March's 'Home for Dinner' by Local4Local4Local brought Bushmen Enterprises (bushmen.ca), Key Lime Athletic Wear (keylimecanada.com) and Memories Through Story (memoriesthroughstory.com) into the Ronald McDonald House together. We decided upon a taco bar fiesta theme for dinner, and once again the amazing Elaine Wilson (alliumfoodworks.com) was a godsend of knowledge and sourcing for finding our needed ingredients locally, and how best to prepare pulled beef and pulled chicken for the tacos. The 'crueset' style dutch ovens at the house were put to great use to braise the chicken and the beef early in the afternoon. When we arrived at the house at 4pm to begin preparing our taco fiesta, the house was already alive with the wafting aromas of a Mexican cantina! One of the coolest parts of this dinner was the 'mini chefs' that joined us in the kitchen! The children of Bushmen and Memories Through Story joined in on the fun, and were fantastic little helpers in the kitchen! It was a fantastic way to teach the calue of volunteering AND have fun at the same time! And being in the house with the children and families who are fighting for wellness was a great gratitude reminder for all...

Our first greeting upon arrival was from a Grandma who was happily packing for a trip home. Her grandchild who is in care at Stollery was able to go home for a few days, and Grandma was getting everything in order for the family. She expressed her delight that Local4Local4Local was in the house to cook dinner that evening, saying that the meals that our organization and the other communities and families that participate in the 'Home for Dinner' program provide are a blessing to the families in residence at the house. She shared what a relief it is at the end of days that are so weary after caring for the needs of both the child in care as well as their siblings all day to arrive back at the house from the hospital and be able to sit down to a hot home cooked meal and not have to think about making dinner. One more reinforcement that our service in the house is needed and appreciated.

Our menu for the evening was a Taco Bar with ALL the fixins: Pulled Beef & Pulled Chicken, braised 'low and slow' in a mix of chili base, created by Cooks Corner, and stock. Homemade Pico De Gallo Salsa. Homemade Guacamole. Cheese. Sour Cream. Diced tomatoes, peppers, jalapenos, lettuce, cabbage. Hard and soft shells. Hand cut tortilla chips and some decadent Peach and Mango Salsa, both created by Cooks Corner (cooks-corner.ca). YUMMM!!!

OH... and NO PRESSURE. But the Board of Directors for the house was meeting at the house this evening. So we fed them, too! An honor to shake hands with the group of individuals who so lovingly care for some of the needs of the house.

And then when dinner was done, there began a fun game of BINGO! Our junior chefs were ALL to happy to forego dish duty for a bingo dauber and the prospect of winning one of the fun prizes.

And the evening closed with a tour of the brand new suites... Beautiful. And how exciting that the house can now accomodate 32 families!!

Once again, our evening, hearts, and lives were warmed by being of service in the best 'house' in Edmonton. Our hearts and tummies left full. Thank you, RMHNA.

Last Wednesday was an epic day. It was a day that I had anticipated and feared, all at the same time. It was the fruition of a dream brought to life: my dream of being of good service to an incredibly worthy charitable organization, and of inspiring others to do the same. I feared many things: speaking at the event (without weeping ~ this journey is near to my heart, as a mother and as a heart-driven business woman), failure in procuring all 24 needed businesses to begin the journey, and most of all, the weight of upholding the reputations of all of the businesses on board weighed very heavily.
And so it was that the big day arrived... and it was not without incident. I was in a car accident that day, our chef for the evening, Elaine (don't worry ~ I'll come back to her in a moment) had lost power in her commercial kitchen that day ~ it was a day where Murphy and his crazy laws ruled the roost!
My vision for the evening was that the business representatives would arrive and mingle, getting to know each other a little before eventually meeting in the kitchen, be taken on a tour of the house, and realize fully how important they are to the process. People arrived, many of whom I had never met outside of emails and telephone calls, and it was somewhat stilted. Not a whole lot of mingling.
Then the amazing Jen Panteluk, the evening's representative for the house, took all but a few of us (who - except for our chef, Elaine, had already been on a tour) through the amazing house in its entirety. They saw the kitchens, family rooms, games room, exercise area, underground parkade, family suites, mother's rooms, quilt room, and 'magic room'. (Want to know about the magic room? Reply to this blog post!) Suffice it to say that the group of Local4Local4Local business people that returned after the tour were a different group. The question of "WHY" am I here? had been answered, and you could almost see the sleeves rolling up in preparation to get into the kitchen and get cooking!
Speaking of the kitchen... one of our on board businesses is Allium Foodworks, a personal chef service operated by Elaine Wilson. Elaine kindly provided our DIVINE and tasty treats for the evening... which, again, we will revisit.
My children, Owen aged 9 and a half and Amanda aged 5 and a half, attended the evening with my husband. It was such a great feeling to have them there. Amanda was born premature, and her arrival was not without incident. Our short 10 day stay in NICU following her birth was challenging. 10 days. There are families that have been at the house for 10 months. 10 months. Perspective.
The individuals attending the function each introduced themselves,
shared their business functions, and shared WHY they chose to participate in Local4Local4Local. It was where the proverbial rubber hit the road. Many shared how they felt as parents touring the house, and feeling such empathy for the families in crises that the house's four walls enclose. Some spoke ~ with tears ~ of their own experiences with children who had suffered illness or crisis, and as a result they were able to empathize very strongly. Still others just shared the passion of insight into what other human beings face as their 'reality' and for which we hold them as heroes and wish to make life just a little easier.
My children also granted some humour to the evening. Upon completion of the tour, Jen Panteluk asked the group if they had any questions below returning downstairs. Amanda piped up, and said "I will give this tour FIVE out of FIVE stars!"... Then after I had finished my verbal presentation, I also asked if anybody had questions before we made our way into the kitchen for treats. My son put his hand up, and when I asked him to speak up, he spouted out "Kristi Hammond, can we please eat now?"... Comic relief is always appreciated.
Back to the kitchen... after my long speech, in which I set out some protocol and policy for our organization (read: DRY) we FINALLY got to 'Mangia!' on some delicious and delectable treats (which I helped to prepare!!) by the incredibly talented and humorous Elaine Wilson of Allium Foodworks. She served red bean empanadas (YUM!!), pesto, beef, and cheese baguette bites, crudites and dip, dark chocolate fudge and black bean brownies, and some refreshing punch. We ate well. 
While all of this was going on, a few families of the house were also hanging out alongside us. Their presence and reality were a reminder through the evening as to WHY we were there. I fell head over heels for MORE RMHNA little people: Baby E who has undergone heart surgery and is a sweet little cherub who offers smiles and coos a-plenty. Baby D who has undergone a FIVE organ transplant, and whom I was able to cuddle at the end of the evening, tubes and all, as he smiled, coo'd, and pulled at my earring. And my little friend, D, who is recovering from a liver transplant and is now inexplicably wheelchairbound as he suffers from 'doctor puzzling' back spasms. He is wise far beyond his years, matter of fact about his physical condition, and wants nothing more than to experience a 'normal' day. 
And so it is that our journey officially begins. We are 24 local businesses, who are coming together in groups of three, once per month, to make a small difference in the lives of families living at The Ronald McDonald House Northern Alberta. We are committed to supporting our local economy by buying all food for our dinners from local sources as much as possible. We are committed to doing well by doing good. We are committed to being ambassadors of the house and its families as well as of each other.
And we are committed to make a difference. Together.