Ain’t no party like a Fellas party, and founding member Vernon G. Baker (still on the dance floor at 90) and Bennie Chiles, along with members Rois Bari, Carnie Bragg Jr., David Brown, Bennie Chiles III, Hector Estepan, Ivan Friend, Harold Freeman, Rayton Gerald, Albert Granger, Noel Hankin, Derrick Hostler, Benjamin Hubert, Stephen Johnson, S. Kenneth Jones, George Jordan, Reginald Manning, Neil Foster Phillips, Hobar Price, Mark Price, Chester Redhead, Chester Soliz, Eglon Simons, James Skeete Jr., E.J. Smith Jr., Albert Thomas and Donald Wilson, all make sure that it happens.
Taking the gavel from Ivan Friend was newly elected President Melvin Jackson, who is doing a fine job of keeping the tradition while taking the club to new heights, if that is possible. Dressed elegantly in evening gowns for the ladies and tuxes for the men, guests poured into the Doral Arrowood, located in Rye Brook, N.Y. for a weekend of fun, fun, fun. Club members meet Friday night to get the reveling started, with guests arriving early Saturday afternoon to take it up a notch, as they enjoyed the spa and other accommodations the hotel has to offer. By Saturday evening, the party is in full swing, beginning with the cocktail hour, followed by the dinner dance, and then the after party. The dinner dance, held in the grand ballroom is just like it sounds—grand. Among the many in attendance were Seymour James, Esq., and his wife, Brooklyn Appellate Court Judge Cheryl Chamber, Walter Lowe with Cheryl Wills, Toni Fay, whose brother George came to join in the fun, all the wives of the fellas, David Davenport and others too numerous to mention.
The after party took on a totally different ambience. Changing from heels to flats and even something less formal, guests were taken into a smaller, intimate room, where the band has broken down to a quartet, and everyone let their hair down. Literally letting her hair down was Debbie Jackson, who started the evening looking every bit like the first lady, with her hair in an upsweep. By the evening’s end, her locks were flowing.
The Fellas next soiree will be in June, when they will present their scholarship awards to some well-deserving students. Even though it won’t be a weekend affair, it will be an afternoon delight. Can’t wait.
Speaking of well-deserving students, NASA, in recognizing that space travel is in our not too distant future, is beginning an astronaut program for teens. You can go to the website to learn all about the details and how to apply. Can you imagine? Our children will be able to travel to the final frontier. It brings tears to my eyes to think what if Julia gets married and her husband gets a job on the moon!
As the year closes, condolences go out to the families of Maizie and George Henry. You may recall not too long ago I relayed sympathy for the passing of George. Well, it has just come to my attention that his loving wife, Maizie, passed on only three months earlier. They were a wonderful couple who always extended open arms to anyone who wanted to be embraced. Dr. Bernie Primm has passed as has Gus Jenkins, founder of Jenkins Funeral Home. I met Gus Jenkins when my uncle, Cordell “Brother” Palmer passed away in 1989. Gus was very personable as he consoled us with stories of his escapades in the Caribbean, where he enjoyed scuba diving along the corals and among the fishes. Also passing was Fritz Johnson, father of Raquel and grandfather of Jason. Fritz was a very popular figure among the Harlem social set during his heyday, when he and his late wife, Estelle, always enjoyed making the rounds. Fritz moved to Atlanta, Ga. to be closer to his family a couple of years ago, but he was never forgotten, and now he will be fondly remembered.
For years, we received an invitation to Brooks Brothers annual Christmas celebration. I don’t exactly know how we fell off the guest list, but I will put it on my to do list for the 2016 holiday season. I miss hearing Wynton Marsalis perform right before my eyes, the pass-around hors d’ oveures, champagne and a chance to sneak off and buy Charles a Christmas present. This year, as I understand it, the tradition carried on with activities for the children, including photos with Santa, balloon art and performances from the casts of the Broadway musicals “Something Rotten” and “Chicago,” as well as the Boys and Girls Choir of Harlem Alumni Ensemble. The event always benefits St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, and this year being the 11th was significant in that Brooks Brothers CEO Claudio Del Vecchio and Richard Shadyac Jr., president and CEO of ALSAC/St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, announced that the clothier is making a $20 million financial commitment for the addition of the Brooks Brothers Computational Biology Center at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. The facility, which is housed in the Kay Research and Care Center on the St. Jude campus in Memphis, Tenn., features 28,700 square feet of state-of-the-art offices and laboratories. Thus far, the organization has raised $12.3 million by collecting donations at point of purchase, as well as through product sales.
Now that the Christmas presents have been opened and the good cheer passed around, it’s time for the New Year, and you know what that means. New Year’s resolutions. I will continue mine to drink more water and possibly try to understand why something so healthy is such a struggle. I will pray for world peace, love and understanding; try to be of good service; and try to stop to smell the roses.
Until next week … kisses.