No one left with her hair on fire. But there was a bit of sizzle, thanks to the “hot melon” appetizers.
Approximately 60 Navy spouses from Everett, Seattle, Whidbey Island and the Kitsap Peninsula gathered at Naval Station Everett on Tuesday to attend an all-day workshop devoted to military topics.
The event included seminars on important issues for military families, including a presentation on survivor benefits and a discussion of how to help children deal with changing schools because of military-mandated moves. The size of the crowd impressed organizers.
“We’re thrilled. This exceeded our expectations,” said Monique Mobley, president of the Northwest Region Officer Spouse Organization.
The workshop is the organization’s biggest outreach effort of the year, Mobley said. And while some Navy spouses came to pick up information, it was also a chance for them to socialize and expand their support network.
“It was very encouraging and worthwhile,” Margaret Nichols of Oak Harbor said. Her husband, Marine Col. J.D. Nichols, is commanding officer of Marine Aviation Training Support Group 53 at Whidbey Island Naval Air Station.
Nichols said one class stood out above the others.
“I have four children, and I think the information on children in schools was the most helpful,” she said.
Nichols also took plenty of notes during the day’s most lighthearted fare.
Carol Dearth, a cookbook author and new host of the public TV program “KCTS Cooks,” gave a humor-filled presentation on how to plan the perfect party.
“This is homework, ladies,” Dearth said as she pointed them to handouts featuring recipes for hot melon skewers, marinated shrimp and other tasty dishes.
Military spouses often are asked to put together parties, ranging from welcome home celebrations to farewell fetes. When Dearth asked audience members to close their eyes and imagine the perfect party, with great food, appreciative guests and an artfully arranged spread, then told the crowd to imagine themselves as the host who pulled it all together, some people laughed.
Dearth, though, told how she has hosted gatherings from three-for-dinner to 230-for-cocktails and said it isn’t impossible. “I know what it’s like to open the front door and have your hair on fire,” she said.
Dearth, who used to teach stress management and honed her cooking skills during her husband’s 26-year Navy career, gave a start-to-finish class on party preparation, from planning to cooking to set-up to celebration.
“This is not rocket science. You can do this,” Dearth said.
Not everyone was convinced; one person asked if she catered. But many were inspired.
Nichols, for example, said she was going to call a friend, the wife of a Marine stationed at Twentynine Palms, Calif., to share the tips she’d picked up. Such skills don’t come automatically, she said.
“We aren’t born knowing how to do this,” Nichols said.
Reporter Brian Kelly: 425-339-3422 or kelly@heraldnet.com.
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