Longboat Island Chapel hosts St. Patrick's Day lunch

This may be the only St. Patrick's Day that you can escape pinching if you forget to wear green. Luckily for those who didn't come to the Longboat Island Chapel lunch garbed in green, social distancing is still in effect. 

Chapel volunteers Valarie Evanko and Karen Pashkow put together a St. Patrick's Day lunch for March 17, which took place in the chapel's tranquil Friendship Garden. The women have been hosting outdoor lunches throughout the pandemic to offer a safe way for members to gather and socialize after Evanko got the idea in the summer.

About a dozen people showed up to the garden, with a few snowbirds seeing friends for the first time since the spring of 2020. Guests went around and introduced themselves, sparking conversation and discoveries of a small world as a pair who'd never met found out they were from adjoining cities. The only consequences suffered by those not dressed in green was a bit of good-natured ribbing before they were presented with a string of shamrocks. 

Evanko and Pashkow stayed busy as hostesses, making sure glasses didn't stay empty long and that their guests were never put out by having to hang onto an empty plate. After the main course, Evanko and Pashkow served lemon bars and mint chocolate Irish cream liqueur to cap off the afternoon.