Long excerpt - Hank's Widow

I am half done with my final edit. Here's what's happening:

“Who are you filling up with chips and cake, Ella?” Wanda asked as Zita hurried away.
“Lyle’s wife,” Ella answered.
Wanda knew a moment of abject fear and looked around nervously. “Lyle’s here?”
“No, he should be at work. Mom stopped by and picked up Gloria and Sammy and brought them here for the party.” The girl paused, took a deep breath and pasted a smile on her face. “Now, this isn’t the time to talk about the failures of some of my relatives. I have succeeded in getting through high school, and that’s a reason to celebrate.”
“Indeed it is. And it’s a lovely party, Ella. The cake is delicious. Did all the graduates’ parents get together to organize the party?”
“No, the only thing the parents have to do is provide a dessert for their child, and a picture for the wall. The party itself is organized by the Belgrade Fire Brigade.”
“The fire brigade?”
“Well, it’s more than a fire brigade, but they worked hard to raise the money to build this station and buy some used fire engines. They raise money every year, and some of it is used to educate members of the volunteer fire department, and some of it is used to have parties for important milestones, like kids who graduate from high school!”
“So it sounds like it started as an organization to get a fire brigade started, and now it does other things too, but it hasn’t changed its name.”
“That’s right. Oh! There’s Shirley. I should go tell her how great her mother’s banana walnut cake is.”