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Clowning around at Elmer's

TIM CURRAN
THE MID-COUNTY MEMO

Between customer greetings, Taylor Ballard, Parkrose's representative on the Rose Festival Court and Rose Festival's Character Clown Corps' Boss Clown Angel Ocasio, mug for the camera. To help promote awareness for the Rose Meal - a collaboration between the Rose Festival, its foundation and Elmer's restaurants throughout Portland - the 2011 court was at Parkrose Elmer's for an entire afternoon last month greeting, seating and serving customers.
Mid-county Memo Photo/Tim Curran
Later crowned 2011 Queen of Rosaria, Franklin High School's 2011 Rose Festival Court representative Lamarra Haynes serves coffee to two of Portland's finest, from left, Traffic Division Officers Ladd and Close.
Mid-county Memo Photo/Tim Curran
For the second year in a row, the Rose Festival court made an appearance at Elmer's Restaurant in Parkrose last month, not only greeting and seating customers, but waiting tables too.

Their appearance is in support of the Rose Meal, a joint Rose Festival and Elmer's Restaurants program where one dollar is donated to the Portland Rose Festival Foundation for every Rose Meal purchased during a set period.

This year's Rose Menu included a Strawberry-Apple Poppyseed Salad and a Springtime Eggs Benedict breakfast entrée.

Customers received a free 2011 Rose Festival Souvenir Program with each Rose Meal purchased. All children visiting a participating location received Rose Festival coloring sheets.
Jerry Scott, Elmer's chief executive officer said, “Both Elmer's and the Portland Rose Festival are long standing traditions for families in the Portland area. Community support is extremely important because each Elmer's is locally owned and operated. The award winning Rose Meal program was developed in 2010, and we are excited that the success of the partnership has continued this year. We look forward to see what the next year will bring and finding more ways to showcase our favorite ingredients from the Northwest in featured Rose Meals.”

In addition to being innate over-achievers, these bright, confident young women applied skills learned at court orientations and the many personal appearances they make to step into a new role and easily connect with perfect strangers.

Three regular customers who meet weekly for lunch, and, who all happen to be Grant High School alums, were pleasantly surprised when they realized the Rose Festival Court was on hand to greet them. “Where's Grant?” John Leonard, class of 1947 wanted to know. After Maya Allen, Grant's representative on the court, who happened to be greeting customers, identified herself, the three alums spent so long talking to her at the front door, it created a knot of people waiting to get in. When finally seated, Richmond Dale, a classmate of Leonard's at Grant said, “What a great idea to have them here; what a fine group of young ladies, especially Grant's!”

After interacting with customers for an afternoon, not many 'strangers' exited Elmer's doors.
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