Seniors Have a Yam Good Time at the Annual Thanksgiving Luncheon

The served Thanksgiving lunch to members of the Beverly Hills Active Adult Club on Monday at the Roxbury Park Community Center.

"What's great about this is we get to give back to the seniors who support us so much," firefighter Melissa Hillis said. "We really appreciate their help."

Paramedic firefighter Dave Perusse, who is the BHFA treasurer, recalled a stand the city's seniors took about 20 years ago when the department faced a staff reduction of 11 firefighters.

"Here we are 20-plus years later putting on a luncheon for them. It's just an ongoing thank you," Perusse said. "We know if that was ever to happen again they'd step up and do the same exact thing."

Event organizer Judie Fenton, who heads Beverly Hills-based FTA Events and Marketing, was working alongside the firefighters to ensure that the afternoon was a success.

"The Beverly Hills Firemen's Association sponsors this Thanksgiving luncheon for their seniors every single year," Fenton said. "Every year it grows, and grows and grows because we have more seniors and people are living longer. It's great."

For more than a decade, the Koo Koo Roo Chicken Bistro chain has catered the meal, Fenton said. She estimated this year's turnout would be between 200 and 300 club members.

Fenton said her favorite thing about the luncheon is seeing "the twinkle in their eyes when [club members] see the firemen."

"When they get their invitation, they look forward to this," she said. "This is the highlight, probably, of all the activities that they do."

Club member Shura Piterman said the luncheon usually attracts "a very lively crowd."

"It's a wonderful turkey they give us," he said.

Marty Hillman and Ruth Kutner agreed.

"It's an outstanding thing," Hillman said. "I'm very grateful to be here."

Kutner said she enjoys the luncheon's atmosphere.

"That's the important thing," she said. "As a senior, where they do these things for you, it's wonderful."

The club is affiliated with the city's Recreation and Parks Division. Membership is free for Beverly Hills residents and $5 annually for nonresidents.

Bernice Kaufman-Lubin, the club's refreshments chairwoman who has six recipes in the Beverly Hills Active Adult Club Cookbook, said she enjoys events such as the luncheon because "we have a wonderful group of people who come here."

She noted the importance and accessibility of club events.

"People who are handicapped can come and enjoy an hour of entertainment," Kaufman-Lubin said. "People can come with their caregivers, with their wheelchairs, with their walkers, and they're welcome here. We make them feel at home."

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