A yearbook is a symbol of accomplishment, a keepsake of nostalgia and a resource for past friends and mentors. Over the years, a yearbook can get lost through many moves to different homes or natural disasters such as a flood, fire or tornado. If you are missing the mugs of your old friends, teachers and counselors, you can replace a yearbook rather easily online.
Relevance of a Yearbook
Yearbooks are more than a collection of photos and phrases. It gives a snapshot of what was important socially, culturally and politically at the time, as well as insight about your school's personal style and reflections. A yearbook allows you to pull up memories of old school days. Flipping through the physical pages can give you a tactile memory of who you were when. It is a reflection of past accomplishments and planned goals. It captures memories during formative years that can stay relevant. Even with the introduction of social media, yearbooks remain one of the main ways that truly capture a moment in time.
First Steps
Recent graduates have a better chance of getting a yearbook replaced quickly and inexpensively. Contact your school first to find if they have a stockpile of a few extra yearbooks. Often the Parent Teacher Association or other volunteer or fundraising organization connected with the school may know if someone has extra yearbooks or how to directly contact the printer of the yearbooks. If you have current contacts in the area where you went to school, reach out to old friends or siblings of former classmates to find a yearbook someone is willing to offer up to end your search.
Online Help
The newer the yearbook, the better. Yearbooks made in the last decade are easy to recover with a digital replacement. Look at selling sites such as eBay for an old yearbook from your class and school that someone may be happy to unload for a fair price. If those paths fail, a relatively new and effective program through Classmates.com sells yearbook reprints as well. If you have lost contact with your former friends and acquaintances consider reaching out through social media outlets such as Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Often a class reunion group or leader is posting about upcoming events at your former school and may have information that can help you. If you are in need of finding an email to attach to a name, Hunter.io offers ways to track down emails with just a few clues.
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Writer Bio
Kimberley McGee is an award-winning journalist with 20+ years of experience writing about education, jobs, business and more for The New York Times, Las Vegas Review-Journal, Today’s Parent and other publications. She graduated with a B.A. in Journalism from UNLV. Her full bio and clips can be seen at www.vegaswriter.com.