A Celebration of LIFE! (What a party!)

Oh, my goodness, did we have a great time! On Saturday, August 15th, Theresa and I ran the music for an event called the "Celebration of Life" party, which was held out at the Jack and Judy Buchler farm in Gleason , Wisconsin. In spite of the economic and physical hardships suffered by some who were to attend, or perhaps because of it, they decided to throw a party and invite everyone they knew to come to their farm for one day and CELEBRATE LIFE.

PHOTOS: Not all the photos are posted in this article.  See the rest of them here:
 https://picasaweb.google.com/Rib.Ticklers.ABC/CelebrateLifeAug152009#

I can't do it justice, but here is the scene as I remember it:
An expansive rolling valley, accessed via a dead-end road and a half-mile gravel driveway. Bucolic and idyllic, but the opposite of rustic. This is the Buchler farmstead, beautifully maintained, with a glorious home and 'barn' perched on the side of a wooded hill, overlooking a picture-perfect piece of Wisconsin. Only the balloons tied to the mailbox and an invisible electricity in the air tell visitors that today is meant to be a special day.

As you travel the drive, you notice the area set aside for the horses. Cars are parked here and there and a golf cart is busy ferrying attendees to the house from the parking lot. Approaching the house, you see the yard games set up to the right, tents and tables up near the house, and the beautifully decorated 'barn' on the left. The garage is open, and the food has already started to arrive.

I could go on and on about the setting, but the bottom line was this: We had an awesome day and a huge amount of fun providing the music and leading the dancing for this event. During the early part of the day, we played two hours of reception music, with a focus on artists specifically requested by our hosts. The mood was light, the music upbeat and uplifting. From our vantage point, we were able to see all the different activities, and we played music to match. At five o'clock, all 150 guests gathered around the house for a moment of celebration, a few short speeches, a song of joy, and a great cheer for the banner of life that was raised in celebration. More food was served (there was truly no end to the food, and every morsel was scrumptious) and then it was time for the horse-drawn wagon rides, the water balloon toss (balloon fights was more like it) the golf lessons, the badminton, and more food. Did I mention there was a lot of food?

We had a tough time keeping up with all the different activities, but we managed somehow. We had two different computers going, playing reggae, Caribbean and beach party music for the balloon toss, interrupting it with balloon splash sound effects. Whenever the wagons would approach, we tossed in clippity-clop sound effects to let people know they should line up for the next wagon ride, and we played old-westerns and trail ride music and various horse and old west sound effects while the wagon was in earshot. With a shortened version of 'Happy Trails to You' we sent each wagon ride off, then went back to the dance and party music.

Finally, around 8:00, when darkness started to fall, and we began to see how fabulously the whole area had been lighted for an evening party, one of us moved up to the 'barn' to set up the dance hall while the other played music to the crowd. Originally the dance was scheduled for 7:30, but people didn't really shuffle over to the 'barn' until about 8:45. Apparently they were having too much fun enjoying the unbelievably beautiful weather, and we didn't care a hoot. As long as everyone was having fun, we just kept the music going. I keep saying 'barn' because this building was a 'barn' in the same way that the White House is a 'house'. Not that it was a massive structure by any means, but that it no longer resembled anything you would put cows into. I don't know what it looked like before it was renovated, but what I saw was a magnificent outbuilding with a thirty-foot porch lined with lights and filled with patio furniture (a truly wonderful space to sit around with friends) a very functional first level to store - well, barn-like things, the lawn mower, tools, whatever, and an upstairs loft area that had been converted to a first-class dance hall, complete with wood stove (which we didn't need). I have serious barn-envy. 

When people did mosey in to dance, we did our usual ABC thing, teaching people how to do some basic Square Dance moves, tossed in a few singing calls, line dances, polkas and waltzes, and it was an enormously successful end to our part of the day. We had at least 60 people packed in, and there was so much laughter, clapping and revelry that it was sometimes hard to hear.

As I look back on that day and night, I feel honored to have been able to participate. I have never been to any event, anywhere that was better planned or better executed. It was a joy to see that many people, some from as far away as south of Chicago and further, all getting together to remember all that is good in their lives. I want to thank the Buchlers sincerely for including us, and for giving me pause to look at all the wonderful things we have and to CELEBRATE LIFE!!!