Ramona men honor ladies at tea party
By JESSICA GILBERT
Ramona correspondent
(785) 965-2621
Exactly 70 ladies were at the tea party in Ramona Saturday. This was the magic number of seats we could fit into the Lutheran parish hall and still have beautiful decorations and room for a fashion show.
When two o'clock Saturday rolled around, I started to walk out of the kitchen and say hello to our guests when Bekah Hubbard (who also worked hard in pulling off this event) walked up to me. "You might want to dust the flour off your face," she said with a smile.
What a delight to walk out of the kitchen into a beautifully decorated room filled with gorgeous china and centerpieces of antiques and collectibles, and see 70 ladies, radiant and with hats on, already enjoying the atmosphere.
Serving instant tea goodies was quite an undertaking for Pat and myself. I was determined to prepare three different kinds of scones (classic cream, mudpie scones filled with hunks of Cadbury bars, and almond raspberry scones) with three toppings (strawberry cream, clotted cream, and lemon curd). And I wanted them all fresh within minutes of serving.
And then Pat saw four delightful sandwiches in the latest issue of the Martha Stewart magazine and she could just imagine seeing little tiered plates of sandwiches being delivered to every table. As a result, the parish hall kitchen was quite a frenzy of activity from nine in the morning until the tea started.
We were so busy in the kitchen that there were things we just couldn't do — like sit and chat with the ladies who came. We wished we could have heard the stories behind every heirloom or collection the ladies brought and shared.
And we were so busy in the kitchen that we neglected to introduce some of our helpers. Since we thought it was a nice idea for the men in the community to be serving the ladies on Mother's Day weekend, we had sons and grandsons carrying trays of goodies from kitchen to table.
Justin Hubbard actually came up with the idea of men in the community doing the serving. He was joined by our buddy Tool Time Tim, who is Frances Buxman's son. Tim and Justin guided younger boys like Tim's nephew, Cole Svoboda, and Jimmy Cheever in making sure tables were served efficiently.
Orvell Brunner's grandson, Tanner, was another star waiter. Fern Leach's son, Josh, was waiting on tables as well as Cindy Bird's son, Michael. It was a sweet moment of togetherness that we failed to mention until now because our focus was on sandwiches and scones.
We even had a gentleman from McPherson, John Holecek, who came in his tuxedo to help serve. He was driving his 96-year-old-aunt, his sister, and fiancée to the event. Since he was coming anyway, he agreed to help the Ramona men serve.
How many towns can boast such involvement? Two young ladies were helping in the kitchen — Emily Staatz of Ramona and Lexie Jost of Lincolnville — but they stayed out of sight and let the men be seen this year.
Emily asked me on Friday night when I would be getting up Saturday morning to start cooking. "I'll be here around seven," I told her, never imagining that she'd come help at that hour. But minutes after I walked into the parish hall to fire up the ovens, here came Emily. She took on the job of dipping the huge luscious strawberries in chocolate.
We love having the younger generation present at our events — although at times the kitchen does get a little hectic. One minute the whipped cream is flying everywhere because the beaters are aimed at the wall instead of the bottom of the bowl and the next moment 1/2 tablespoon of salt ALMOST went into a recipe instead of a 1/2 teaspoon because, "Who knows the difference between a big T and a little t?"
Some friends from Colorado even got into the act. When we were off buying groceries, they called from Missouri and left a message. "We're on our way from Branson and want to stay overnight in your bed and breakfast." We called them back and said, "You're welcome to stay overnight, but there won't be any time for visiting."
Pat and I thought Carroll and Arlene would just head on home, but at six in the evening on Friday, here they were in Ramona. They unloaded their suitcases at Cousin's Corner then walked into the kitchen at the church. "What can we do to help?" they said in unison.
Within minutes, Arlene was grating lemon zest and her husband, Carroll, was squeezing lemon juice so I could make lemon curd. They worked late into the night, investing in an event they wouldn't even see.
And other ladies helped make the event special, even though they couldn't attend. Naomi Fike had been anticipating this year's tea party since it was on her birthday. But she was still recovering from heart surgery and couldn't attend. "Go ahead and use my dishes," she said when we spoke by phone.
And Paula Fike called just hours before leaving on a trip to Colorado, offering two sets of dishes for table settings. Norma Bird, who had another engagement on Saturday, gave us permission to use any dishes in her antique store. Yvonne Brunner was with her daughter, Kat, at a competition and couldn't attend. But she graciously gave a gorgeous necklace and pair of earrings from her handmade jewelry business for one of our door prizes.
Other door prizes came from Total Image of Herington and Total Image II of Hillsboro, Bekah Hubbard, Mary Kay beauty consultant, and Cousin's Corner Bed & Breakfast.
Lisa Hanschu presented spring fashions from her Total Image clothing stores, as a tea party highlight. As I watched Lisa, her family, and friends, model the clothing, I felt grateful that even though none of these ladies still live in Ramona, they continue to invest in the town that was their childhood home.
The tea party was in such great demand we had a waiting list. So we've decided to hold another tea in the fall — different menu and theme. The date is Saturday, Oct. 19. We'll probably limit the seating to 50 so we can continue to serve freshly prepared foods — and still have time to visit with guests. If you want to be at this tea, call today and reserve your spot.
Paula Fike was playing hearts on Monday evening when I called to get news of their recent trip to Colorado. Other couples in the game were relatives from Canada — Lloyd and Lois Fike from Calgary, Alberta, and Ralph and Vina Fike from Carstairs, Alberta. This is Lois and Lloyd's fifth visit to Kansas, and a "first" for Ralph and Vina.
On Saturday, Warren and Paula headed for Ft. Collins, Colo., for their grandson's, Israel's graduation from grad school. Israel is the son of Glenda and Mike Jirak who live in Glade. Israel received his master's degree at Colorado State University in atmospheric sciences.
Kink and Darlene Sondergard spent Saturday near Lost Springs with their great-grandsons, who were celebrating their birthdays. The two little boys, age six and two, are sons of Brad and Amy Pagenkopf.
"All the grandparents and great-grandparents were at the party," said Darlene.
The next day, all of Darlene's daughters were home to celebrate Mother's Day. When I asked Darlene what was one of the gratifying things about being a Mom she said, "It's gratifying that they appreciate coming home."
In a small town, you can always tell when something's going on because there are "clumps" of cars in front of houses. If I drive around town on a weekend, I look for cars and that tells me who I need to call to garner news.
Treva Schneider's house was surrounded by cars on Sunday! Her four daughters and their families converged to celebrate Mother's Day. There were three daughters from Herington: Theresa, Tina, and Marilyn, and Thelma from Junction City. Sixteen folks all together. "We had a barbecue," said Treva, "but we ate indoors."
Frances Buxman's family came home on Sunday to have a barbecue, but were determined to eat outdoors, no matter what the weather. Pat and I got invited to the Buxman family gathering and while Tim barbecued, we huddled around the warmth of the barbecue to keep warm.
Picnic tables were set up in the garage and we all bundled up in our coats and proceeded to eat lunch. As my teeth chattered I said to Tim, "How many times have you had this outdoor barbecue when the weather was actually warm?"
He held up one finger. This was a determined bunch!
While lunch was cooking, Frances' daughters, Linda and Patty, were out in the yard planting flowers. "We brought a trunk full of flowers to plant around the house," they announced.
Joining the fun were Sandra and her family and Kevin and family from Marion. In other words, five of the seven kids were home for Mother's Day.
Emily Staatz stood patiently by the car holding a Tupperware container in her hands. "Where you goin'?" I yelled across the street.
"We're going to my grandma's house for Mother's Day," she announced as her mom Jane and sister Stefanie came out and climbed in the car and headed for Marge Stroda's house.
The contents of the Tupperware, I later learned from Marge, was a large roast. "The kids came and brought the roast and a gift and card, and we chatted for awhile. And my other kids all called," said Marge.
And there were cars around Marge Hanschu's house. I saw Jeanetta Hanschu Sunday afternoon with a stunning corsage, and there was a gathering at Norma's Antique Shop where I'm sure the Bird children were celebrating. Marge, Jeanetta, and Norma could all tell a story, I'm sure. But truth is, I ran out of time — it's past 10 p.m. and just too late to get the scoop.
And that's the news from Ramona where motherhood is being celebrated right on our front porch — with two new batches of kittens, but a traffic jam is still two parked cars and a dog in the road.
