Happy Tears, We Promise-
This year’s holiday party was much different than it has been in the entire lifetime of this company. In the past it was only Melissa, Kori and Victoria. Then there was a few more (as we slowly collected our amazing group of professionals) …and this year, we had a grand total of close to 60 people: our 20 or so of the Freemind Seattle team plus significant others and families. Our biggest celebration ever, it is incredible. If you would have told the three of us what this year was going to bring us way back in March of 2020, we absolutely would have asked to borrow those rose-colored glasses you must be wearing.
Freemind Seattle is more than the sum of its parts, each person who joins the team brings with them more talent, insight, empathy and drive than we could ever have imagined. We laugh waaay more than we’re serious, but we’ll never let that stand in the way of doing an excellent job for our clients. Melissa and Kori are so proud of everyone who has worked with the stress of the pandemic and personal stressors hanging over them. This party was a way to get out of the office, home offices included, and interact with our colleagues with absolutely no work on the agenda. So, please enjoy this brief glimpse into our holiday celebrations at the office and family party at the Musuem of Flight (be sure to click into the images for more comments and descriptions).
Party Vibes-
Directional sign to the Skyline Room for the Freemind Seattle Holiday Party
Our holiday party was hosted at the Museum of Flight (how very Seattle of us, right?). We ate, we drank, we explored the museum. The Seahawks game was on the projector and Melissa had curated a playlist for the evening. There were raffles for the adults and kids alike. People shared stories from over the years and made plans to make new ones with new co-workers. Kids were introduced and friends were made. It was a great time!
You’ll notice that we do not have a group photo of the entire Freemind Seattle team at the Museum of Flight…that is one of the few things that we are not good at. While we may have a fabulous time together on a regular basis and enjoy the team building that happens whether planned or off-the-cuff, we are terrible at remembering to take a team photo. When that fact was brought up in the group chat, the response was simply-
“The best parties often don’t get group photos.” -Shelley Trudeau
Therefore, the only logical conclusion is that Freemind Seattle throws the best parties :)
The People
Not everyone could make the party, and we missed them terribly, but we did have enough of the team to introduce some folks face to face for the first time! And we got to meet so many of our teammates families! Spouses, partners, parents, loved ones, children and more!
[From left to right] Ashely and spouse, Meg (with spouse behind Ashley), Heather with her two children and spouse taking a rest while exploring the Musuem of Flight
The Food
Catering provided by McCormick & Schmick’s did not disappoint. Along with a Freemind favorite, a Tator Tot bar…there was a full spread of food for everyone to enjoy. Plus! The most festive (and delicious) cake around, supplied by our accountant from his favorite bakery.
The Ambiance
When the view out the floor to ceiling wrap around windows is overlooking a working tarmac, reminding (some of) us about the days when you didn’t need a boarding pass to go through security at the airport, and you could watch the planes take off after seeing your loved one off on their trip, the only thing that can top it- is seeing the planes themselves up close and personal. And the mini pine trees and poinsettia/cuetlaxochitl (kwet-la-sho-she) center pieces of course.
The White Elephant in the Office -
After our official party with friends and family, Melissa had another fun day at the office planned for us! A ‘White Elephant’ gift exchange- which is where you bring a silly gift, nothing to fancy (ours was a limit of $10), and the team draws numbers to take turns selecting a surprise gift to open. You’re allowed to steal an already opened gift from someone of course, but that can only happen so many times before the gift is locked down and can’t be stolen again.
The office was decorated with festive wrappings and trim, there was breakfast and snacks and lunch, gifts under the tree and so much chatting and fun. The White Elephant gifts ranged from classic stocking stuffers like cookies, snacks, hair accessories and nostalgic games to the cozy necessities of tea and books. We all had some trinket to take home with us to celebrate the season.
Final Thoughts-
Every year it seems like we are always caught up in the amazing opportunities we’ve been given and the challenges we’ve overcome. Thinking, ‘WOW, I can’t believe we accomplished that!’ And then the very next year we are saying the same thing. thinking there is no way that things could ever get crazier or surprise us again. This is something that we will gladly be wrong about every time. We love that what we do for a living is constantly serving up surprises, challenges and opportunities. It may very well be the reason that most of us got into this field of work. Because it’s not for everyone, but for everyone that it IS for- it’s an incredible thing to see a plan come together. Especially so when it’s your own group of scrappy and stalwart professionals pulling it off :)
No matter what you celebrate or where you celebrate- Happy Holidays and happy New Year from Freemind Seattle. May your 2022 have ended with peace and your 2023 be as incredible as we know it can be. We’re in this together, we’ll see you soon.
Merry Christmas, Nollaig Shona! Feliz Navidad! Mele kalikimaka! Maligayang Pasko! メリークリスマス! Frohe Weihnachten! Kala Christougena! Selamat Hari Natal! Selamat Tahun Baru! Joyeux Noël! Happy New Year! Feliz Natal! 01001101 01100101 01110010 01110010 01111001 00100000 01000011 01101000 01110010 01101001 01110011 01110100 01101101 01100001 01110011!
<3 Freemind Seattle