Wow—what an evening! The first-in-recent-memory AONE Holiday Party held on December 9th at the Larz Anderson Auto Museum was a smashing success by any measure.

The Museum itself is beautiful at night, with soft lighting bringing out the warmth of the antique wood and stone surroundings. Cloth-covered tables had been set up for us in the center of the Museum’s main hall, where we were surrounded by many classic old cars in the Museum collection, which added to the aura. We were greeted by no less than four members of the Museum’s staff, including the indomitable Elln Hagney, undoubtedly the sparkplug of the organization. They were ready and eager to provide us with anything we needed—a table for the Yankee Swap gifts? No problem. Another to display our club regalia? No problem, and they even arranged our goodies for us so that they’d never looked better.

At one end of the hall, three other tables were set up—our wine & beer bar, the dinner buffet, and the hors d’oeuvres table, which became the center of attention as everyone began to arrive around 7 pm—over forty of us at the final count. The hors d’oeuvres (assorted phyllo, grapes, meatballs in Sam Adams sauce, vegetables with various dips) were delectable and elegantly presented. We savored them all, sipped our beverages, and mingled for a while, feeling far more courtly and refined than at most of the Alfa events to which we’re accustomed.

After some greeting remarks were delivered by both Elln and AONE President Tom Lesko, we were called to dinner (sliced herb-roasted chicken breast, wild mushroom ravioli with olive oil, garlic and mushroom sauce, Basmati rice pilaf, maple glazed carrots, Asiago vinaigrette and Caesar salads, breads), all quite delicious. Holiday-flavored table centerpieces brought by Ellen Silverstein added a further touch of grace, and many of us got to take them home afterward. [And I got to use Elln and Ellen in the same paragraph!—Ed.]

Next came the Yankee Swap. Here, everyone brings a wrapped gift and draws a number. #1 selects a gift from the pile, unwraps it, and keeps it. Then #2 selects a gift, unwraps it, and can either keep it or swap it for #1’s. Thereafter, each number selects a gift, unwraps it, and can either keep it or swap it for any previous gift. (At the end, #1 gets to select any gift from the entire lot!) It’s a load of fun, and the gifts ranged from bottles of wine to battery tenders to espresso cups to tie rod ends. There always seems to be a gift that stands out in popularity and gets swapped many times over, and this time it was a shawl, which was worn temporarily by several of the ladies present before ending up wrapped around the final set of shoulders. Diane and Kelly Murphy did a superb job planning and running our Swap.

Dessert was then presented, and comprised a decadent assortment of holiday cookies and candies. But what’s a party without entertainment? And who better to entertain us than ourselves? So we handed out copies of the official AONE Holiday Songbook and started singing some tunes (with organ accompaniment) containing lyrics that had been, uhhh, modified to include more Alfa content. Everybody was singing somewhat tentatively at first, but by the time we had five or six of them behind us (songs, that is), we were really belting ‘em out!

Coffee and tea (and more desserts) were served, and at around 11 pm things began to break up—too soon, it seemed, since everyone was having such a fine time. We’d like to thank Tastings Catering and their staff, who did such a marvelous job preparing and presenting our feast—do consider them if you’re planning a soiree of your own. We’d also like to thank the extraordinarily friendly and accommodating staff of the Larz Anderson Auto Museum, and our club presented the Museum with a donation of $500 as a way of showing our appreciation and support for all that they do. Finally, we’d like to thank Kevin Murphy, who conceived the idea for our Holiday Party and worked diligently to make it all come together. You can be sure that this event will be on our calendar for many years to come!

(Click on the thumbnails below for a larger view,
and then use your browser's Back button)

	Joviality abounds as the crowd mingles over cocktails and hors d’oeurvres in the early going
	Our AONE club regalia never looked better than as presented by the Museum’s talented staff
	LAAM’s Manager of Visitor Services, Events, and the Gift Shop Elln Hagney greets us with her usual unbridled enthusiasm
	Here’s the gang seated and enjoying the dinner presented for us by Tastings Catering
	Our diners are surrounded by vintage automobiles such as this ... this ... well, it’s not an Alfa Romeo
	The Yankee Gift Swap presents are piled high before being ravaged by our revelers
	Hard to imagine a lovelier elfette to call out the Yankee Swap numbers than Kevin & Diane Murphy’s daughter Kelly
	Joe Fenstermaker can’t disguise his pleasure when he unwraps a rare 50th Anniversary Giulietta poster from Alfa Romeo...
	...only to lose it moments later. Hey, that’s the way Yankee Swaps work!
	Our mother-and-daughter Yankee Swap Team
	Maureen Letourneau can't wait to get home and try out her new angle grinder
	Tom Lesko's figuring that good things come in small packages
	Judy Durso dashes for the sidelines in hopes that no one swaps for her bottle of wine
	Ellen Silverstein displays a great framed photo of a Giulia GT
	Diane Murphy watches as Diana Thomas examines the vintage of the wine she just unwrapped before deciding whether to swap
	Kevin Murphy, Jane Murray, and Walter Powers study the Holiday Songbook lyrics; Tom Lesko appears to have them memorized
	The musical entertainment engaged for the evening was vivid proof of the maxim, “You get what you pay for.”
	Inspired, President Tom Lesko belts out a solo during our holiday sing-along; Jane Murray appears unimpressed.

Home ∙ About AONE ∙ Current Issue ∙ Past Issues ∙ Next Events ∙ Photo Gallery ∙ Our Sponsors
Info Center ∙ Tools For Loan ∙ Classified Ads ∙ Club Store ∙ Search ∙ Forum ∙ Links