Article by Janice Scanlan in the "Fort Bend Independent"

Musings: Getting flocked

By JANICE SCANLAN

“Someone put a bunch of plastic birds in our yard” a puzzled John Scanlan stated as he came in from getting the mail. I replied from the other room, “Oh, we’ve been flocked.”

“We’ve been what?” he asked. I enunciated more carefully the second time, “Flocked, and it’s all for charity.”

Getting flocked is a very clever fund raiser sponsored by the Women’s Council of Realtors®. It benefits the Fort Bend County Women’s Center. Since April, ten flocks of flamingoes have been “flying” from yard to yard in Fort Bend every few days. And what fun it is. My neighbor, Mike Pace, even offered me a picture of our yard flock he had taken.

Really I hated to see the birds leave. Maybe it’s because I have tacky taste, or some might say funky, but the flock gave me a nice smile every time I saw it. Dave Adam told me, “It’s moved over on El Dorado.” Getting flocked does take on a life of its own.

So with my hard hitting journalism, I had to ask the burning question of Sallie Wheeler, who is the chair or “Mother Flocker”, “What’s it’s like to be a “Mother Flocker?” She laughed, “It’s a lot of fun, and it benefits a really great cause in the Fort Bend Women’s Center. They are so great, and it helps so many victims, both women and children of domestic abuse, get their lives back on track.”

Now, flocking is no small operation . . . it takes two or three “sister flockers” to keep each flock in flight . . . but it’s simple for the family that gets flocked. You merely “pass the flock” onto another family who hopefully finds it as much fun as you did. Of course, you add a donation—this does raise money for charity. There is also “flocking insurance” to not be flocked again. But as Tita Horrell told me regarding her involvement, “It’s fun. It’s a great way to raise money and not be offensive. If someone doesn’t want to participate . . . all they have to say is, ‘get the flock out.’ We’ve only had a couple of people who have not seen the humor or the benefit to charity. So we moved the birds.”

Now, these ladies go to great lengths to make this a surprise—just like it was for us. They, in fact, try to find a time when no one is home. To fill one birthday order, Sallie was to come at night while the couple went out to dinner, but when she first arrived, children were playing in the yard. So she returned later and not seeing anyone, she was flocking away, when she heard a small voice, “What are you doing to my yard?” The family’s ten year old boy had to be reassured by his babysitting Grandmother, “It’s okay.”

I visited with 2011 President of the Fort Bend Women Council of Realtors® Lane Pearson who said, “Getting younger realtors® involved meant doing some fun things that benefit the community.” She pegged that right in fun and benefits the Women’s Center provides Fort Bend. The stats are staggering: one out of every three women experience violence at the hands of an intimate partner. A child’s exposure to domestic violence is the strongest risk factor for transmitting the behavior to the next generation. The good news: the Fort Bend Women’s Center has helped 89% of its clients remain violence-free and independent.

If you would like to surprise and honor a friend, contact Sallie Wheeler at 832 236-5581 or email sallie@salliewheeler.com. She’ll get your neighborhood flockers on it!

Write to janicescanlan@clear.net