Employees from across the country are getting "Back to the Point!"

Nearly 600 people will be taking to the airways or the highways during Labor Day Weekend to attend the first-ever Cedar Point employee reunion.

Thursday, 21 August 2008

Cedar Point Press Release

SANDUSKY, Ohio – Although their journey will begin in dozens of cities scattered throughout the nation, Roseville, Minn., Crozet, Va., and Fairfield, Calif., to name a few, they all have a common destination:  a peninsula jutting into Lake Erie in Sandusky, Ohio.

Nearly 600 people, and growing every day, will be taking to the airways or the highways during Labor Day Weekend, Friday, Aug. 29 through Monday, Sept. 1, to attend the first-ever “Back to the Point,” a four-day reunion for employees who worked seasonally or full-time at the Cedar Point amusement park/resort.  Families of employees are also invited to attend.

Past employees from 19 different states have already registered to attend.  While Ohio is home for most of the attendees, Michigan and Pennsylvania will also have a good representation.  However, some past employees are not letting distance keep them away.  Former employees from California, Texas, Utah and Florida will also be Sandusky-bound during the holiday weekend.  Ontario, Canada, will also be represented at the get-together.

In addition to this diverse list of places former workers now call home, the event will also have employees from at least six decades of the park’s 138-year history.  While most of the returning employees worked at the park during the last 20 years, there are some exceptions.

Darrold Sisler, who now resides in Bruceton Mills, W.Va., worked as a lifeguard on the Cedar Point Beach in 1959 and continued to work at the park for the next 13 summers.  Like another lifeguard, the legendary Knute Rockne of Notre Dame fame, Sisler, too, married a girl from Sandusky.

“There will be a lot of stories and a lot of laughs,” said John Hildebrandt, vice president and general manager of Cedar Point.  “Our employees have many fond memories of their time at the park.  ‘Back to the Point’ gives them a great reason to catch up with some old friends.’’  Hildebrandt should know.  He started his Cedar Point career as an operator on the Frontier Lift in 1969.

The Grand Ballroom will be used as headquarters for the event.  There, employees can make arrangements to get together with their old friends and crew members.  A message board will also be available to coordinate meeting times and places.  It will be decorated with park uniforms, old crew T-shirts and other park paraphernalia. 

On Saturday evening, House of Rhythm, a three-piece band that has an extensive repertoire of jazz, pop/rock, country and reggae, will perform in the Ballroom beginning at 8 p.m. to recreate the employee dances of past years. 

One of its members, Jim Barron, also has ties to the park that go way back.  Barron first played at the park in a Dixieland band in the Red Garter Saloon.  He then performed with The Amazement Park Revue, a year-round traveling show, for three years before working in the park’s Live Entertainment Department for more than 16 years.

Other activities during the event will include an Old-Fashioned Employee Chicken Barbecue that will be held from 4-7 p.m. in the Coral Courtyard on Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 30-31.  Group photos and an exclusive ride session on Maverick on Saturday, Aug. 30 and Millennium Force on Sunday, Aug. 31 after the park closes to the public will also be available.  Participants will also qualify for early entry to the park (9 a.m.).

To attend “Back to the Point,” participants must pre-register online or register at the park during the event.  Participants are eligible for a special ticket price of $24.95 per day, if purchased online in advance of the event.  (A maximum of six tickets per order is permitted.)  Former employees who are Cedar Point Season Pass-holders or Cedar Fair Platinum Pass members will be able to attend the event for free.  However, there will be an additional charge for the meal.  Special rates for overnight accommodations at the Cedar Point Resort Properties are also available.

For more information about “Back to the Point,” please visit cedarpointreunion.com.