Goading My Dad

Last night, I had to attend an annual fundraising event which is held each year at the Grand Ballroom at Navy Pier. This is the third year that I’ve attended it and, aside from the requisite ‘networking,’ I usually have a pretty good time.

This fundraiser is for a large agency that serves people with disabilities and there is usually a very inspiring keynote speaker for the evening. Waiters amble around with trays of stuffed mushrooms during the dreaded ‘networking’ portion. However, I encountered one waiter who had a tray of little toasts topped with liver patè, popped one in my mouth and almost leaped out the door to spit it into Lake Michigan.

Last year, the keynote speaker and award recipient was Anne Roosevelt, granddaughter of THE Roosevelts and looked exactly like her wonderful grandmother. I got to meet her afterward (and blogged about it).

Last night’s speaker and award recipient was Senator Edward Kennedy. He couldn’t make it due to health concerns (my guess is that he probably mistakenly ate some liver patè) so his son, Edward Kennedy Jr. filled in.

Of course, he gave a very inspiring keynote address, lots of money was raised from the 800 or so attendees, and aside from the horrible patè encounter, it was a fine evening.

As the crowd was thinning, I noticed that he and his entourage were moving sort of close to where I was standing while waiting for one of my co-workers. Soon, he was even closer.

Next thing I knew, he had his back to me, turned around, and so I introduced myself, gave him a very warm handshake and thanked him for his work.

Edward Kennedy got to meet me! Don’t you know that just made his trip to Chicago worthwhile?

(Governor Quinn was there as well, but he didn’t have the pleasure of making my acquaintance that evening. Maybe next time.)

Anyway, as I was walking home last night, I phoned my dad up to tell him that I’d met Edward Kennedy. I did the same thing last year when the granddaughter of Eleanor Roosevelt got to meet me as well.

Keep in mind that my dad is a staunch Republican in Texas. He has personally met Newt Gingrich and has a framed photograph of himself shaking hands with President George W. Bush. I often hear Fox News in the background when I call. (Dad knows I love and respect him anyway despite his lifestyle choices.)

So, we often have some good-natured fun, goading each other on this way. He wanted to make sure that I hadn’t let on to Edward Kennedy who my father was.

I pointed out to my dad that his eldest son has now shaken hands with a Roosevelt AND a Kennedy.