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By Joe Wilensky

The banner, with “WELCOME BACK CRC” emblazoned in white letters on a red background, has been trotted out at Reunion for decades. But one year, the “L” fell off, so it said “WE COME BACK”—and for the Continuous Reunion Club, that message was even more on point.

Founded in 1906, the CRC offers a home to Cornellians for whom reuning every five years just isn’t enough.

At each annual gathering, the group has its own headquarters and hosts a few meals and other events, but otherwise lets its members explore and hang out with friends old and new.

“It’s wonderful: we have a home, a cohort, and a posse,” says Pat Reilly ’78, CRC’s vice president. “And it’s all the generations.”

At Reunion 2026, several dozen members celebrated CRC’s 120th anniversary with a toast before their Dinosaur Bar-B-Que dinner on North Campus.

It’s wonderful: we have a home, a cohort, and a posse. And it’s all the generations.

Pat Reilly ’78, CRC vice president

“I’ve been to about 25 Reunions in a row,” John Henrehan ’71, BS ’76, said during the event’s round of reminiscences. “What I look forward to every Reunion, both with my class and with CRC, are those bull sessions in the dorm in the evenings. They’re the best, and it reminds me of my freshman year here back in 1967.”

As he added with a chuckle: “Some people have enjoyed CRC so much that they don’t reune with their class anymore.”

While Alumni Affairs does make provision for any Cornellian who wishes to attend outside their class’s official gathering, this “Non-Reunion Year” registration is distinct from CRC—which offers the camaraderie of a cohort that comes back to the Hill annually, June after June.

In fact, its longtime president—Jim Hanchett ’53, who led the organization for more than four decades until his death in 2021—fondly referred to the group as the “Chronic Reunion Club.”

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“There were a dozen young dudes for whom just one Reunion every five years wouldn’t do,” Hanchett wrote in the club’s official history, “so they banded together and out came CRC.”

Those first members (the group was all male until 1990) vowed to attend every Reunion, with a hefty fine—set at $25 in 1907, roughly $850 in today’s dollars—for each year missed.

Jim Hanchett ’53, who led CRC for more than four decades until his death in 2021, fondly referred to the group as the “Chronic Reunion Club.”

And while the fine is long gone, CRC has met on the Hill every year, with the only interruptions due to World War II and the COVID pandemic.

For many years, CRC had close ties to Big Red Athletics, hosting coaches at an annual luncheon and recognizing a team with an annual award.

Membership (open to all Cornell alumni, undergrad and graduate) now stands at a bit over 100, with at least half reliably attending every year.

“We provide three breakfasts, along with late-night snacks, and all the beer and wine they can drink,” says current president Melinda Dower ’78. “The greatest part of CRC has been those late-night gatherings: after people have been to class events or other events, they come back and reminisce.”

The greatest part of CRC has been those late-night gatherings: after people have been to class events or other events, they come back and reminisce.

Melinda Dower ’78, CRC president

Longtime member Connie Santagato Hosterman ’57 recalls that at her last class Reunion in 2022, she stayed at the Statler—but at night, CRC members “sent somebody to pick me up, and got me to the group. My own classmates had long since gone to sleep, and I stayed here and had a great time.”

The group is also keen on growing its membership with younger alumni.

In fact, they recently named Cornell superfan Tony Chen ’12 as CRC’s membership chair, since he had essentially already taken on the job—often encountering potential recruits at the Arts Quad tent parties and bringing them straight to CRC headquarters.

“For a lot of Cornellians, their friends aren’t just from their class year; they want to talk to people who are a year before or after them as well,” says Chen. “I hope it becomes a normal thing for everybody to come to Reunion every year.”

Top: CRC members at Reunion 2026. (Joe Wilensky / Cornell University)

Published June 24, 2026

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