Caravan of Hope

It’s been tough and scary for all of us grown-ups but what about children? When our friends were forced to cancel their 3 year old’s birthday party, we organized a caravan and drove by as the family watched from their driveway. Some gifts were left on the curb, and a birthday song was blasted from the lead truck. Neighbors must have been notified—some were sitting in chairs in their front yard cheering us on.

As you can see, young Jaxson Reeves was duly impressed, getting a hug from his big brother Mason, as Mom and Dad Johnny and Dominique took it all in.

Chalk Walk

Setting out some sidewalk chalk with a note to take a piece and add to the ‘art’ up and down the street seemed like a nice idea. Sitting in my home office, I could see people stop as they walked by, many walking their dogs, some alone, some with their kids. A lot of people walk where I live, and I’ll be doing this again. Like castles in the sand, the efforts all washed away in the rain, but the sentiment did not.

Fullerton-What’s Cookin’

Before the ink was dry on my last column about Heroes and other downtown restaurants, plus some downtown events, everything had changed. I headed out to see what was happening on St. Pat’s day and saw Jack Franklyn in the alley between Heroes and Roscoes. He had closed all of his restaurants and was not likely to make a go of take-out, and said he really did not have a way to make a profit from that. He vowed to pay his employees what they were owed and hoped things would change in a couple of weeks. It now looks like a couple of months. The events we spoke of were all cancelled. Many retailers were hoping to stay open but then they closed as well. There was a lot of confusion regarding if all had to close and today, as I write this, we know most businesses are closed or are operating from home, trying to find ways to stay afloat, all hoping the relief package gets everyone through this. We’re in it together, and perhaps, finally, we will all act like it.

Almost immediately, there were some posts on social media from some who decided they would try to make take-out only work. Bourbon Street also offered FREE delivery and takeout only from 3pm-9pm and The Bowery made sure you knew pizza was available by ordering online. The Slidebar stepped up and offered “Kids eat free” from Tuesday-Friday, 4pm- 8pm. Bootlegger’s Brewery offered up “Essentials To Go” with items like eggs, milk, butter, pasta, toothpaste, cotton swabs and more, along with, of course, beer. Angelo’s and Vinci’s, The Twisted Vine, D’Vine, Back Alley, and many others also are offering take-out, with many adding delivery options, too. To see the latest locations that are participating, read on.

This Facebook page (Fullerton-What’s Cookin’) popped up and many restaurants quickly joined so we can all find out where we can get food while the closures are in effect. Many local restaurants posted specials, menu items, pick-up times and more. Fullerton-What’s Cookin’ quickly caught on and Fullertonians found a new way to support our local businesses, even in a time of trouble. We have always promoted shopping and dining in Fullerton first, now it is critical. Just found another source, www.dinefullerton.com, which is also constantly being updated.

Photo Quiz

This time, I don’t know the answer, maybe you do. Is this a home (below) above the Muckenthaler Mansion? It definitely is Fullerton, not sure about the structure but maybe it is even still here? Send your answer to Mike at AllMedia@sbcglobal.net.