Rochdale Seniors Have an Afternoon to Remember

by mikell riCHdardS

OnMarch 17, 2023, Rochdale

Village seniors had a chance to listen to the cool R&B sounds of Mr. Bobby Harden, known as having been the lead singer of the world-famous Original Blues Brothers Band. Mr. Harden was born in Youngstown, Ohio, and from a young age it was known that he had a voice and that he was meant to make music. After spending a brief amount of time at- tending college in Houston, Bobby Harden embarked on a journey to New York City to pursue his passion and dream of making music. In 2012, Mr. Harden was invited to join the Blues Brothers Band, and he spent several years with them before starting his own live band, Soul Purpose. So, of course, the seniors were in for a real treat.

The event, called “An Afternoon to Remember”, was a joint effort, facilitated by the

Queensborough Performing Arts Center and the Rochdale Village Senior Center, and funded in part by the NYC Department for the Aging. It was also sponsored by NYC Council Speaker Adrienne E. Adams as a good will gesture, who is a well-known friend to Rochdale Village. Right after lunch in the Jewel Café, the seniors gathered in the Community Center’s Grand Ballroom to be entertained with the soulful voices of Mr. Harden and his band.

Speaker Adams attended and took an opportunity to speak to the audience, “our jewels” as she calls them. After speaking highly of the seniors of this community, Adams was encouraged by the audience as well as the band to take the mic, singing a beautiful rendition of “I Will Always Love You” by the late Whitney Houston to a thunderous applause from those in attendance. It was truly an afternoon to remember.