We have had the annual Holiday Reception of the CDC Association at Mecklenburg Gardens for the last three years. And each year, it gets better and better. And easier and easier. Which makes me, as the lead host, happier and happier.
The big back room can accommodate a big crowd very nicely. We always have 150 plus, and the room is comfortably full, with tables for those who want to sit and eat, and lots of standing room for those of us working the crowd. The Christmas decorations are wonderful – Ann and Tom Harten must like Christmas as much as I do. And the Christmas tree this year must have been 20 feet tall, with huge ribbons and lots of presents underneath.
The food is excellent, comfy, warm, solid – this year, spinach dip in rye, hot pretzels, lots of great white cheeses, a frittata thingy, big dessert trays and I’m not sure what else. I was working the crowd – and the registration table, and introducing folk. We had tickets for the bar.
Plus lots of room for my son Brian’s band to play, places for CDCs and sponsors to display their literature, and a sheet on the wall for our powerpoint to play. A nice homey touch. As a matter of fact, that’s what our new partners on this event said over and over. It was homey, it was comfortable, felt like a neighborhood.
Which is exactly what we want for this holiday celebration of community development and community developers. Hurray for Mecklenburg’s!