To Honor A House Takes A Village

Cousin Eva with Charlie and Marta

Cousin Eva Legerer left today — the last of a passel of relatives and friends here to help with Our Grand Affair.  Eva came from farthest away – from Baden, Austria.  Barb Canney was the closest second, returning to her “second home” from Cohassett, Massachusetts.  From closer-by were  my son Charlie Howell from L.A. and my step-daughter Marta La Rue from Marin County, Cousin Donna Gwinn from Garfield in Eastern Washington, Kuzzin Kris Jones from Eugene in the state next door, Cousin Ruthie Mahoney and Cindy Soderberg from Mercer Island,  and Dick Hawes from Bainbridge Island.

Charlotte Killien and Cookies!

Let’s see — that makes nine, all of them staying here or nearby for up to a week and all focused on getting this grand old lady (the house) and its occupants ready for last Sunday’s “do.”  In addition were the Food Troops — friends and neighbors in the community who saw to it that we had plenty of delicious edibles throughout the week:  Gina and Cynthia and their Italian Dinner served on Friday night; Sandy Stonebreaker and chicken tetrazinni forever; Nanci Main and her zucchini pies; and Michael and Lynn Madigan and their cranberry muffins for the morning-after breakfast!  But the prize surely goes to Charlotte Killien who gifted us with two-to-three-dozen each of twelve kinds of cookies!!  OMG!

The Flower Girls – Marta and Pat

Pat Fagerland and Marta arranged flowers for every room in the house.  Then there were Tucker Wachsmuth and Ronnie Biggs who manned the cannon.  And Cate Gable who organized the musicians.  And, of course, long before the weekend arrived, the Rose City Mixed Quartet (Mark Peterson, Dale Webber, Helen Dietz, and Cameron Herbert) polished and fluffed the house and the lawn to perfection, and Maggie Stuckey organized I-don’t-know-who-all to see to the flower beds!

The party may have been for the 150th birthday of this old lady house but it was, in reality, a party celebrating community and friendship and sharing.  We’ll be basking in the glow for a long time to come.

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