Photo courtesy visittucson.org

Hi, Brats!

We hope you and your families are healthy and well. While we stay home and stay safe, Aramco Brats will be here for you from the days in the desert to the days at home!

The reunion next year is still being eagerly and excitedly planned behind the scenes, however, with the times of uncertainty, further details will be postponed.

In the meantime, join us on our stories at Instagram and Facebook for updates and digital reunions!

The brAts spoke and ABI listened.  Based on our survey results, brAts want their next reunion to be: “in a place that is hot and sunny”; “the resort needs a central gathering place with bars”; “we need one pool or pools close together”; “we want a resort that is not so spread out”.  BrAts you got it! 

On Memorial Day weekend, 2021 ABI welcomes all Aramco Brats to Tucson, Arizona! 

Tim “Tavy” Sandin and Jeff Civale are co-chairing the reunion committee supported by Bridget Halpin, Liz Germani, Marie Dunn, Caroline Masters, and Sandra Louchard.  Both Tavy and Jeff are local to Tucson. Let’s make reunion 2021 a great time to reconnect with our brAt family!

Tim “Tavy” Sandin (DH 61)

Tavy arrived in Dhahran at the age of 3 in 1949. As part of the class of DH 61, Tavy’s class was the first class to complete K-9th in Dhahran.  Tavy proudly played on the Arabian champion little league Steelers in 1955 and 1957. After graduating from New Mexico Military Institute in 1964, Tavy attended the University of Arizona. Besides being a brAt, Tavy worked for Aramco from 1976-1996 in 4 different communities, including Yanbu. Both of Tavy’s kids, Marc and Courtney, were born at the Dhahran hospital. Tavy has 3 grandchildren from Marc.  Courtney passed away in 2011 at age 23. Tavy has worked on two other Tucson reunion committees: 2001 and 2003. As a long time resident of Arizona, Tavy has lived in the Tucson and Green Valley area off and on for 45 years. Tavy has been married to his wife, Dee, for 17 years. He enjoys golfing and his gym time. 

Jeff Civale (RT 85)

Jeff Civale (RT 85) has lived in Tucson, AZ all his life minus the 10 years he spent with his family in Saudi Arabia (1978-1988).  After graduating from RT in 1985, Jeff attended The Orme School in Arizona. As an enthusiastic participant in many reunions, Jeff is excited to be part of the committee for Reunion 2021.  Besides being a long time Costco employee, Jeff loves traveling (especially to visit other brAts), cooking (his salsa verde is a must at every reunion), outdoor walking, entertaining and photographing life’s great moments!  Jeff works hard to stay in touch and connect with many brAts. As a long resident of Tucson, Jeff knows all the great spots of Tucson!

Keep an eye on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter - ABI will announce the hotel in early June 2020! Inshallah brAts!

Marharba, Brats! Aramco Brats, Inc., began a new term, November 1, 2019. We are proud to present our board for the 2019-2021 term:

Liz Germani​ (RT '84). President
Sandra Kerr-Louchard​ (DH '84), Vice President
Tom Littlejohn​ (DH '84), Treasurer
Amber Perkins-Neal ​(DH '86), Secretary
Bridget Halpin ​(DH 84), Reunion Oversight Director
Paul Allen ​(DH '89), Director at Large (Nominations)
Dawn Kolb ​(DH '92), Website Director
Marie Littlejohn-Dunn ​(DH '77), Director at Large
Caroline Homolka-Masters ​(RT '84), Publications Director
Selma Zein ​(DH '06), Database Director

Aramco Brats, Inc. welcomes 2 first-time board members:

Selma Zein​ is joining the board as the Database Director. Born and raised in Saudi Arabia, Selma, DH 2006, lived in Saudi for 18 years.

Considering Selma’s family are placed in all parts of the world, she loves to travel. Her favorite spots always include a sunny day. Her furry child, Sylvester (cat), and she are currently in pursuit of exciting new endeavors, and, as a part of her new adventure, she looks forward to being a part of ABI's Board.

ABI also welcomes ​Bridget Halpin​ as the Reunion Oversight Director. Bridget is the youngest of five Halpin children who were all born and raised in Dhahran. She is a proud member of the class of DH'84.

Like many Brats, Bridget has been bitten by the travel bug, and she and her husband, Damian, travel internationally as much as their work schedules will allow. Being a true Irish lass, Bridget says that she has never met a stranger thanks to her "gift of gab." When not golfing or traveling, she spoils her two terrier pups, Rory and Hailey.

Bridget was an invaluable member of the Phoenix reunion committee serving as the Reunion Chair. As the Reunion Oversight Director for the new term, Bridget's goal is to continue the progress of refreshing activities by encouraging fun and new ideas.

The results of the 2019 Phoenix Reunion Satisfaction Survey are available for your reading pleasure!  

2019 Phoenix Reunion Satisfaction Survey.pdf

2019 Phoenix Reunion Satisfaction Survey - Comments.pdf

A huge shukran to all those who took the time to complete the survey.  We sent out 488 survey invitations and received a total of 155 responses, including 84 written comments to the question "What could we do to make your reunion experience better?"  Many respondents also took the time to follow up with an email sharing their thoughts and suggestions.  Some great ideas!

Look for an invitation to take another survey about reunions in general in your inbox in the near future!

If you attended the 2019 reunion in Phoenix, look for an email inviting you to participate in a satisfaction survey.  These reunions are for YOU and your Brat family, so your opinions are important!  Please take the few minutes required to complete the survey of 11 short questions.  The last question has a place to enter your feedback/suggestions in text form, or you can email us if you need more room for your thoughts.

Survey results and comments will be shared after we close the survey   Thanks in advance for your feedback!

Here are the results of the 2019-2021 Aramco Brats Board of Directors election which were announced at the reunion banquet on May 26th.  Thanks to the ease of online voting, we had fantastic participation - 318 (22 mailed, 20 onsite , 276 electronic)! Thanks to everyone for participating in choosing your elected officers for next term!

How Brats Voted

Per ABI's bylaws, the winner was determined by simple majority. The election data and results have been reviewed and ratified by Melanie Penoyar-Perez, DH 87.  Full election results and description of voting processes can be viewed here.

Questions regarding nominations process or other volunteer opportunities should be directed to Paul Allen.

Who enjoyed seeing all the Brat fun at the reunion in Phoenix? As you might imagine, your ABI Board puts a lot of effort into organizing these events for the Brat community. You may not realize it, but ABI is run by Brats just like you.

Have a great idea that you would like to help get implemented? Interested in volunteering for the Aramco Brats, Inc. Board of Directors? Future volunteers are needed for the 2019-2021 term. Submit your volunteer interest form online today!

Appointed Positions

The following positions are appointed by the elected officers on November 1, 2019:

• At Large Director

• Database Director

• Nominations Director

• Publications Director

• Reunion Oversight Director

• Website Director

Responsibilities for board positions are outlined here. Most volunteer work is done via conference call and/or by email in approximately 1-3 hours per month. The board meets in person twice per term - once at the reunion and once during the off-year. Time commitment and meeting frequency increase with the planning cycle for the biennial Brat Reunion.

To be considered for any of the positions above, submit your nomination online now. If you’ve submitted an interest form before 2017, we welcome you to resubmit so we know you’re still available.

If you are interested in learning more about becoming an ABI Board Member or volunteering in a short-term capacity, please contact us!

NEW - 2019 Reunion Swag!

2019 reunion swag is now available in the online suq!  In addition to a limited selection of t-shirts, we've still got some sports-packs, tumblers, and those awesome Arabic Pepsi logo slap-coozies that work with both cans and bottles.

Summer Suq Sale

Help us clear out some of our t-shirt inventory and replace your favorite worn out t-shirt!  Once they're gone, they're gone!

- Add a 2013, 2015 or 2017 reunion t-shirt to your order for $6!

- Order 2 t-shirts from 2013, 2015 or 2017 for just $12!

ABI's Board of Director's hosted a town hall on Saturday, May 25th at the reunion hotel.  Attendees were given a handout showing reunion and database facts and figures as well as Q1 2019 financials and your Board's agenda items for the remainder of this term.  Meeting minutes are forthcoming after our secretary returns from vacation.  In the meantime, we have updated the reunion facts and figures to reflect our final numbers for Phoenix.   For your viewing pleasure...  Seriously, there's some fun stuff in here!