Well, more disappointing reunion news. Before Covid, we had a contract with Aurelio’s for their Party Room, which seats a maximum of 90. The contract was cancelled, along with everything else in 2020. This year since January we have been trying to get Aurelio’s to commit to our date for the Party Room or even the patio, glass enclosure, and/or extra tables inside the restaurant to accommodate us. They will NOT give us a reservation ANYWHERE in or outside of the restaurant, for any number of people. We have been sending voicemails, emails, enlisted Sue Lively, whose daughter worked there for ten years, to send an email (Thank you, Sue!!), sent in my sister, Gloria Virgo, who talked to Joe Aurelio personally, and Karen and I even stopped in front of Joe Aurelio’s house, considering whether or not we should knock on his door to talk to him. (This is no lie. This whole thing has turned us into stalkers.) The restaurant event manager, Tina, will NOT say whether or not the Party Room will open before August - or ever. We have talked to other Aurelio’s franchises in the area, and they are all open for parties. The problem is that the franchises are not as large as the Homewood Aurelio’s, so we are over their maximum number; none would be able to host our event.
We know you are all as disappointed as we are that we will not be able to go to one of our beloved high school hangouts as a group; however, we don’t have any other option but to reserve another place. The date is less than two months away. Therefore, we talked to the manager at Rudy’s at Balagio in Homewood. The first Balagio restaurant opened in 1997 in downtown Homewood and they moved to the Surma’s location when Surma’s closed. We would have a very nice, private sports bar (Rudy’s, which is attached to the main restaurant) and patio, weather permitting. We’d have a full buffet, Balagio’s set menu: house salad, rigatoni marinara, sausage and peppers, roasted chicken, roasted potatoes, cake and ice cream, coffee, tea, and soda. (Cash bar). Those of you who have been to Balagio know that their food is excellent.
Our original price for Aurelio’s was $25 per person for salad, pizza, and pop (cash bar). Rudy’s/Balagio would be an additional $10 per person, which we would collect at the door. If the additional $10 per person is agreeable and you already have Friday night tickets, there is nothing else you need to do. If you would like to order tickets, a few slots are available. The tickets are still $25, but will require an additional $10 at the door. Please note: the sports bar can only accommodate 80 people and we already have 74; we need to close ticket sales when we reach 80.
Other news: on Saturday, August 7, we have a tour of H-F scheduled for 11:00 a.m. The full tour takes about 90 minutes, or maybe longer if we also go to the North building. Of course, you do not need to stay the entire time. Ann Cherry, the H-F alumni coordinator, is going to try to get a couple of students to lead the tour.
For Saturday night, a few of you have suggested a pub crawl. We think it’s a great idea, but we are not up for organizing one. If any of you would like to do that, please do. Let us know how we can help. Of course, if you are still in Homewood on Saturday night, you could always get your Aurelio’s fix on your own or with a small group of alumni, with or without a pub crawl.
Bottom line: Everyone’s Ravisloe tickets will be refunded as soon as we receive our payment refund from Ravisloe. If you would like a full refund for both Friday AND Saturday, please message us at
hfclassof70.classquest.com or email kglowiak52@yahoo.com or cwolgamott@msn.com. The deadline for requesting refunds for Friday night is July 15, 2021.
