Thursday, January 31, 2008

Put The PA in Party! Sid's 75th!

This past Sunday was my dad's 75th birthday bash.

With a group of family and friends acting as stellar cooks, caterers, busboys and electricians we pulled off a fantastic celebration of my dad's life so far.

There were just short of 200 guests from all aspects of my dad's life. Colleagues from both Catlin Gabel and Charles Wright (my dad was a teacher for those not in the know), professional acquantances, Portland friends, a college friend or two and lots of family were there.


We held it at Catlin Gabel in the school's lunchroom, a converted barn from the old farm days of the property. For those familiar with The Barn you know how fitting a place it is for a CG alum or retiree to have a gathering.

Cousins Katherine and Stu, my mother and I planned the entire event. There was beer and wine, Stu smoked fifty pounds of beef onsite and acted as chef, aunts Alice and Debby made fantastic salads. Stu's girlfriend Hilary handled signage and nametags and balloons and making it pretty. Kat and Stu had custom shirts and hats for the organizers to wear. There was music and a microphone and words from Sid himself.

For me this was an opportunity to recognize the importance of my dad in my life. He's been there for me countless times and it was nice to be there for him this time. As was evident by the turnout and the overwhelming sense of fun, many others feel similarly.

There are more pics coming soon. But a few here show cousin Stu carving beast; my dad talking with Greg Wentworth; nephew Nathaniel enjoying cake.

For those of you that were there please post a comment about your favorite parts of the evening or whatever strikes your fancy.

B!

2 comments:

steeplechase3k said...

For me, as one of the helpers, but also as an Alum of Catlin, it was an amazing evening. I really enjoyed seeing teachers from throughout my 13 years at Catlin. They ranged from my First grade teacher to the Physics teacher I had as a senior.

I posted some thoughts to my Blog:
http://mentalandbarmy.blogspot.com/2008/01/happy-birthday.html

Bruce, thank you for asking that I be a part of this, it was an honor to help out for your dad, and a ton of fun for me personally.

When you do this again in 25 years, let me know!

Anonymous said...

Thanks Bruce for the info and pictures!
Mary Anne