Food For Thought

The COVID-19 pandemic has cramped our family reunion styles in huge ways. Day-to-day time with relatives has been hampered by the dread of spread as well as social-distancing restrictions. Until the day when we are all free to convene and meet up en masse, we have consulted with a seasoned event planner with expertise in reunions, weddings and other family-oriented events for tips to assist you through the planning of in-person and virtual events. 

Plan to gather. 

Anthony Rodell, co-principal of Reid Rodell Event Planners based in Washington, D.C., believes we have little reason to stop planning our family reunions. He says, “The pandemic slowed down our physical activities and planning family gatherings, but it also inspired super creativity using technology as well as a few ‘old school’ methods.” 

Plan wisely. 

Anthony says, “Keep the health and safety of your clan as a primary focus in your planning and gathering.” Create a list of elders and infirmed relatives to distribute to family members. The point is to make individuals aware of those relatives who should have limited contact and who should be protected. He adds, “Use the list to remain in contact with people who cannot take the risk of being around others.” 

Plan creatively and with purpose. 

Over the past 18 months, Anthony has suggested that clients take advantage of time and to use it as an ally in building relationships and connections that can sometimes be missed at larger family reunions and gatherings. He has advised them to use extra time to show people you care about them and want to know them better. For example, he suggests:

• Consider micro-events that can take place in the regions and cities, where family members reside. “Smaller gatherings with people who have been vaccinated and who will wear masks when necessary are best to avoid spreading the coronavirus.” You can videotape or stream the gathering for missing members and it takes place any time of year – indoors and outdoors. 
• Stay in touch all year to discuss family matters and to plan for the big event when time and safety permit. Ongoing planning is a way to keep hope alive. 
• Establish timetables and ‘committees’ to send birthday greetings, drop off desserts or have food (flowers) delivered to elderly relatives, perform routine tasks like cutting grass or home maintenance, and invent ways to celebrate holidays safely. 

Here are a few ways to stay connected:

• Host driveway and garage gatherings for relatives new to you. Make it a potluck or catered event with buffet service and to-go plates and cups (for later). 
• Utilize a small event venue to digitize photos. Turn it into a party. 
• Meet at a local park to share a barbecue dinner (bring the Argia B’s MUMBO SAUCE and some line-dancing. 
• While the weather is good, plan hiking and bicycling family events. 
• Use a service like Streamyard.com to host a family talent show and recital. 
• Schedule Facetime or Zoom sessions with the elders to share and record their recollections of the past, especially the ancestors. 

“Reunions are about the people,” says Anthony. “If family members feel valued, then they can bear having to wait for larger gatherings to reconvene.” 

Chicago Southsiders are ready for the return of the annual Bud Billiken Parade and Family Festival on Saturday, August 14. The Covid-19 pandemic thwarted last year’s celebration and is in-part abbreviating this year’s, but we will take it. This year is the 92nd annual parade and family festival. The theme is “Back to School, Back to Life, Back to Bud Billiken.” Produced by the Chicago Defender Charities, it is the largest Black parade in the world, and the second largest parade in the country. The 92nd anniversary will pay homage to tradition while embracing contemporary culture and talent.

The tradition of the parade and picnic began in 1929. It is the largest African-American parade in the United States of America, and the second largest parade across the board. Held annually on the second Saturday in August, the parade route travels on Dr. Martin Luther King Drive through the Bronzeville and Washington Park neighborhoods on the city’s south side. Traditionally, the route ends in Washington Park as a family festival and community picnic. 

In 1923, Robert S. Abbott, the founder and publisher of the Chicago Defender, created the fictional character of Bud Billiken, which he featured in as a youth advice column in his paper. It has since grown to become a locally televised event featuring national celebrities that include politicians, entertainers and athletes. 

Myiti Sengstacke–Rice is Board President of the Chicago Defender Charities and Bud Billiken Parade Chair. Sengstacke–Rice is the great-grandniece of Robert Sengstacke Abbott, granddaughter of John Herman Henry Sengstacke, founder of the Chicago Defender Charities and daughter of the late famed photojournalist, Robert Abbott Sengstacke. 

The 2021 Bud Billiken® parade will run in conjunction with the traditional family festival in Washington Park, located next to Dyett High School. The family friendly back-to-school event will have food, activities for all ages, entertainment plus tons of giveaways for student participants. Festival activities will begin at 10 a.m. and conclude at 5 p.m. Nevertheless, a full parade is planned for 2022. ABC7 Chicago will broadcast the parade to be aired at a later date.

In a press release,  Myiti Sengstacke-Rice said, “There have been nine decades of youth empowerment and nearly a century of traditions that instill the values of education, heritage and community. After coming together for over 90 years at the Bud Billiken Parade, I am immensely grateful to have another parade.” 

We will be proudly participating in the Bud Billiken Parade this year and are so excited to be a part of this Chicago tradition. What are some of your favorite memories from the Bud Billiken Parade?

When you talk about Chicago and food, we believe that you cannot talk about it without mentioning some of the best-loved family and heritage brands in the City. We support them and believe you should know more about them and support them too as they join us in celebrating the return of the 92nd Bud Billiken Day Parade. 

The Parker House Sausage Company 

Parker House sausage and deli meats have been a Chicagoland staple since 1919, when Judge H. Parker, who came to Chicago from Montgomery County, Tennessee began selling his homemade sausages from the back of a horse-drawn cart. Parker House continues as a family-owned business started with one man’s dream to share his mama’s recipes and has now expanded over 100 years later to availability in grocery stores and to online shoppers. 

Baldwin Richardson Foods (BRF)

BRF began as Baldwin Ice Cream, an ice cream parlor started by a group of seven Black postal workers opened in Chicago in 1921 as Seven Links, the  first ice cream company owned by African Americans in the area. By the 1940s, the company expanded to seven locations and Kit Baldwin bought out his partners to become sole proprietor, changing the name to Baldwin Ice Cream. The brand would ultimately expand beyond the parlors and was sold in small grocery stores on the Southside of Chicago. In the 1960s, new owner Jolyn Robichaux brought Baldwin Ice Cream into more homes throughout the Midwest and into larger chain grocers, and opened as a vendor in O’Hare Airport. The company’s accomplishments have been many over the years, and now BRF no longer sells ice cream, but current owner Eric Johnson has helped the company grow exponentially as one of the country’s leading food distribution companies. 

Reggio’s Pizza

Southsiders know all about Reggio’s Pizza and their signature butter-crust pizza. Founded in 1972 by former postal worker John Clark and his family, the first Reggio’s was named after a fictional restaurant in the movie, “Shaft.” In 1982, the company opened a frozen pizza-processing plant at 340 West 83rd St, which continues to operate under the leadership of Shari Wilson who purchased the company in 2018. She is the first and only African-American woman in the United States to own, manufacture, and distribute a frozen pizza line. The company is still Black and family-owned with locations in Bronzeville, Chatham and three in O’Hare Airport. 

Harold’s Chicken Shack

Harold’s Chicken has become a worldwide legend thanks to famous Chicago residents who have sung the brand’s praises, literally and figuratively, in music and other works. Harold Pierce, an African-American Chicago entrepreneur born in Midway, Alabama, founded Harold’s Chicken in 1950 with his wife Hilda as H&H, which specialized in chicken feet and dumplings. A smart business operator, Harold franchised the idea out to friends and family who opened additional Harold Chicken Shacks throughout Chicago and in other states such as Indiana, Georgia, Nevada, California and Arizona. Harold’s corporation continues to be owned by a member of Harold Pierce’s family as Kristin Pierce-Herron is the current CEO. 

Like Argia B’s MUMBO® BAR-B-Q SAUCE., these four family-owned businesses have a storied past worth celebrating that includes heritage and reflects the history of the Bud Billiken Parade as a supporter of Chicago’s Black community.