The season for class reunions has rekindled the debate on whether social networking sites are hindering or encouraging the need to attend.

Facebook, MySpace and other sites allow users to create profiles that can reveal as little or as much information as they want about their lives. So is it worth paying to go to an event where everything you would want to know, you can find out online? A couple of reunion organizers who graduated from local high schools seem to think so.

Tyler Clark decided to create the "Central High Class of 1999" group on Facebook in December 2008 after friends asked him when they would have their 10-year reunion. It now has 166 members. As the group description states, "What better way is there to get the word out than Facebook?"

Mr. Clark is basketball coach at South Shelby High School in Shelbina, Mo., and previously taught at Central High School. He took on the task of organizing class reunions after making a deal with Thomas Cates for class president during his senior year in high school.

"We both wanted the office because he wanted to give the speech at graduation and I just wanted to plan the reunions. So, it worked out," he said.

Because Mr. Clark doesn't visit St. Joseph often, he decided to keep in touch with friends through Facebook. So when it was time to plan the reunion, it made sense to get the word out by creating a group on the popular social networking site.

The method proved successful. Mr. Clark said even friends from Los Angeles and New York found out about the event.

Another perk in creating the group on Facebook was that it was free. Reunion funds are limited, Mr. Clark explained, and someone would have had to foot the bill for postage.

But using only Facebook has its limitations.

"One obstacle we had was that some people either had MySpace, or Facebook, or both," he said, adding that others may not have online access either. "But hopefully, friends will get the word out to them."

The reunion is planned July 31 and Aug. 1. And though many of his classmates use Facebook, Mr. Clark said he doesn't believe it will hinder the reunion's attendance. "I think it's all the more reason to go," he said.

Mr. Clark knows of classmates who have become doctors or have other interesting jobs, but the reunion will give him a chance to have conversations with them and meet their families. "You can't get that from a Web page," he said.

Mr. Clark isn't the only one using a social networking site to plan a reunion this summer. Earlene Enslow Sowell, who resides in California, is a co-administrator of the Benton High School alumni site on myfamily.com, which was created in 2000 by Jim Hogan for his 1955 graduating class. She is 84.

Ms. Sowell said when she first visited the site, she was the oldest person and didn't know anyone. That quickly changed after Mr. Hogan asked her to be a co-administrator. Ms. Sowell said she is now best friends with the members, the majority graduating between 1943 and 1960.

"We have a little over a hundred people on it," she said. "Between 40 to 50 people sign on every day, and we've become pretty good friends."

Ms. Sowell admitted that at first the appearance of the Web site left a lot to be desired. But with a little help, she learned the tricks of Web design.

"I was fortunate enough to have a son who could teach me, and then Jim asked me to teach him," she said. "People on the site think I'm a genius because I can do all these things on the site, but I've had help."

The site has become more than just a way to keep in touch. Ms. Sowell spends many hours a day updating the site by adding colorful text, graphics and making birthday cards that members can electronically sign. Members also can create profiles, share how they met their spouses, post pictures of children and grandchildren, and share prayer requests.

Ms. Sowell, who graduated in 1943, said members of myfamily.com have had annual reunions since 2002. She explained that the first year only drew 15 to 20 people, but this year 56 people are signed up to attend.

"We all love St. Joe and Benton," said Ms. Sowell. "We just make it sound like so much fun that people just want to join us. It's just an easier way for communicating than writing a letter and going to the post office to buy a stamp."

The seventh reunion will be at Robidoux Row next Wednesday, and Ms. Sowell expects members from all over the country to attend. She thought it was crazy to think social networking sites could replace the need for reunions, and explained that getting to know the members has only made her more excited about the reunion.

"It's just made me want to get to know my online friends in person," she said. "My friends from California think it's amazing that I've kept in touch with friends from high school."

She wouldn't have it any other way.

"It's my lifeline to the world, and I just love it," she said. "You don't have to be young to go on a Web site."