Christmas Party 2005

December 12, 2005

by Chuck Wagner

A holiday riddle: What has a hundred legs, eats lots of  food, and passes Christmas decorations around like crazy? If you said a  centipede that Santa conned into helping make the Christmas season bright, your guess would earn you a lump of coal in your stocking. If you said the attendees at the Ballinger TBI Clubhouse Christmas party, you'd be one-hundred percent right! 

Upwards of fifty TBI survivors, caregivers, and friends braved the wintry elements of Northeastern Ohio on the evening of December 12th. Their reward was scrumptious food, the singing of Christmas carols, Yuletide camaraderie, and shared happiness second to none. As is the custom, everyone brought a covered dish to complement the food trays provided by Joni and Friends Disability Ministries. And, if the meal wasn't enough, Tim, a talented guitarist strummed Christmas carols softly throughout the evening. The highlight for many was another happy tradition of passing and trading Christmas decorations to the “Night before Christmas, pass-left, pass-right” directions given by Audrey Bodnar. There was even a gift bag for each person, also provided by the Joni and Friends, and passed out by Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer as interpreted by Ray Tenney, Santa's elf as interpreted by Lloyd Turner, and Santa Claus as interpreted by some old, chubby guy named Chuck.

If you came to the party this year, thank you for your covered dish, for your decoration, and for supporting the Clubhouse. If you missed this year's party, stay tuned to the News Link in the late fall. Who knows? You just might enjoy taking part in the Ballinger TBI Clubhouse Christmas tradition, a la 2006! See you there. But for now, Happy New Year!  

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