In an exclusive interview, The Paw Print’s Sampurna Sarkar interviewed Mr. Ed Beck about something he’s planning this summer. 

Sampurna: So your activity that you’re going to do over the summer is a really fun Father’s Day/Mother’s Day/birthday cookout!

Mr. Beck: Combined on the weekend of Father’s Day, that 19th or 20th of June. Yes that’s what I plan on doing. Yeah!

Sampurna: That sounds like a lot of fun, especially during the summer! But how did you come up with such a combination of an event?

Mr. Beck: Ok so here’s where this came from. Okay, let’s see, first of all my birthday on June 15th. Okay. The big one is next year, I’m 59 this year, I’m 60 next year. My birthday is June 15. Of course, Father’s Day is like the 20th, on Sunday in June, and then Mother’s Day is in May….You know it is super hard to not see your mom and dad, I’ve only seen my mom and dad twice this year, and they live 50 minutes to an hour away. So it was easier if we combined it, Mother’s and Father’s day just celebrate that on one day, and then my birthday, celebrate that on one day. It’s usually every summer what we will do is like with Father’s Day and my birthday we’d all go out to Geneva.

Sampurna: I’ve heard of that place. My parents have been wanting to go when like our relatives come over but yeah with COVID and all, it’s super rare we go somewhere to sit down.

Mr. Beck: We like that place. We’ve been going there for around 30 years. We’d all sit down and have a really nice meal, have a really nice time. But this year you know with everything we are still not maybe ready for that. My wife is maybe not as ready as my mom, dad, and I. So yeah- I just came up with that idea. Remember in the fall I put up that fence area on the side of my house? For the dog to go out?

Sampurna: Ha! Yeah!

Mr. Beck: I want to fix that up by that time. Put a little table out there, like a folding table, a big one, when all my family comes over my mom, my dad everyone is going to be needing it. My wife’s parents are from China and they will be needing it if they come over.

Sampurna: Seems like it’s going to be quite the crowd, I know when something like this happens at my house we usually spend a lot of time cooking and prepping for the guests to come, like my mom and dad just decide to cook so much food. Will you be doing the same, or going out to get food?

Mr. Beck: I usually would get mussels from like Costco, some crab legs, we could have good food like that set up on the big table on the side of the house, everybody is outside, just have a nice celebration, like play a little music, the dog would be out there he’s going to be by our feet, it’s going to be great.

Sampurna: Sounds really fun, and a lot like the summers before COVID with grills and everything. How does it feel to be doing something like this in what- like over a year?

Mr. Beck: Yeah! We haven’t done anything like that in over a year! Yeah so that would be cool. My daughter the other day said that she would come in in May. I haven’t seen her in 17 months, since over a year ago during Christmas time! She is from New York and Brooklyn. So I said, “Why don’t you come over for the summer?” It’d be great! She said that she’s lined up for a couple months, they want to go on a road trip they want to share with gas and everything. I understand that, I said that it was fine. I mean whenever you come, you’ll be at a party whenever she comes. The one night that she is in town for May, we will celebrate that.

Sampurna: Yeah definitely, that’s been happening with my family too. We usually go on a road trip to my cousin’s house during the summer and we’d like to be there and go to the beach and whatnot, but my cousin, she’s off to college and it’s COVID so. Also, it’s been really busy and I’m waiting for this summer to be more normal than last year. For you, how is this cookout sort of like a break from this stressful year?

Mr. Beck: Yeah I mean, I’ve been watching my diet a little bit more, taking it a little easier, kinda putting off that fun cookout till like Father’s Day, my birthday we can lump it all in. Also, on that Friday the 18th, is the last day of a graduate class I’m taking online this summer in gifted education. It’s really great you’re there for four days talking with other teachers…so that weekend I’d be free of thinking, for the cookout.

Sampurna: Yeah, good to get your mind off things for a while. Before you were talking about your relatives and inviting them, how long is the guest list and how long has it been since you have seen them?

Mr. Beck: Well the guest list isn’t going to be that large, we’re not that large of a family. I mean we are pretty scattered. I have a brother that is in Chicago but I don’t see him every once a couple years or something… However in-town you have my mom and dad, my mother-in-law, my stepson…So that’s the group, you know I have cousins who are on the west side but we see them at weddings or funerals. You know?

Sampurna: Yeah I know, one of my friends has like over a hundred relatives that are scattered all over America and I’m pretty sure she doesn’t even know the names of all of them. I mean I wouldn’t, but they all came together at least a couple of years, so is that something that you are trying to achieve through the cookout like a family reunion?

Mr. Beck: Yeah! I mean growing up in the 70’s my grandparents were still alive. They brought everybody together, on the east and west side of Cleveland. So, we would have Thanksgiving during the 70’s at my grandparents’ house back then. We would all get together, the cousins from the west, us from the east, [and] we’d all get to grandpa and grandma’s house. And those were wonderful times. It was great.

Sampurna: Yeah definitely. I mean my family isn’t that huge either. My parents both just have 1 sister, and then I have just 2 cousins. I’m the middle child, with my cousin in college and another brother who is literally 10 years old. So, I can’t really talk to any of them, so it’d be nice to do something like this where I bring everyone together. Like maybe around Highland Heights because it’s super warm there. So since it is going to be super warm, are you going to have a pool or some cool activities?

Mr. Beck: Hopefully it’s a nice and sunny day, but if it turns out to be rainy, I will probably go into a garage and step up everything in there. I’d like to do another cookout around the 4th of July [since] it’s always warm on the fourth of July, maybe put one some music, and squirt guns. I look forward to when it’s the evening it’s nice to sit out in the summer, with a snack, watching the stars.

Sampurna: Wow! Sounds so peaceful! Seems like a relaxing summer event, which by listening to your stories doesn’t seem like your style, you like to travel a lot, so why an at home summer cookout?

Mr. Beck: Well, two years ago we traveled to China, which was cool in 2019. We covered a lot of ground with the Great Wall and the Birds nest in Beijing. We went sightseeing, during spring break we went to China, 2018 and 2019, which I know are very big trips. Even with Yellowstone we had a huge road trip when we went to Los Angeles to Yellowstone to Salt Lake City all in one week; all across it was a very big trip so this time you want to do something more at home or relaxed.

Sampura: Ah! This sounds like a very very fun event! Honestly I might steal your idea and use it for myself. Lastly, would you like doing something similar to this in the future?

Mr. Beck: I probably will do something like it in the future. It’s nice to combine them because everyone is so busy. Instead of me going over for Mother’s day over for dinner, and in June for Father’s [Day], and my birthday, it becomes a big special thing, so I really like it!

Sampurna: Alright! Thank you so much Mr. Beck for doing this interview with me. I hope the readers like listening to behind-the-scenes of your crazy combination summer cookout. It sounds like a great time!

Mr. Beck: Yep, no problem!