With the children still in school, we opted this year to have a Rotary Christmas Fellowship lunch in place of our annual Family Christmas lunch.   Prior to the beginning of our Christmas festivities all members in attendance were  asked to vote about our preferred location for our regular lunch meetings, staying at the Banquet Center or returning to the Travelodge.  Voting results to be provided on the 9th of January and our new or old location for lunch to  be initiated in mid February.  While some business was discussed via Happy Bucks and Club Business, the meeting focus was simply on Fellowship and the Christmas spirit.  A full turkey dinner with all the trimmings was provided and a box of chocolates was provided to each  member of the club by Gleaners Foodbank and one  of our guests Suzanne Quinlan, Director of Operations.  The chocolates were a way for Gleaners to thank Rotarians for their generous donations of Christmas hams , a total of 42 hams, to round out the food distribution over the holidays.
 
Suzanne Quinlan, Director of Operations of Gleaners Foodbank (Quinte) Inc. explained how we were in receipt of a box of chocolates for each Rotarian.  Suzanne had received a call a couple of years ago from Stover's Chocolates in Pennsylvania and asked whether Gleaners could use 30 skids of chocolates.  They happily accepted the offer and still have about 1-2 skids left of the chocolates that they are distributing with their hampers as well to other individuals and groups.
 
Selina, our exchange student sang two Finnish Christmas carols for us which were Enets valtaa, loistea and Heinilla, harkien, Kaukalon.  Both songs were beautifully performed and we are truly blessed to have such an artistic and musically gifted young lady as our exchange student.  She certainly enhances our meetings with her musical contributions.
 
John and Wanda Chisholm led us in  a couple of Christmas carols accompanied as always by Rudy, who not quite prepared to give up on providing music for the day, led us in an impromptu rendition of Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer to complete our musical entertainment for the day.