Porch Party Beginnings

During the Pandemic our retirement community (VMRC) here in Harrisonburg, Virginia was locked down tight.   All meals and newspapers were delivered to our doors.

 

People who lived alone were really alone.  Betty Brunk, a retired social worker. was going stir-crazy.  So, she started the Porch Party. 

Every afternoon at around 2:00 they (anyone who chose to go) went down to the front porch for an hour or so  - this is every day - unless it's 40 degrees or less.

Yes, they sat out in their ski jackets, scarves, gloves, blankets and their MASKS! 

 

I go down most every weekday.  Sometimes 6 show up, sometimes 12, and we watch and chat with the visitors, workers, residents and deliveries come and go.

By summertime we' requested a fan and more chairs.  (They nixed the heater idea.)  If we run out of chairs, people sit on their walkers.

We laugh, we talk, we learn, we care and sometimes we "just set a spell".  I've become the designee for checking Mr. Google .  The other day they had me look up:  "Why are they called BING cherries?" We liked the answer.*

We sit with different people most every evening at dinner.  Sometimes these dinner "dates" are set up ahead, sometimes we run into someone in the hallway, and sometimes we sit down and the hostess brings us a surprise couple or 2 women or 2 men.

 * p.s.  One of the things we learned was:

 The Bing cherry is named after Seth Lewelling's Manchurian orchard foreman and friend, Bing.    It was cultivated in 1875 in Oregon. 
p.s. Bing was  7 feet tall.