The BC Student Council hosted another successful Golden Harvest Thanksgiving for senior citizens. This event was created especially for the elderly to enjoy the food and company of others like at a true Thanksgiving dinner. Not only was this a great chance for Student Council members to serve and connect with the elderly, but more importantly, it was an opportunity for senior citizens to enjoy over an hour and a half of a Thanksgiving feast, live music, sing-alongs, and raffles. Over 200 senior citizens attended, all of whom were welcomed by a quartet from the BC Orchestra and left with a smile on their faces.

The traditional Thanksgiving meal was offered, such as turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans, bread rolls, and cranberry sauce, along with complementary drinks of water, milk, and coffee. Later, pumpkin pie and vanilla ice cream were served for dessert. During this time, the elderly could socialize with others at their table and listen to live music offered by select members of BC Band, conducted by Mr. Gillette. “My compliments to the cooks. The food was excellent. The company at my table was excellent” said Loren Gitzlaff, a senior citizen who attended the event. Another senior citizen, Lew Wilson, said “The food was very good.  And we have to thank the young people for all of their service that they gave us…everything was very good. The music was very good. Couldn’t be nicer!” After Mr. Gillette and his band finished performing various holiday tunes, Mr. Olson and three of his choir students—Abigail Owens (’16), Nicole Wahlgren (’15), and Lara Weiner (’15 )—continued performing live music. Each choir student sang a solo. Even Mr. Olson jammed out his own selections on the piano.

After the early Thanksgiving feast and live music, the senior citizens got to make their own music in a sing-a-long consisting of holiday songs and good old tunes.  Once again, Mr. Olsen stepped up to the piano and guided the senior citizens through upbeat and calming music. Even Student Council members danced and sang to a few songs.

To wrap up the night of festive activities, Student Council raffled off colorful pumpkins created by the art students at Brookfield Central. Each pumpkin had a different theme, from the Starry Night pumpkin to a pumpkin painted with faces to a pumpkin covered in gold and purple glitter. Although senior citizen Joanne Gitzlaff did not win a pumpkin, she said “This is my first experience here and I’m loving it. The food was good. The music was fabulous.”  Meanwhile, Doris and Ray Klitzke have been participating in the Golden Harvest Thanksgiving Dinner for several years. What made the event even more special was that they got to celebrate their 60th anniversary together on the day of the Golden Harvest Dinner. “We’ve been coming for about 4 or five years, and it just so happens to fall today on our 60th anniversary, November 20th…It’s a wonderful thing that they do—Student Council, the singers, and the players—it’s all wonderful” Said Doris and Ray Klitzke. “We really enjoy. We come here every year and we look forward to it.”