to reflect on ones family and look forward to the unity within the family as a whole.

So how many people each year in America have families who hold family reunions? According to the survey an astounding 62 percent of them said they would be attending a family reunion that particular year. When reviewing these family reunion statistics we can determine as a generalization that a little over half of the population will be attending family reunions, or attend family reunions on a regular basis, such as attending an annual event planned by their families.  Whether or not a person attends is based on many factors, the major factor being the distance away from the even the person resides. Basically, the further away a person lives from where the family reunion is being held, the less likely they will be in attending that particular event. It was shown in this survey that of the 62 percent of the survey takers who were going to attend their reunion around 65 percent of them lived within a short distance of the majority of their relatives (around 50 miles or less away).

In relation to the distance determining whether or not someone would attend their family reunion, 56 percent of the people who lived in excess of 300 miles from the events location stated they would attempt to show up at the event. All in all, the majority of the people who attend live closer by and those that live farther away either attempt to make it, or don’t make it to their family reunions at all. So location when planning a family reunion can be very important to whether or not you have a small intimate gathering or a huge turnout. This is of course, only taking into consideration the people who honestly answered the survey conducted by Bruskin Research, and we do not know how many people were surveyed so these statistics may be very biased and diluted in regards to family reunion statistics.

When it comes to family reunion statistics another interesting topic is how many people enjoy the thought of attending a family reunion. ¾ of the people surveyed said they enjoy attending family reunions, of these the majority of them were older adults, the older the adults got, the more they became interested in attending family reunions. People older than 65 years old enjoy attending family reunions more so than younger adults between the ages of 18 to 24 with an astounding 75 percent of the older adults stating they look forward to attending their family reunions. This may be because of a need to create memories with their relatives before they pass on, and pass down the family stories to a younger generation to continue on the tradition. As this data shows, location is key when planning a family reunion, and if you want more people to enjoy the event, you will need a wide range of activities planned for all age ranges.

What about locations? Family reunion statistics provided in the Bruskin Research survey shows that over 32 percent of families hold their reunions in a recreational park whereas 22 percent prefer a restaurant/banquet hall atmosphere. 18 percent of family reunions were being held at resort or scenic locations and a mere 14 percent consider major cities of interest such as Washington D.C. or New York City for their family reunions, because these are places their family members showed interest in visiting as a group. With this information, how do you feel about family reunions? If a family reunion was being held, would you attend?