A wonderful crowd of parishioners and friends again gathered for the Social Justice Group-hosted Melbourne Cup lunch in Our Lady of the Adelaide Hills Hall on 7 November.
Indeed, our Melbourne Cup Lunch is so famous that we had people flying in from interstate (Margaret Way) and London (Terry Porter) just to attend!
Before watching ‘The race that stops the nation’, guests were treated to a cold glass of bubbly, a delicious lunch of chicken and salads, and a yummy dessert of pavlova and mixed berries.
Hills legend and expert in all things horses, Geoff Oliver, gave a most colorful account of his qualifications for judging the ‘Best Hat’ competition before awarding the two prizes to Mary Way and Helen McFadyen. Geoff was impressed by Mary’s floral arrangement, while he tells us Helen’s very smart fascinator took his fancy. As you would expect, the sweeps were well patronized and after the big race was run and the results confirmed, the hall was filled with a mix of happy and disappointed punters. Fr Fred’s early ecstasy – his horse led for the first few hundred meters– faded to gloom as the long race unfolded and his charge slipped back to finish near the rear of the field. There are so many to thank for such a wonderful day. Of course, there’s the Social Justice team who so generously give of their time and in so many other ways. Then there’s Gloria and Paul Howe (we’re thinking of adopting them!) who donated the raffle prizes and brought along the Mylor crowd, not to mention Gloria preparing the simple but so elegant flower arrangement.
Our thanks, too, to Connie Golding for bringing along her family and friends, and all those parishioners who came along to support us. It means a great deal to the team to see you all enjoying yourselves.
Finally, thank you Fr Fred for building the hall so that we can hold such wonderful community celebrations.
