Home > Gwinnett > Rick Badie / My Opinion > Archives > 2007 > December > 03
Monday, December 3, 2007
“Ol’ time rock-n-roll plays well at Annandale Village”
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
At Annandale Village, they like that ol’ time rock-n-roll.
You know the kind. It soothes the soul, makes you reminisce about whatever. Or maybe just makes you want to dance, which is what many of the residents at Annandale Village did Sunday during their annual holiday party.
The youth group from Northlake Church of Christ in Tucker hosted the event. They provided the snacks and served as the occasional dance partner for the villagers. And the Grin & Bear It Band, a Gwinnett-based charity group, provided the tunes.
“They know all our songs,” said lead guitarist Hal Zwicke, of Snellville. “We play here five times a year. We’re like their house band and we get a stage, something we typically don’t get to perform on.”
The four-piece band has performed for Annandale Village in Suwanee since 2001. Lori O’Donohoe, Northlake’s associate youth pastor, asked the group to play a holiday party. The band members and Annandale residents - who suffer from mild to moderate retardation, brain trauma or some other developmental disability - struck a chord. It’s been a party every since.
When I got there Sunday, the band was tuning up and the residents were arriving via van from their cottages. One of the residents wanted to know if I had any intentions of cutting a rug or holding up the wall. I told her I’d love to do the Electric Slide, but I had to work. She may have bought the excuse.
Several residents found me a curiosity. Some wanted to talk or shake my hand. Others kept safe distance. Those minutes of uncertainty, of trying to decide whether to say ‘hello’ or not say anything weren’t unnerving, just uncomfortable. Hannah McCord, 16, a member of the Northlake youth group, could relate.
“It’s neat,” she told me during a break in music. “But I feel bad when I don’t understand what the [residents] are saying. Sometimes I don’t understand what 2-year-olds are saying, either.”
For me, the occasional awkwardness provided a better sense of something that Sandra Weaver, the activities coordinator at Annandale, had told me about the Grin & Bear It Band, and what made them special.
“You don’t always find a band that fits,” said Weaver, who’s worked at Annandale nearly two decades. “With this band, the residents have really connected. They are comfortable and the band members are comfortable. The [band members] are great with the residents and they never charge us a fee, which is very unusual.
“And they just keep coming back.”
The band performs more than 30 shows a year, mainly for nursing homes and facilities like Annandale. The group slacks off during the holidays to spend time with family and because other groups - church choirs and school groups - are out and about performing for charity.
“We could play every week if we wanted to,” said Zwicke, the lead guitarist and band spokesperson. “We’re booked six weeks in advance. We are able to corral our talents together to help others. It’s inspiring.”
Very much so.
For more information about booking the Grin & Bear It Band, visit www.grinandbearitband.com.
Rick Badie’s column appears on Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays. Contact him at 770-263-3875 or e-mail rbadie@ajc.com.
Permalink | Comments (0) | Post your comment | Categories: Rick Badie
