Page 42 - August 2017

Chillin’
on a hot day
Annual Lodge 7 Picnic provides members with a welcome break to spend time with family and friends
n BY NICK SWEDBERG
n PHOTOS BY JAMES PINTO
Nicolas Morales usually has just a few minutes each morning to see his 2-year-old daughter, Cecelia, before he heads off to work his shift.
So the annual Chicago Lodge 7 Family Picnic on July 13 offered a welcome chance for the 33-year-old officer from the 8th District and his wife, Jennifer, to enjoy some qual- ity time together as a family at the event they’ve attended the past three years.
“My daughter, she can come here and play with oth- er kids, go on the rides and have fun,” said Nicolas, who has been with the Department for five years. “Whatever chance my family and I can get on a day off, we try to do something. This is just awesome.”
Hundreds of officers and their families set up tents and grills on the grassy fields at Gaelic Park in south suburban Oak Forest. Carnival rides blinked and whirled as the de- lighted screams of children and carnival music filled the humid summer air on the park’s north side. An ice cream truck parked not too far away from the rides offered a cold and creamy reprieve to any one warmed by the July air.
Lodge 7 Financial Secretary Michael Garza said it is “priceless” to see the looks on the faces of his fellow offi- cers’ children enjoying themselves.
42 CHICAGO LODGE 7 ■ AUGUST 2017
“We’re all friends and family here,” he noted as perhaps the overwhelming theme of the day.
The annual get-together – described as a “perfect fam- ily picnic” – encouraged veteran and young officers alike to get together with their families and their fellow officers. While kicking back over picnic food with relatives inside one tent, 57-year-old Paul Gregoire, who retired in 2015 after 29 years on the job, said he still comes back to the event to support his CPD Officer nephew, John Gregoire, and his family.
“They can get out here and enjoy the rides and be able to mingle in a relaxed atmosphere,” Paul said. “You have to get away from all the stress of the job and spend quality time with your family.”
John Gregoire, 44, who’s been on for 22 years, said the camaraderie from the event is vital because officers get to catch a breather and be with their families “without work.”
This summer has been a tough one for Chicago officers requesting time off from work, Lodge 7 President Kevin Graham said. As a result, the picnic is a chance for Lodge 7 to take care of the entire police family in a safe environ- ment.
“It’s great that for one day, at least, we all can get togeth- er – because we’re all in this together,” Graham said. d
Beyondthe Beat