Page 11 of Charm on the Rocks
Madison had to hand it to Katella, even though the young woman touched upon her grandfather’s death, her voice didn’t shake. Her eyes seemed to turn a blue-green color, but besides that, she really managed to keep it together. If something like this had happened to Madison, she’d probably be the same way, except maybe not as eloquent as Katella.
“I know you’re probably wondering what this is about,” Katella began, and then turned to the white board. With her left hand, she began to write out the words Season Activities. “I guess before we discuss that, I should give you some quick background on me and what I do. My name is Katella Hanson, and I am Ken Brown’s granddaughter, Ken being the owner of the Gulls. Former owner, I should say.” There it was. A crack. Vulnerability. But then, just like a magician made rabbits disappear, her sadness was gone. “I apologize. Now my sister, Seraphina, is the owner. I have my own company that focuses on doing charity events for various corporations, celebrities, and sports teams, including the Newport Beach Seagulls. As such, I coordinate the event, what happens, who shows up, the theme or the message of the event, the venue, the catering, the music if there is any, that sort of thing. Normally, after every hockey season ends, I sit down with my grandfather and we discuss the events we want to do next season. What charities do we want to support? What should we do differently? How can we involve fans from all financial backgrounds? How can we incorporate the team players more? That sort of thing.
“Well, I wasn’t able to do that last season with my grandfather due to a conflict in schedule, and I never got the chance to.” Another pause. Madison watched as Katella gritted her teeth, as though she had to physically force herself to carry on. “I managed to throw a real shitty ‘Day at the Beach’ together last minute because I was already working on the idea due to it being the first event the Gulls throw. By the way, let me apologize for the unoriginal concept of that event. Normally, there’s something more unique about it, even if it’s just the title.” More chuckles, more smiles. Katella seemed to have an easy time getting people to like her. “Well, besides that lame attempt at a charity event, there really is nothing left in the plans when it comes to these events. We have acquired four dates throughout the season to throw these events. Here, I’ll write them out.” She turned and wrote out Saturday, October 30, Saturday, January 28, Friday, March 18, and Thursday, April 7.
When she finished, she set the marker down on the banister and wiped her hands together. “Which is why I called this meeting,” she continued. “I understand that you’re all required to be at these events in order to show spirit and to get the fans pumped. To make people feel welcomed. And I thought that since you’re going to have to encourage excitement, you guys should be excited to be there as well. As you know, I have my hands tied with a lot of stuff but even so, these events are in my top three, priority wise. It’s just, I want you guys to have a say in what we do. I want you to help me coordinate. I promise that school for you guys will remain the most important factor in your life – after family of course – but I want to be upfront and say that this may mean there will be more meetings like this one called throughout the season since we’ll all be working together. However, I promise that unless something serious happens, I’ll be here and I’ll get everyone food, whether it’s breakfast, lunch, or dinner. So food will be taken care of; I just need you guys to get here. If you can’t make it for whatever reason, please let either me or Lara know as soon as you can.”
Faye raised her hand and was promptly called on. “Do you know when these meetings will be so we can make sure we’re able to come?” she asked, her voice sweet.
Madison and Amanda shared a look.
“No, because it honestly depends on the Gulls’ season,” Katella replied. “But for now, let’s go with every Tuesday night at seven o’clock. If there is a game or an event or something along those lines, we’ll reschedule.” She knelt down and grabbed something out of her bag. “Here. I’m passing out a clipboard with a sheet on it. I need every Girl to give me your full name, the phone number I can best reach you at, and the e-mail address you check on a constant basis. Most likely, if I have to reschedule or have to call an unscheduled meeting, I’ll shoot you guys an e-mail, so please make sure you check on a fairly consistent basis.”
Katella handed the clipboard to Erica, the Girl closest to her, and stood back up. “Now, when I say I need your help, I really mean it,” she said with a smile. “I would love to hear your suggestions about what we should do for the remaining four events. Obviously, there’s the traditional A Night Out with the Gulls, where we went out The Canary and everyone dresses up and people get a chance to meet the players in October, and then there’s the Casino Night on April seventh. But we need two more ideas, and we need ideas for catering, dress code, games and activities, that sort of thing for every event. I’d like all of you to go home tonight and jot down suggestions that come to you. We could do a day at Disneyland, a fashion show, that sort of thing. But remember we have an event coming up next month that we need to figure out. I think there’s an away game next Tuesday, so let’s plan to meet Monday night, here, at seven. If anything comes up, I’ll let you know. If you have any questions, let me know. I’ll be here for another fifteen minutes or so. Again, thank you for coming.”
Madison, along with the rest of the Girls, all stood up. Some chatted rather amiably while a few seem annoyed at the extra work they have to participate in. Interestingly enough, Madison found that she was looking forward to putting her two cents in something as admirable as a charity event. In fact, she had an idea tittering around in her mind, but it had nothing to do with charity and it didn’t coincide with the four dates Katella had written down.
“I’m going to take off,” Amanda said, squeezing Madison’s arm. “Keep me updated on the whole B situation, if you know what I mean.” She winked and gave her friend a thumb’s up.
Madison chuckled, rolling her eyes. “Absolutely,” she said before turning and heading over to Katella. The blonde was wiping down the white board, and Madison was surprised no one else ventured over to her.
“Excuse me?” she asked, shocked at how timid her voice came out timid. Katella turned and when she saw Madison, she offered the brunette a warm smile. “I’m Madison Montgomery. This is my first year as a Gulls Girl. I know that you’ve probably heard this a thousand times, but I’m sorry for your loss. I heard a lot of admirable things about Ken, about your grandfather, and I was thinking...” She paused in order to catch her breath. Madison had no idea why she was talking so fast; it wasn’t like she was talking to Brady or someone like that. But Katella seemed friendly. Maybe Madison wanted the older woman to like her. Which was ridiculous unto itself. “Um, this isn’t actually a suggestion about an event or anything like that, but I was thinking that maybe there was an event that the fans could participate in to honor him.” When she finished, she sucked in air, waiting for Katella to respond.
“That’s actually a really good idea,” Katella said after a long moment. She paused and then looked Madison in the eye. “Madison, right? Did you know my grandfather at all?”
“I only met him once,” Madison replied. “During the interview process. I remember being surprised when he requested my transcripts.”
Katella smiled a nostalgic smile. “Yeah, he liked to be involved in everything,” she said softly. It looked as though tears were going to form in her forest green eyes, but she quickly blinked them away. “Madison, I think that’s a good idea. I know a lot of people would love to be a part of doing something to commemorate his memory. Maybe you could think of how to do that and let me know next meeting? I’ll definitely write down some ideas, too.”
Madison nodded and smiled. After wishing both Katella and Lara good night, she headed up the stairs. It felt as though this was a new chapter in her life that she was looking forward to.