Donations

I was recently telling a friend about our upcoming reunion and when I described AISK she was blown away! She couldn’t believe such a school existed. “You realize that is probably one of the most unique life experiences people of our generation could have had; living in such a unique country at such a pivotal time, and being able to experience it with classmates from all over the world, who have remained in contact all this time? You are so blessed and lucky!” she said.

I couldn’t agree more. Being Scorpions made each and every one of us who we are today – we really are a unique and special bunch!

What it also made me think about is our various life trajectories – we are teachers, we are scientists, we are public servants and military officers; authors and ship captains, musicians, surgeons, lawyers, politicians, and church ministers… Some of us are rich in spirit, others rich in wealth, but we all come together as Scorpions, first and foremost and with peace, love and harmony, we come away after every reunion, richer in spirit!

In that vein, we have a request, a call to action. This reunion, and every reunion, is not free. There are hotels and flights and meals and special events; a lot goes into getting us all together, and we are not all equally financially able to afford to attend this unique gathering. 

So for those of you on whom fortune has shined the brightest, we ask you to consider contributing additional funding to this special event. You might remember the hospitality code of every Afghan household, and you may have experienced it yourself in your years in Afghanistan. Every guest in an Afghan home is welcomed and treated with generosity - it is considered an honor and a duty to host visitors regardless of their station in life. In that spirit, please consider helping us to welcome as many Scorpions to our 2026 reunion as possible, and to making it the best one yet. 

If you are wondering how much to donate, consider these ideas as inspiration. In the past donors have thrown additional dinners and social events in their homes or at restaurants, funded the additional special event activities we line up, made generous donations to lower the cost for the entire event, and paid for other attendees to be able to come. The possibilities are endless.

When you are ready to donate (hopefully soon!), please reach out to our reunion committee via email at scorpion.aisk@gmail.com to discuss how you can make this reunion outstanding - there are plenty of opportunities to do so, either anonymously or through a sponsored event! 

Perhaps the latter challenge will inspire you – the average American spends about $2,000 a year on coffees at coffee shops; could you donate that amount to help ensure that this is the most unique event we'll attend this year?  Some examples of our special events being planned....AISK Tee Shirts, Hawaiian Luau dancers, bartender, and a bayside bonfire at the Thursday registration Aloha cocktail party which will also include the cost of food and the bartender.  Friday and Saturday nights we'll need funding for provisions at the stargazing contests.  On Saturday night...a D.J., bartender, and banquet fees at our Hotel California 70s dinner and dance gala.  And the finale, a Hotel California Scorpion Sunday morning farewell buffet breakfast.

We are also looking for donations specifically to cover the costs of attendees whose fortune has not been favored with material wealth; not all of us can afford to travel, but we all deserve to come, so we also have a scholarship fund specifically designated to help those who need assistance with travel costs, registration, and hotel fees.

And finally, all of you can help by registering early; stay tuned for monthly email blasts, but here is the website link if you are ready to commit; https://myevent.com/aiskreunion  The more early registrations we get the more we can use those funds to cover our up-front costs.  

A small incentive we have negotiated with the hotel to give our two largest donors is a room upgrade to a suite as a token of our appreciation.

Here are the methods of payment options ....

Zelle or ACH: scorpion.aisk@gmail.com

Venmo: code Scorpion-AISK, phone 850-382-9555

Personal Check:  We have committee treasury members in California, Georgia and Florida.  Please call Janet at 703-850-9797 to receive the address of the closest treasury member to mail your check to.

Credit Card:  see below

Please reference your name and AISK when making payments, tashakoor!