NEOMED’s holiday brunch is traditionally a time when employees can kick back and enjoy being served by the Executive Management Team, dressed in festive attire. Yes, that includes intentionally ugly Christmas sweaters, though Maria Schimer, Esq., and Steven Schmidt, Ph.D., (above) looked pretty stylish for the event in the NEW Center Ballroom Tuesday, Dec. 14.
For this year’s delicious brunch, one more tantalizing detail was added: the chance to compete for the distinction of best gingerbread house. As employees entered the lobby outside the Ballroom and filed by the houses on display, deciding which team of colleagues would get their votes, the sound of an emergency siren could be heard from the Gingerbread Med Hospital.
The sound turned out to be courtesy of researcher Vahagn Ohanyan, M.D., Ph.D., grinning and looking every bit the part of a sneaky elf as he operated the siren from across the room. What will they think of next? And what will Jordan Cinderich croon for us on the next program? We’ll have to wait and see.
For now, here are the winners:
First place: Group 12 (IMS) – Gingerbread Med Hospital
Second place: Group 9 (Psychiatry) – Gingerbread Treehouse
Third place: Group 5 (Office of the President) – Wizard of Oz Scene