Monday, November 25, 2013

Chapter 13 - Charity Begins At Home

 
 
Jon and Beth were greeted by close family members and close friends of the both of them.  All were amazed at how well they looked together.  She radiated class and he oozed sex appeal. 
 
  They greeted everyone in what looked like a receiving line;  hugs, kisses, hand shakes and hellos.  Beth was thrilled.  The staff decorated with such class and elegance , it almost brought her to tears. There were pictures of the twins placed in a couple select places, along with March Of Dimes posters.  This event was to raise money, and that's what they intended to do.

After everyone says their hellos, they were escorted into the formal dining room and seated in the seats indicated by their place cards.  Jon and Beth sat with his mother, father, Stephanie, Jesse, Richie and Matt.  Tony was working the event, so he was everywhere.

When everyone was seated and served a drink, Jon stood, tapped his knife on his glass of water and said, "Can I have every one's attention please." And he paused.  "Thank you all for coming to the First Annual Adams-Bongiovi Until We Meet Again March of Dimes Fundraiser.  Your presence means a lot to the both of us, as it will to the March of Dimes, too."  Another pause.
 
"One year ago today, Beth and I lost our twin daughters to a condition that's not been researched much, and we have been left with many unanswered questions. They weren't viable at a routine ultrasound and it's believed that her body was having an immunological response, creating antibodies and they attacked the babies.  Rowan and Spencer were a huge part of our family, long before we learned they had passed.  We know that many of you, if not all of you know what this last year has been like for Beth, myself and our family."  He pauses again.
 
"We" gesturing with his hands to indicate that he was talking about everyone at his table, "have had a very rough year, personally.  Beth and I spent some time apart after we lost the girls and as I'm sure you all know, we had recently reunited and here we are today."  He turns his gaze to look at his right hand, his best friend, THE love of his life and says, "When we were apart, I often thought about what I would do on this day; this year and every year after and I can honestly tell you, it brought tears to my eyes." His attention goes back to the  room and their guests, "It seems like the first thing that we decided on after we reaffirmed our dedication and our commitment to one another was what we were going to do on this day.  And this is what we decided on.  We want to use our good fortune, and your good fortune" the room breaks out in a calm laughter, "to do some good, make a difference - something to keep Rowan and Spencer's name alive."  Again looking back at Beth, "We gently joke that we made a wish and two came true, but that's the truth.  We wished and prayed that we would have a family together and God graced us with those two little girls"  he points to a picture, "we never heard them cry or seen them smile but that doesn't make us love them any less.  And if there is something we can do to prevent another family from suffering this loss, than that's what we're going to do."  The room breaks out in applause and one after the other, every one stands. 
 

That's when Beth took the lead.  She stands and waits for everyone to sit.  When she has the rooms attention, she starts with what she had planned to say.  "Thank you everyone for coming.  As Jon said, it means the world to us and to the many families that WE have the capability to help.  I just want to explain something to the room as a whole, after being asked a few times what Until We Meet Again is all about."  She takes a deep breath and starts with, "What seems like a lifetime ago, back when I met Jon - we could never say goodbye to one another.  Jon says that goodbye means forever, so we never say goodbye.  It's always Until We Meet Again.  And the day that we laid our babies into the ground, that's what I told them, until we meet again." her eyes are tearing and she's doing real good until she looks at Jon and sees that he's teary eyed, "That little line means the world to us" she gestures to her and Jon.  "Because one day we will meet again."  She reaches for her napkin to wipe the tears from her eyes, "I told myself not to do this."  She comments out loud.  Adjusting her stance, she looks out over the crowd and all eyes are on her, pressure.  "Family and friends, the loss of our little ones could have been avoided had enough research been done on my condition.  It is years behind in research compared to other conditions that cause spontaneous abortions and premature births, resulting in death." She clears her throat, "I am in no way implying that the other conditions are less important, as they all are equally important - right now the monies to fund this research is pretty much non existent.........." 
 
With her speech behind her and their fundraiser well underway, Jon and Beth are able to relax and have fun with those that they loved and cherished.  Dinner was served, followed by dessert and coffee/tea.  When dessert was done, everyone joined Jon and Beth in the Great Room, that was used only for special events like this one.  Beth had circular couches brought in, an extra bar with staff.  Social hour was just as beautiful as the dinner was and the guests were impressed. 
 
As the guests entered the Great Room, most of them handed their checks to Judy, the spokesperson for the March of Dimes.  She was the liaison for Beth and the foundation.  Her and Beth have become quite close since she became involved with the March of Dimes.
 
Jon was having too much fun, he and Richie were talking with Bob and John Kraft.  Jon has had a few glasses of wine and Beth could see that he was relaxed.  She watches him from across the room and his laughter and his smile warms her heart like nothing else.  She enjoyed watching Jon and Richie laughing and having fun, away from work.  It has been awhile since she has seen that. 
 
Several guests were going from the Great Room to the back yard, enjoying the evening on the river.  Beth mingled and made sure that she spoke with everyone that came, because without them, there wouldn't have been checks amounting to almost 2 million dollars. While she was making her rounds, she was finally able to catch up with Tammy, her assistant.
 
Tammy hugs her again, "Hey babe." she says to the woman that taught her all that she knows about finance.  Beth took Tammy under her wing and treated her more like a sister and a friend than she did an employee.
 
"I'm so glad you came." Beth tells her as she hugs her back.  "What do you think?"
 
"You did good.  This place is gorgeous, and the guest list......oh my God, how did you get all of these people here?"
 
"I just invited them, but I'm sure the Bongiovi name helped." 
 
"But still, there's a lot of money in here.  They're here because of you."  Tammy means what she says.  "They love you, Beth.  This could be your calling."
 
"Knock it off.  I had a party and invited rich people."
 
"How much do you think you've raised?"
 
Beth whispers in her ear, "Judy gave me the total a few minutes ago and we're almost at 2 million dollars."
 
Tammy, losing the automatic filter on her mouth says, "Are you shitting me?"
 
Beth shakes her head no.
 
"Beth, that's awesome!  You guys are such good people."  she hugs her ex boss again, making her miss Beth even more in Los Angeles.
 
The event is winding down and Jon knows that there is one more announcement that he has to make.  He spent the evening making his rounds as well, thanking everyone for coming.  Knowing that he had to command attention again, he down his glass of wine and goes to find his lover.  Finding her puttering in the kitchen with Maria, Jon says, "Hey."
 
Beth spins around with her finger covered in chocolate, about ready to lick it off, "Yeah?"
 
He sees her and grabs her hand, "Don't do it!"  and he smiles at her.
 
"Babe, it's chocolate - Godiva chocolate."  she pleads with a smile.  He quickly swoops in and licks the chocolate off of her finger.  "Jon......"
 
"You don't need it, it will keep you up all night." he winks at her and gives her the devil smile.
 
"Keep it up smart ass, I'll make you put that mouth to better use when all of these people leave." she chuckles, dipping her finger back in the chocolate.
 
He's shocked that those words just came out of her mouth, "Maria, do you hear the way that she's talking to me?"
 
Maria looks at the couple that is so in love, and tonight it shows.  The sparks can be seen by anyone that watches them together.  "I see nothing."  Maria replies, "And I hear even less."  She's busy with trying to get her kitchen clean and Jon and Beth are being silly in her way.  "Shoo you two, I have work to do."
"Okay, okay - we're going."  Jon says, "Come on, do you have a total yet?" he asks Beth.
 
"Judy told me a couple of hours ago that it was almost 2 million.  It may have changed." she tells him, "Let's go find her."  Jon takes her hand and they head to the Great Room, stopping to talk to Judy.
 
With the information that he needed, Jon found a platform to make the announcement that many waited all night to hear.  He managed to stand on a chair that was close to the open French doors so those that were still outside could hear and everyone inside could her.
 
"Can I have your attention again, please."  he talks loudly.  The guests all stop what they are doing and give Jon their undivided attention.  He waits a few moments, giving guests the opportunity to get close if they wanted to.  "Thank you all again for coming.  Your friendship and your support is measurable" he laughs and so do the guests "Beth and I appreciate everything that you have done in helping us support the March of Dimes.  It's a great cause and a great organization and seeing Beth in action, they are going to get some much needed funding." He looks down at her, she's smiling up at him.  "It's with great pleasure and deep gratitude that I can tell you that tonight we have raised 2.5 million dollars, for the March of Dimes.  That's a lot of dimes."  Again, everyone laughs and just a couple are surprised by the total.  "There are not words enough to express how much we appreciate your kindness and your friendship.  Really.  Thank you."  His hand goes to his heart.  He can hear people mumble accolades, nothing he could really make out.  With a deep breath, he goes on to say, "When we decided to create and host this event, I had no idea what it would do to me.  Beth and I worked closely with the March of Dimes and toured neonatal facilities here on the east coast.  What we seen broke my heart, and that was my call to action.  All of you donated 2.5 million dollars tonight, this morning when I woke up I told myself that I would match what we were able to raise through this fundraiser; dollar for dollar."  Beth's jaw dropped, along with everyone else's - but everyone immediately applauded the selfless gesture that was common but unheard of from Jon Bon Jovi.
 

1 comment:

  1. Now that's the Jon we all know and love. The money they raised will go a long way for the research department in helping to find a cure.

    ReplyDelete