Mardi Gras, or “Fat Tuesday,” is the last day of the Carnival season and it always lands on the day before Ash Wednesday, which is the first day of Lent. Fat Tuesday celebrations begin on or after the Christian feasts of the Epiphany (Three King’s Day) each year. It celebrates the practice of “the last night” of eating fatty foods and indulging before the Lenten season. In New Orleans, Louisiana, however, the carnival season starts from Twelfth Night (the last night of Christmas) to Ash Wednesday. In Mobile, Alabama, Mardi Gras events start as early as Thanksgiving.
Locally Methodist Hospital Foundation’s 21st annual Mardi Gras celebration returned once again for another fun evening at Sirona’s in Santa Anita Park on Tuesday, February 9, from 6 to 10 pm. The Foundation honored the nurses of Methodist Hospital as Kings and Queens of Mardi Gras 2016 in recognition of the exceptional care the nurses provide to patients day every day.
“Every member of the Methodist nursing team works in unison to help provide the highest quality patient care every day,” said four-time Mardi Gras co-chair Patty Soldo, who is also a registered nurse. “When I or my family members have been patients at Methodist, the nursing care we have received has been exemplary. The nursing staff is highly professional, well trained, service oriented, and kind. This year’s Mardi Gras is an expression of gratitude for the work they do, and recognition for their contribution to the culture of patient service at Methodist Hospital.”;
More than 700 community leaders, residents, local businesses, physicians and employees attended the “beads and boas” event, one of the hospital’s most successful and enjoyable fundraisers.
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Additional cities known for their Mardi Gras celebrations include Rio de Janeiro; Barranquilla, Colombia; George Town, Cayman Islands; Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago; Sydney, Australia; Quebec City, Canada; Mazatlán, and Sinaloa, Mexico.
