When the Insider asked me to cover the 10th annual Concord Boys and Girls Club alumni dinner, I jumped at the chance. “Special Correspondent Noelle Kjellman.” It had a nice ring to it. And it was my very first on-location assignment.
My heels clacking on the sidewalk, I approached the entrance to the Boys and Girls Club. I swung open the door and asked two gentlemen if they could point out my contact person and organizer of the dinner, Paul DeAngelis.
DeAngelis came striding over to me in his sky blue sweater, a sparkle in his eyes, and shook my hand. He told me a little bit of the history of the alumni organization.
He said that 10 years ago, they had five guys and raised $55 to hold a spaghetti supper that 81 people attended. Last year, 318 people attended the dinner! I asked him if he was expecting that many this year, and he said he hoped so. He showed me the gym, which was set up with tables decorated in gold, green and maroon tablecloths with fall centerpieces. He told me that all the prizes for the raffle were donated, so the money raised from that, along with the ticket prices to the dinner, would all go back to help support the club.
As organizer of the event, DeAngelis had plenty to do, so he directed me to Tom Parizo, director of operations. Parizo kindly took me on a tour of the Boys and Girls Club.
Besides the gym, the club certainly had a lot to offer. There was a media room, an art room, a computer lab, a homework/ movie room and a variety of pool and foosball tables for children ages 6 to 10 years old. And this was just upstairs.
Down below, in an area focused on older children ages 11 to 18, there were large, comfy pieces of furniture, pool and foosball tables, a chalkboard wall, a weight room/fitness area, an art room complete with a pottery wheel and, to my amazement, a climbing wall! How cool is that? It's something I certainly didn't expect to see.
Back upstairs, it was time for the dinner. I watched as a line stretched three quarters of the way down the gym to get served at the window to the kitchen. Alum feasted on pot roast, potatoes, rice, rolls, brownies, cookies, chocolate cake and more homemade delights. Singer Bobbi-Lynne Cote and Tom Yoder performed.
DeAngelis was presented with a plaque for his 10 years of coordinating the dinner. He received a standing ovation from the crowd and said, “You'll make me cry here if you keep that up!” A check from the annual golf tournament for $5,000 was also presented to the Boys and Girls Club.
Although attendance was down about 75 people this year, everyone seemed to thoroughly enjoy themselves.
For more information about the Boys & Girls Club, visit concordkids.org.
Noelle is an editorial assistant for the Monitor, but agreed to moonlight as an Insider writer. Muchas gracias, Noelle!
