The latest CHAA national reunion was finally held in late October 2022, after 2 years of Covid 19-related delays.  For those who could finally attend, the wait seemed to be very worthwhile based on the positive feedback.  The 3-day event featured:  

  • An Embassy Suites venue in downtown Atlanta was in walking distance to many interesting attractions and has a large atrium ideal for socializing during breakfasts and happy hours.  
  • Organized no-host “Dutch treat” dinner parties provided further socializing outside of the formal program meals.  
  • A Jacobs executive in the Atlanta office made a welcoming presentation; and the CEO of Khafra Engineers, an Atlanta-based minority-owned business, spoke on his “Experiences for Success Gained from CH2M HILL.”  
  • A banquet-night gala with a program traced the firm’s amazing growth from West to East.  

    • The program for the banquet night gala featured a fact-filled PowerPoint presentation.  The slides can be viewed here.   

    • A video of the presentation is also available here.  The video was a challenge, but it will help provide verbal content beyond the slides, and you may recognize many people you know making presentations and in the audience.

  • There were several very entertaining and interesting excursions.  
  • There was free time to tour local area attractions on your own.  
  • Two speakers provided informative and thought-provoking presentations.  
  • The Saturday session was led by Rick Luebbers who collected and summarized perspectives of attendees on the value and future of our alumni association and reunions.  

Following are several photos and commentary highlighting the reunion:  

Rick Luebbers, President of CHAA, was back by popular demand to be the moderator of the 3-day event. The consensus was that Rick’s frequently inserted jokes are getting better each time!

At the beginning of the Thursday morning session, Bijoy Ghosh, VP Jacobs, welcomed us to Atlanta and highlighted Jacobs’ current operations and projects.

Val Bates, CEO of KHAFRA Engineering Consultants, described his experiences as an employee with CH2M HILL that prepared him to be successful in establishing his own engineering firm based in Atlanta.

One popular excursion was “Behind the Seas” guided tours of the fabulous Georgia Aquarium. The Beluga whales are awesome!

A unique optional excursion was a personal inside-and-out tour of Mercedes-Benz Stadium, home of the NFL Atlanta Falcons, including going into the tunnel through which the team runs onto the playing field.

The most popular event was the Thursday night banquet, which attracted 47 retired alumni and 20 legacy CH2M HILL/Jacobs employees from the Atlanta area. The total attendance, including guests and spouses, exceeded 100.

During the presentation, Cliff Thomson shared his memories and insights, particularly regarding the growth of CH2M HILL in Atlanta and the Southeast. He was later surprised by receiving special recognition that night as a distinguished alumnus.

Throughout the reunion, old friends enjoyed informal socializing in the hotel atrium.

At Friday’s morning session, John Mellott, retired Publisher of the Atlanta Journal Constitution, made a very pragmatic and interesting presentation about the demise of newspapers and the transition to and insights into “Today’s Modern News Media.”

Following a break, Dr. Todd Groce, President of the Georgia Historical Society, made a polished and highly educational presentation entitled “Sherman’s March to the Sea, Highlighting Battle of Kennesaw Mountain and Battle of Atlanta.”

Dr. Todd Groce’s presentation was superb background information before the group’s Friday afternoon excursion to the Atlanta History Center, including a program exhibit of Historical Cyclorama depicting The Battle of Atlanta.

Julia Ripley, CH2M/Jacobs, set up an information table at the reunion and described opportunities for interested alumni to use their professional skills in temporary employment on the Jacobs CCPRS project team. This work, through FEMA, helps disaster-impacted communities by providing supplemental federal disaster grant assistance for debris removal; emergency protective measures; the repair, replacement, and restoration of disaster-damaged, publicly-owned facilities; and the facilities of certain private nonprofit organizations.

Members of the reunion planning committee (Dennis Sandretto, Mike Mynhier, Terry Sheldon, and Bob Chapman), recognizing Sheldon Barker for his terrific work in leading the preparation of the banquet night presentation. Jim Schwing was also a key member of the committee, but unfortunately could not attend the reunion.

The favorite activity of all was the opportunity to visit with each other. Following are a few photos of the Thursday night social hour preceding the banquet. We thank David Dunagan for these and all the photos of the reunion and the T-Shirts.