Night Out x2

At the Citizen of the Year Banquet.

Chuck is growing his hair, mustache and sideburns for an upcoming event. He plans to go back to his clean-cut ways once that event is over, but I kind of like this look. 

Photo by Ed Johnson

Earlier this month Chuck and I attended the Feast or Famine dinner on Mardi Gras night. That event is intended to bring awareness to the world's hunger problem. This year was a little different and it focused on the needs of our local community. The speaker was our newly elected county council member Stan Flemming. He is a physician and has spent time in Haiti helping with the medical needs of earthquake victims. He and his cousin built a clinic there.

So he talked a bit about the needs of people there, and the needs of people in our community.

Last time I went I was assigned to the group that got thin broth. Only 10 percent of the population is assigned to the feast, and for this event that means a prime rib meal with baked potato, salad, etc. The middle group gets enough, but not anything extra, and the largest population receives the broth.

This year there wasn't broth. The largest population got red beans and rice. I really like red beans and rice, so I wasn't disappointed. For me the prime rib was not a desirable meal, but that's because I don't really eat steak or red meat.

Our table won the desert auction and chose a decadent chocolate cake. 

Last weekend was another night out for us, but this time we took the kids.

The Citizen of the Year banquet was held at our local civic center on Saturday evening. We were guests of a nominee who happens to be a volunteer at the Key Peninsula News. We had four who were nominated, but they all do more than just volunteer for the paper.

There are many small communities within the larger community of the Key Peninsula. Each one is unique and has its own story. And each one is functioning because of the many people who volunteer in so many ways to make things happen.

The banquet is put on by the local Lions Club, and people nominate volunteers they believe are deserving of recognition. I think most of the nominees invite guests to fill their table for the event. There is a raffle and drink tickets for purchase.

Each nominee is recognized, and at the end of the night there is one volunteer who is chosen as the Citizen of the Year. It's a nice way to give a nod to those people who devote so much time to making things work.

We run the photos and bios of each nominee in our paper. I admit it is a total pain in my rear to get all of this information put together, then it goes to the layout person who probably has an equally painful experience. But it's something our readers enjoy. They like seeing their neighbors in the paper and reading about the many things they are volunteering for in the community.

The fire chief was a nominee but couldn't attend, so Chuck was asked to stand in his place during the recognition ceremony.

I'm not sure the kids really paid attention to much. They were waiting for the chance to play a Wii or watch a movie in another part of the building.

The dinner was catered by a local chef, Dorne Webster. There were many local dignitaries in attendance, and we made our rounds.

This is a busy month. It's not over yet.