Annual pasta dinner at the Omni is about giving back

The 15th annual Italian Night is taking place this year on St. Patrick’s Day. For the last 12 or so years, the Quinn family has been intricately involved: Mom, Dad, Sean, and Conor.

When the family started, Suzanne Quinn said, “Conor, the little person, gave hugs. Sean would help with passing things out.” She estimates the boys were about 4 and 6. Today the boys do everything.

The Quinn family started with Community Caregivers when there was Caregivers Kids. Suzanne said there was also  a song, “Teach Your Children Well” by Crosby, Stills and Nash  that inspired her.

She went on, “Community Caregivers provides services to the community, but I felt strongly children should give back, from the get go.”

So the boys were pen pals , through 4H, with a resident at Kingsway. And then they got involved with Caregivers Kids where they raked lawns and did odd jobs for families.

When the time was right, the family became involved  with the annual pasta dinner at the Omni in Guilderland. Today, they practically, really, do it all.

They have help. The Guilderland High School Key Club has helped. This year the high school’s Honor Society will help. The members of the organization serve the dinners

The Quinn boys and their family set the tables, make decorations, get the room set up, and do all the leg work for donations of food and prizes for drawings. Suzanne said her role in recent years is to give advice mostly dealing with getting started two to three months out.

“Go early,” she tells her sons. “You have a better chance of getting people involved.”

The theme this year is “You are the stars.” During the spring break, the boys made the decorations.

In the past, they have asked other groups in the community to get involved. One year, Westmere Elementary made the decorations.  Last year, a friend of the boys volunteered to play music during the dinner.

Suzanne said, when her family took over the event, her intention was to make it a party “of who they (the residents) are and what they’ve contributed.” She added, “The  relationship you make with the folks is more valuable than the activity itself.”

That song, “Teach your Children Well,”  convinced Suzanne she wanted her boys “connecting with the world. If we start small, it’ll grow bigger, the contributions and the sense of community.”

Next week, you’ll hear from Conor and Sean, now 16 and 18,  and how they handle the annual pasta dinner. Suzanne and her husband have every right to be proud. Community Caregivers is proud, too, that this family takes on  this activity.

The CC staff provides letters for vendors and follow-up thank-you letters. It should be noted that Greg and Nellie Goutos are also involved with the dinner. Greg is a past Acting Executive Director of Caregivers, a former board member, and member of the Finance Committee,  and a longtime direct service  volunteer.