Past Reunions
The Reunion "How it Began"
Five of the children came to live in the middle Georgia area. They were Proffitt Ivery, John Ivery, Abe Ivery, Bessie I. Goodloe, and Ike Ivery. Realizing the importance of family, it was placed upon the hearts of a few of the grandchildren to reunite the children of Ike Ivery.
The first gathering took place in Macon and Warner Robins, Georgia
in 1974. It was a huge success! Eight of the children were present.
For the next ten years, the Ike Ivery descendants combined with
another established family reunion, The Family Affair, with hopes of
reuniting
the family.
Persons involved and responsible were Lula Reid and Rosalee Tukes. It was scheduled for Warner Robins, GA for July 5, 6, and 7th 1974 at the farm of Abe Ivery. Due to the response from some of the family, activities were held at Jerusalem Baptist Church and the family stayed in Warner Robins two days.
| Hosting City | Chairperson |
| 2011 - Cincinnati, OH | Stan Foster |
| 2009 - Atlanta, GA | Victoria Nobles Pearson |
| 2007 - Philadelphia , PA | Kevin Ivery |
| 2005 - Birmingham, AL | Howard & Ruth Taylor |
| 2003 - Cincinnati, OH | Clayton Neel |
| 2001 - Fort Lauderdale, FL | Veronica Watson |
| 1999 - Trenton, NJ | Gladys Washington |
| 1997 - Macon, GA | Jimmie Tukes, Jr. |
| 1995 - Coraopolis, PA | Ada Jones |
| 1993 - Eufaula, Al | Nettie Robbins |
| 1991 - Clearwater, FL | Kenny Breeze and Alvin Goodloe |
| 1989 - Cleveland, OH | Robert & Jean Sellers and Marion Smith |
| 1987 - Montgomery, AL | William Sankey |
| 1985 - Macon, GA | |
| 1984 - Trenton, NJ (Family Affair) | |
| 1975 - Birmingham, AL | |
| 1974 - Warner Robins, GA | Lula Reid and Rosalee Tukes |
In 1975, a gathering was hosted by Juanita in Birmingham, AL. A marker for the gravesite of Ike Ivery was suggested and Lula Reid and Rosalee Tukes were responsible. The services for dedication of marker was held at Mt. Coney Baptist Church in Midway, Al. The family stayed at a hotel in Montgomery, AL and traveled to the church for activities.
In 1984 while attending the Family Affair reunion in Trenton, New
Jersey, several Ivery family members asked Rosie L. Tukes, a
grandchild of Ike Ivery, to work on an Ivery Family Reunion.
Rosie Tukes was born in Midway, Alabama and came to live with her
mother, Bessie Ivery Goodloe, in Houston County, Georgia in 1942.
She later moved to Macon, Georgia and lived there until her death in
1990.
During the summer of 1985 several Ivery children met together in Macon, Georgia. This was the site of the very first Ivery Family Reunion meeting. Family members who were present at the meeting were:
| Rosie Tukes | Bessie Goodloe (daughter) |
| Robert Ivery (son) | Walter Ivery (son) |
| Robert Goodloe | James Goodloe |
| Alvin & Rose Goodloe | Lula Reid |
| Charlie Nobles | Nathaniel Reid |
| Sabrina Foster | Ruth McHugh |
| Jimmie & Janet Tukes, Jr. | Vanessa Tukes |
| Annie B. Tyler | Hattie Bell |
| Kenny Breeze | William & Regina Sankey |
Plans were made to have an Ivery Family gathering in Montgomery, Alabama on July 4, 1986.
In 1986 the second gathering of the Ivery family members took place in Montgomery, Alabama and was hosted by William Sankey. The first national officers were elected as follows:
- Rosie Tukes - National Chairperson
- Hattie Bell – National Co-Chairperson
Chairpersons were elected for each state that was represented. The state officers were elected as follows:
- Alabama: William Sankey (Chairperson) and Ann Thomas (Secretary)
- Florida: Eddie L. Ivery (Chairperson), Ruth McHugh (Co-Chairperson), and Robert Penn (Secretary)
- Georgia: Rosie Tukes (Chairperson) and Hattie Bell (Secretary)
The first Ivery Family Reunion took place in Montgomery, Alabama on
July 10-11, 1987. It was decided that an Ivery Family Reunion would
take place every other year. Since then the reunion years and
hosting cities have been as follows:
Other national officers have been as follows:
- Jimmie Tukes, Jr. - National Chairperson, 1991 – 1997
- James Goodloe - National Chairperson since 1997 (current)
- Whalen Jackson - National Vice Chairperson (current)
- Carol Scott Copeland - National Secretary
- Vanessa Tukes Wynn - National Secretary since 1995 (current)
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"In every conceivable, the family is the link to our past, and the bridge to our future" - Alex Haley, author of Roots
