Location: Little Brothers - Friends of the Elderly
Date: Sunday, June 02, 2013; 12:30-4:00 pm
I had cancelled my shift at the ‘Avon Walk Closing Ceremony’ to
participate in this One Brick event.
There were two main reasons for this.
The first was the organization and reason why this event was being held. According to the ‘Little Brothers’ website, “Since
1959, Little Brothers – Friends of the Elderly, Chicago Chapter’s mission,
philosophy, programs and activities remain focused on alleviating loneliness
among elders. The need for social
interaction is critical to the human spirit—we believe that nurturing the soul
is as important as feeding the body.
And, while the number of elders served has grown by more than 35% in the
last five years, our mission remains firm – to relieve isolation and loneliness
among the elderly.” There is no
question that for this mission to succeed, ‘Little
Brothers’ relies on their tireless volunteers. Today’s event was their annual party to honor
these volunteers. One Brick would
proudly serve those who serve others.
The second reason was that this party was themed as a 50s style
event. I mean, that should clinch the
deal!
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| Even the flower arrangements were special |
As I entered the facility, I
could see this 50s theme prevalent everywhere, from LPs hanging off the
ceiling, a giant Elvis and Marilyn cutouts, to the soda and ice cream stations, as
well as the menu that was inspired from that era. There was a regular group of One Brick
volunteers such as Wilson, Tiffany, Rich and Irina. Our guests weren't there yet and the first
task was to decorate the place by placing balloons everywhere. Speaking of balloons, there were various
games that were planned, one of them being popping the balloons using darts. It was misty and slightly chilly, but it
seemed like the rain would stay away. We
moved the balloon game outside, along with some other games such as ring toss. It truly was going to be a 50s carnival.
Next, we got our 50s style
serving hats as well as assignments.
Irina and I were going to be inside the kitchen and as we went in, we
saw that several folks were already at work preparing the food. We helped with cutting and arranging the
grilled cheese sandwiches, but the guests had already started to arrive and now
they needed servers for the hors d'oeuvres.
There was a wide selection, including celery with cream cheese or peanut
butter, cheese and crackers, pigs in a blanket and mini PBJ sandwiches. I started taking various trays outside and
offering to our guests. I alternated
between the various options and one gentleman told me that he wanted to try
everything that was on offer, and so I made it a point to stop by him each time
I had a different tray. The room was now
buzzing with people and our appetizers were flying off the trays. I looked around and saw One Brick volunteers
at various stations such as coffee and soda as well as an ice cream root beer
station!
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| The fabulous desserts |
Once our appetizers were done, I
was assigned the task of escorting people to the buffet. Now, the buffet was also 50s inspired and
consisted of grilled cheese sandwiches, burgers, hot dogs, potato salad, tater
tots and fish sticks – not exactly something that would make a nutritionist
happy. If this is what they ate in the
50s, I failed to see how they would have been able to stay skinny! People seemed to be finding their way to the
buffet table without my help, so I went in and walked around the dining room. One lady had difficulty in walking and asked
if I could help prepare a plate for her.
I tried to do a good job with that and she seemed to be happy upon
delivery. I went back into the kitchen
and started helping arrange the dessert in the serving trays. This comprised of lemon cupcakes, some other
pastry and cookies. We had to arrange in
15 trays – corresponding to the number of tables outside – and it was a fun
exercise, trying to ensure that there was equal distribution in each. During this time I also got to talk to one of the
founders of this organization. She was
from France and had met her husband years ago, when he started a similar
program in France. When they moved back
to Chicago she had helped start the local chapter, and which was now a great
success. This, I could see for myself as
I took the trays of dessert outside.
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| Serving those who serve |
All the volunteers of ‘Little Brothers’ were now enjoying
themselves through hoola hoops, twist, dancing to Macarena or having ice cream
floats. Many were outside, playing
games. Wilson was in charge of the balloon
pop and handing out beanie babies as a prize.
He mentioned that some of them were collectors’ items and worth as much
as $80 on eBay. And to think that I had
been collecting movies! People were
quite competitive at this game and I had to stay well out of the range of darts
for my own safety. I helped run the ring
toss station for a bit, but soon people were starting to disperse. I started the clean-up job at the buffet
station by taking some of the stuff back to the kitchen. We tried to get the room as clean as
possible and before we left for the day, the organizers gave us all a cup full
of candy from the 50s. It has been a
wonderful party and a privilege. It
seems ages since my first article, where I said that I had started volunteering with the intention
of meeting heroes. Not only have I had a
chance to meet hundreds of heroes during my travels, today I actually got to
serve them. Because even Superman needs
an occasional pat on the back.
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