Trustee, donors serve up Mini Taste of Northbrook lunch to thank village's public works employees

When Northbrook Trustee Muriel Collison arranged a lunch to recognize and thank the village's Public Works Department, she served up a mini Taste of Northbrook.

Collison collected donations from 40 people and matched the first $200 herself to mark National Public Works Week. Food was purchased locally from Eataco, Sunset Foods and Sarpino's Pizzeria.

"They're often the behind-the-scenes heroes, so we're really excited to give them a little celebration today," Collison said. "We wanted to let public works know how much we appreciate them"

Prior to lunch, a group photo of participants was taken in front of a public works front loader, then Collison's son, Charlie Elrod, 8, distributed cards made by members of his second-grade class at Greenbrier School.

Lunch included pizza and tacos, plus deviled eggs, salads, sandwiches, cookies and brownies. Employees ate at tables set up in the spacious garage, just steps away from the break room, and the roll-up doors were left open to create an open-air setting on the sunny afternoon.

Northbrook Director of Public Works Kelly Hamill said the lunch was very much appreciated by both him and the public works employees. Public works employees are often working behind the scenes, he said, and the lunch was a way to recognize them for their efforts.

"They worked hard all year long, and it's nice to be able to recognize them," Hamill said. "We appreciate Trustee Collison's arranging all the food today and supplying a great meal for everybody."