Memorial Day at CARE

Today is my last day here at CARE, I pull out tomorrow morning at 8am..  The day begins at 0500, getting dressed and ready to first walk Spencer then at 0600 go in and see if the volunteer cooks have shown up to get the lamb and turkey ready and into the ovens.  Today I will help if needed but otherwise just take photos of what is going on..

Trying to light pilot on oven, never got it on. Had to use the small oven for the Lamb

George getting the Lamb and turkey ready to go into ovens.

Our Turkeys

George again working on something.

First thing in the morning we arrived and had problems with one of the two main ovens so had to change game plan and use the small oven to cook the Lamb. Both the Turkey and Lamb made it into the oven at 06:30.

Opened the doors at 07:20 like any other day

My man Todd ( AKA Banana Man ) also a card shark..  LOL..

Breakfast was done as always from 7:20 to 9:30 am. Only difference was a whole lot more volunteers were around. Prep work continued as the residence ate.

Lake And Laddie doing prep work

Barbara doing more prep work

Carol 

Carol again

Volunteers put in a lot of time and effort to insure all went as well as it could. This was something we could do only as a group, and I have to say here and now I would be proud to work with any of them again.

   As soon as breakfast was over at 09:30 we started to change things around to reflect the theme for the day.  It is Memorial day and we wanted to show that we still honer our vets. The following photos try to show as close as I could a step by step change of what was done. I think the red tables show off everything the best.. When the residents started to arrive each table had napkins, utensils, bread, fruit, along with the US flag and a flag of one of the services or POW/MIA flag. Also changed out the every day table cloths for sometime more in line with the day.

L really liked the way things looked at this point.

YES!!!! I was also working in between taken photos..

So now that everything is ready to go in the oven, or on the stove we had time for a short break to shoot the bull...  AND boy can some shoot it good!!!!  LOL....


Now time to check to see how things look... Almost time for people to start showing up...

Lamb ready

Turkey Ready

Mashed Potato ready

Gravy almost ready

Last min. items set to go in oven or on stove.

Time to start carving Lamb

Carving Turkey

Shortly after taken the Lamb and Turkey out of the ovens people started to arrive.

First to arrive was one of my favorite Clyde the seeing eye dog

Sitting down waiting for service, today was not buffet style, We served everyone at the tables..

Each "resident was greeted at the door with a red rose.

Once the first one showed up it was like a dam broke, people came in from three different ways.

This is Pat, she loves me....  LOL... 

Crowed being seated before service can begin

Folks had a good time talking and enjoying themselves 

Only dog allowed into the CARE Cafe...

Not sure what to say about Hal, Gerry, and Sonny

  Now time to serve the food and see if it is as good as it smells.

Three of the men did all the serving to the tables.

Kitchen volunteers plating the food as orders came in.

This was a volunteers plate, he really likes mashed potatoes.

After everyone ate I went around taken photos of some of the residents, a lot more smiles then I have seen in weeks...

Photo following is of the people that take the time and volunteered here at CARE and put on this Lunch.

I do believe a good time was had by all....