Home
| Paying Tribute to Mom |
|
|
| Sunday, 09 May 2004 | |
|
Published Sunday, May 9, 2004 1:00 am by Leslie Jones McCloud Mothers in Boca and Delray can consider themselves cherished. They will be among a few local women either being saluted by their children at Mount Olive Banquet Hall in Delray or bestowed with gifts of love by the Rotary Sunset of Boca Raton. Both groups felt this Mother’s Day shouldn’t pass without recognition. Christine Bennett is among the cherished. Her 16-year-old Atlantic High School son, Montre Bennett thoughtfully penned a tribute in her honor. “I was just writing in school one day and it came to mind. I’m retelling how my mother carried me for nine months and had me on early on a November morning and that’s where we first met. I knew then it would be a wonderful relationship,” he said. Montre doesn’t have a tribute penned for his grandmother yet but that’s only because she asked him to focus only on his mother. “But I could surprise her,” he said. These women, dubbed Ladies of Distinction, on Saturday will become a part of a long-standing tradition with roses and tributes written by their sons and grandsons who are a part of the mentoring program Knights of Pythagoras. “This is our way of showing our appreciation and saying, ‘Thanks Mom, we love you,’ Leonard Mitchell, coordinator of the 10th Annual gala event, said. “May 9 is not just another Sunday. It’s the one day in the year that we set aside to honor that special person in our lives, if we are lucky enough to still have her,” Mitchell said. Delsa Bush, West Palm Beach Chief of Police, is expected to be their keynote speaker. The Knights of Pythagoras is a mentoring group for boys ages 8 to 17. The group meets monthly, and members interact at least three times a week with their mentors. “These kids are not bad kids, just misdirected. Kids want to be a part of it,” C. Ron Allen, the group’s founder said. He said a $1,000 civic award got him started 10 years ago and the group has grown steadily ever sense. Right now they have 19 boys. One of the biggest things they teach, he said, is respect. But Allen’s is not alone teaching life lessons to youth. The Rotary Sunset of Boca Raton will be sharing the love and warmth that comes with Mother’s Day with members of the community who may not have anyone with whom to share the special day. The club’s teen and elementary division will help distribute fresh-cut flowers, cards and teddy bears to seniors at local nursing homes. Danielle Prusaitis, 10, of Boca has been working steadily all week. She said she wants to make sure the mothers she visits at Heritage Park West will have an enjoyable day. She has been helping her little sisters 4-year-old Sarah and 5-year-old Jessica prepare goodies as well as keeping up with her Girl Scout activities. “I’ve been making happy Mother’s Day cards with my little sisters to give to the mothers at the home. Mothers Day is like a day where you celebrate all the stuff that mothers do for people,” she said. “My mother helps me and takes me places and loves me and hug me. I got her bath salts. I made it myself,” she said. With the help of her father, Rotary Club member David Prusaitis, Danielle and her sisters will join the other youth in Rotary Poteract, for elementary aged children and Interact for high schoolers in passing out home made cards and fresh flowers. “We’re going to the rooms and stuff and we’ll give them cards and stuffed teddy bears and flowers,” the 10-year-old said. She said her friends at school thought what she was doing was really cool but that is not surprising to David Laporta of the Boca Police Athletic League. He said he’ll be busy during the pre-mother’s day event too but not just being nice to the residents of Heritage Park West. “It’s important we teach the kids volunteerism. Rotary does a lot of good for the community,” he said. “We’re handing out small white stuffed teddy bears with a red heart. We’re doing this to bring a little joy to these mothers,” Laporta said. Laporta will be on hand to help the children and the senior mothers at Heritage Park West and the other nursing homes they plan to visit. Members of the Haven and Girl Scout Troop 563 will be on hand for the event as well. “Those people are so lonely, nobody visits. These kids bring so much cheer to their life – it’s so heartwarming that it actually brings a tear to your eye, he said. The bears, cards and flowers will be distributed between three different nursing homes. David Prusaitis said the whole event would end with a huge barbecue. The Rotary Club members plan to use the whole day for the event to emphasize togetherness. |
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|