Gary Gores was a West Coast resident most of his life, spending over 50 years in the Washington Oregon area. He moved to Diboll after marrying a Texas girl in 2003, his wife Melba Gores. Last week Gary traveled back to Washington State to participate in a 60th wedding anniversary event for two of his dear friends that are godparents of his adult children. He also indicated this friend is the one who started him in the Savings and Loan business in the early 1970s. While in Washington Gary took every advantage to have fresh seafood at every meal and by staying with his son in Olympia Washington he was able to enjoy many seafood dishes on the southern end of Puget Sound which is called Budd inlet; the meals included prawns (Texans call these shrimp), oysters, salmon, halibut & calamari.

One of the Olympia areas icon restaurants is the Falls Terrace in Tumwater Washington. It overlooks the waterfall of the Deschutes River flowing into Puget Sound. You may have been aware of it as it was adjacent to the Olympia Brewery and the waterfall pictured in their TV commercials. The Falls are immediately in front of the restaurant to be enjoyed as you dine on a gourmet seafood meal .On the Olympia waterfront are three more well-known seafood restaurants: Anthonys, Bud Bay and The Olympia Oyster House. While visiting in Olympia Gary took advantage of every opportunity to have seafood for each meal… no catfish there.

Our thanks to Gary for sharing about his trip and also for the box of donuts he brought to the round table. Tina Jowell came in with her daughter Brittany and children, 4-1/2 year old Audrey and 1-year old Sophi Whitehead from Huntsville. They bought seed potatoes and anxious to start a garden and work in the yard. Shirley Terrell was also in and bought seed potatoes. Sally Foley enjoys our peach preserves. Brenda Dickens was in with her friend, Kathy Tompkins from Alaska, buying pintos and local honey. They have been friends since they were 4 years old and now Kathy is moving back to Texas from Alaska after living there 33 years.

Mark Hafernick frequents the round table and always has something to add to the conversation. He recently told us about Veterinarian, Dr. Doug Jungmann, retiring and selling his clinic but more importantly, Mark was proud to let us know that Pineywoods Veterinary Clinic is now owned by his veterinarian son, Dr. Brian M. Hafernick. The clinic has been in operation for approximately 40 years at its current site, 2518 Hwy 69 North in Lufkin. Brian is a 2002 graduate of Lufkin High School. He earned a BBA in Finance from Texas A&M in 2005, a BS in Biology from SFA in 2008, and his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine in 2012 from Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine. He has practiced veterinary medicine in Brenham, TX and at West Loop Animal Clinic in Lufkin since his graduation. Brian is married to Angela Caskey Hafernick, MD. When their young son, Gibson, comes to Diboll to stay with his grandparents, Mark and Ann Hafernick, he sometimes frequents the round table with his proud grandpa. Mark also told us that the clinic offers care for dogs, cats, and cattle as well as other farm animals and to go by or call 936-639-1550 to make an appointment.

Jessie Conner is still celebrating her 89th birthday. As she said, “you are only 89 one time in life” so this year’s birthday has been spread out over several days. Her birthday is February 8th but on Saturday evening, a large group gathered in the home of her daughter, Carolyn Smith-Bess, and enjoyed an old fashion birthday with Sloppy Joes, pulled pork sandwiches, potato salad, dips, chips, etc., etc. On Monday evening, family members gathered at the Cotton Patch café and treated Jessie to another party. On Tuesday, her son-in-law Don, after having a total knee replacement only three weeks ago, drove Carolyn and Jessie to the Coushatta Casino and Resort where they met Jessie’s sister, Nadine McAda, from Lake Jackson. Plans were to spend the night there, visit and play to celebrate another day of Jessie’s birthday. The next few days will be spent planning a bigger birthday party for next year.

Aiden Morris celebrated his 7th birthday at Skate Ranch in Lufkin Friday Feb. 5th. Lots of his classmates & his basketball team friends attended. He had an adorable & delicious Ninja Turtle cake made by Fran McClain. Aiden is the son of Lindsey & Earl Morris, grandparents are Bob & Laurel Hendrick Youngblood of Lufkin & Tommy & Tony Morris of Center & Shonin Morris of Dallas.

Showlow Capps celebrated his 14th birthday, February 8th, getting groomed for his parents, Ginger and Kenneth Capps. Showlow is a Toy Poodle and got his interesting name from a town in Arizona where the Capps’ good friends, Todd and Jackie Smith, who moved to Show Low. Ginger and her sister, Judy Kellam enjoyed visited with Pam Shaw when they met in Tyler and ate at Mercado’s and did some shopping. Pam lives in Lewisville and still works for Bankamerica.

Gary Martel learned his daughter, Kendal, might be coming home a little early from her 2-year commitment to the Peace Corps in South Africa as a result of being in a bus wreck about three weeks ago. Kendal was not seriously injured but is sore and having to wear a neck brace. She called her dad to say they decided to fly her home and should arrive in Houston Sunday AM. Gary didn’t share any of this with his wife Susie but told her a few little lies Sunday morning as to why they couldn’t go to church but he would be back home by noon. In the meantime Gary did tell his younger daughter and husband, Kayla and Adam, who live in Waco; they decided to come and be a part of the surprise too. Kendal’s plane arrived at 10:30 in Houston with all her luggage. She was very tired from the 18 hour flight and their first stop was to get a soda. Kendal was upset that she didn’t get to say goodbye to her family and friends in South Africa as the US Government insisted she come home after the accident. Anyway, Gary, Kendal, Kayla and Adam arrived together at the Martel home. Gary went in first and told Susie he had an early Valentine gift for her when they all walked in. You can imagine the rest of the story. Someone else is coming in May when Kayla and Adam’s little boy, Luke Daniel, is scheduled to arrive May 12th.

Don’t forget, next weekend, February 20th, is the 5th annual Fabulous Black Tie Bingo “Heart to Heart Vegas Style”. For ticket information call 936-560-6844 or Patsy Colbert at 829-3543.
The Diboll Pilot Club had their regular monthly meeting and meal at Vintage Blooms in Diboll and are eager to let the public know about their new fundraiser. Mark your calendar for March 8th between 5 and 8 PM to eat at the Whataburger near Walmart in Lufkin. The Pilot Club will receive a percentage of all the meals purchased during that time but you must tell them you are there to support the Diboll Pilot Club. Don’t forget to support this fine organization because these ladies are always contributing back to our community.

Jimmy and Ulyesses Moye who worked so very hard with their successful Moye’s Catering for years and years have a few items left that they would like to sell from their home at 1535 FM1818 east of Diboll. On Thursday and Friday, February 11th and 12th between 8 AM and noon, you are welcome to stop by. They have a 2002 van, refrigerator, utility trailer, some commercial kitchen equipment and other items.

Don’t forget to be sweet to someone with Valentine’s Day coming up.

Come see us…’round the table.

Plans for an annual family tradition was started when Phil and Loretta Garrett recently spent a winter vacation with family in Colorado. Family members included Phil and Loretta, their daughter, Alecia; son and daughter-in-law, Shane and Crissy and grandkids, Aubrey Pearl, age 3 and Thomas Whipple, age 7. The group left home on New Year’s Eve and spent the night in Claude, Texas which was about half way to their destination of Angel Fire, New Mexico. They saw snow for the first time in Childress which really excited the grandchildren so you can imagine their eyes arriving in Angel Fire which had received two feet of snow the previous week. Snow was everywhere and the roads were icy. Shane became the designated driver as he had learned skills from driving on icy roads from when he worked in Colorado for two winter seasons at Key Stone Ski Resort where he also learned to love skiing.

The two story house Loretta had found and rented for the family was 3-1/2 miles up a mountain. Phil said the house could have accommodated at least 12 people and had all the conveniences of home except for groceries. Pictures showed the house was spacious, had a cathedral wooded ceiling with a fire place between large windows. Not that they got to enjoy it that much but a large porch surrounded the multi-level house. Were they all surprised the first morning to wake up and find five mule deer at the door waiting to be fed; one had a nice rack of horns according to Phil. Conveniently, there was corn and birdseed available and the deer would eat from the ground or from hands that were brave enough to hold the feed.

As with all ski vacations, Shane, Crissy and Alecia could hardly wait to head for the slopes. Crissy stayed on the “Bunny” slopes and it didn’t take her long to decide that skiing wasn’t for her. She traded in her skis and gladly accepted the job as the official trip photographer and from the photos I saw, did a great job. (Crissy works at Ellen Trout Zoo and has some awesome pictures from her job there.) Shane took to the slopes like a professional and was soon on the black trails for the more experienced skier. Alecia tried to keep up with her little brother but soon realized his experience of living on the ski slopes definitely gave him an advantage. Phil and Loretta did exactly what they had planned… to do whatever Aubrey and Thomas wanted. They stayed at the house and played in the snow sledding down the long driveway and making snow angels were two of their favorite fun things. The kids were disappointed when the snow was too fine to make a large snowman and had to settle for a “wee” one. One day everyone went to the ski resort and rode the ski lift to the top of the mountain and were able to watch Shane ski all the way down the mountain as they rode the lift back down. The little ones enjoyed riding snow tubes for hours and at night enjoyed playing games with the adults who were relaxing, or crashing, in front the warm fireplace. The Garretts missed not having their oldest daughter Amanda and her husband Mason along on this trip but they are making plans to be a part of this annual tradition next year to go back to the “snow house” as Aubrey called it.

Billy Jean Capps sent me the following note to publish concerning Diboll Christian Outreach. “To the wonderful folks in Diboll who support Diboll Christian Outreach: Thank you from our hearts for all you do. Our weekly volunteers, those who donate all kinds of helpful items, those who order our food for our shelves, those who deliver our food stock, those who coordinate food drives during the year, our businesses who help us, our schools, our churches, our civic organizations, are all such an important part of who we are and what we do. It is our goal to make sure no one goes hungry in our beautiful little town. We who give Thursday mornings to keep DCO reaching out to those in need would not have a place to serve without the continued support of our people in Diboll. We are sincerely grateful for ALL you do.” The Diboll Christian Outreach Volunteers.

Billie Jean Capps was proud to share that her granddaughter, Hannah Flynt, will be competing in swimming at the UIL regional level after recently winning two gold medals. Hannah has been swimming most of her life. She is a junior at Huntington and being the only member of their swim team, is trained by coaches at other schools. Her parents are Sherri and Tim Flynt of Huntington. Billie Jean is hoping to attend Hannah’s next competition in Lewisville in February along with all four of her daughters: Susie Jones, Shannon Capps, Sharla Pelham and of course, Hannah’s mom, Sherri. They plan to spend the night in Fate, Texas with Sharla and Brett then drive on to Lewisville. Good Luck!

Ronnie and Kaye (McElroy) Fitzgerald have moved to Diboll on Smith Wheeler Road in a “Barndominium” designed by her daughter and son-in-law, Renae & Jeremy Havard. Kaye said she insisted that Ronnie come to the Everything Store for anything he might need to get ready to plant a garden at their new home. Kaye was happy to visit with Donald Capps when he came in and introduced him to Ronnie. Donald was buying Dorman Oil because he says, “It’s time to treat fruit trees”. He also said Valentine’s Day is when you cut roses back. He remembers to do that because his birthday is the day before. By the way, the 14th is always been the date farmers like to plant their potatoes.

The children of Barrett and Amber Duren came in with their mom. Karter, age 9; Owen, age 7; and Sawyer, age 3 are making plans for the Angelina County Youth Fair this year. Karter has a Mini Lop rabbit named Duke that he plans to exhibit. Owen and Karter both plan to enter the cooking contest with a Chocolate Cobbler recipe. Young Sawyer will be there supporting his brothers. All three of these guys are excited about the arrival of a baby sister.

It’s a shame there isn’t a contest for growing lemons. Robert Stephenson from Hudson brought us a lemon the size of a very large grapefruit! Buddy Mills came in for Colorado pinto beans and local honey, two of the most popular items we sell.

FAMILY SUMMIT 2016 will be this Friday, January 29th 8:30 – 2:30 at the Diboll ISD Family Education Center, 299 S. Neil Pickett Dr. This event is free and includes soup for lunch. They will have special speakers including Beth Wilbanks talking about nutrition and other leaders will discuss safe and healthy ideals for families. Vendors will be present to give out information and door prizes will be given away throughout the day and it is all FREE!
Don’t forget to make your reservations for “Dining Delight by Candlelight”, February 13th. This is a Project Celebration fund raiser and for more information contact Chantea Allen 936-229-9777 or Liz Monroy 936-645-3162.

Don’t forget this will be the last week to have a ballot in the Free Press to enter BEST OF 7941. Vote for your favorite teacher, official, tea, taco, hamburger, fried chicken, store clerk, city employee, etc.etc. Ballots have to be in by February 1st. The winners will be announced February 11th with a reception at TLL Temple Library. GO VOTE!!

Come see us…’round the table.

Bradley and Carlye Morris along with their three children Logan, age 15; KK, age 12 and 6-year-old Cash were looking forward to a winter vacation in Colorado. Their plans included zip lining over Royal Gorge, riding the Santa Express up Pikes Peak, touring Garden of the Gods, ice skating and visiting a mountain zoo. Everyone was excited upon arriving early at the Bush airport for their flight that was scheduled to leave at 10AM. They were told the flight was delayed until noon; then 12:30. At 1:30 they were told that Denver International airport had canceled over 300 flights due to 8” of snow falling in a short amount of time. This family could have cared less about the fact that this shattered an old record set in 1897!

AT 2PM Carlye headed to the ticket counter to get a refund for their tickets. After waiting in line for 3 hours and seeing the disappointed looks on their kids’ faces she told the airline to put them on the next available flight going anywhere and they would make the best of it! They found five seats available on a plane destined for Las Vegas at 8:00 PM so she reported to the kids “we are Vegas bound”. At 8:00 PM the flight was pushed back to 10 PM due to heavy winds. At 10 PM it was delayed until 11:50 PM. They finally boarded at 2:45 AM and after being stuck at the airport over 15 hours entertaining three kids, playing numerous card games and all catching a nap on the plane they finally landed in Las Vegas!!!

Carlye answered the question many times when asked, “What do you do with kids in Las Vegas” She replied, “Well, we zip lined down Fremont street; rented a car, toured the Hoover dam; drove two hours to the Grand Canyon skywalk in Arizona; visited the Hualapai Indian reservation in Peach Springs; hiked to the top of Guano Point; played in the snow; visited the popular TV show, Pawn Stars; toured the Mob Museum and went ice skating at the top of the Cosmopolitan. In the end, it wasn’t Colorado but it was a good learning experience for our kids that given whatever situation they may be in sometimes you just have to roll with it. We had a great time and looking back I’m glad things ended up the way they did.”

While having lunch at Los Jarritos I visited with Sandy Hendrick who just happened to have a photo of the newest member of the family. Miss Aniston Ray Youngblood was born January 11th weighing 8 lbs. 8 ozs. And 19” long. Her proud parents are J.R. and Alaryca Youngblood and her big sister is Brynn Maxwell. Her grandparents are Bob and Laurel Youngblood and Richard and Alaura Shelton of Lufkin and her great grandparents are Don and Sandy Hendrick of Diboll.

Sandy Hendrick was part of a group that was also eating at Los Jarritos, not sure if they call themselves a group but they meet the second Tuesday of each month to eat and visit. I noticed they were all retired from the school district and included Alice Deaton, Frances Tucker, Theresa Farrow, Dianne Gipson and Sandy Hendrick.

Dianne Gipson reported she ate with another group later in the week at the Cajun Oaks which has moved into the building that was formally “Pete’s Place” on 69S. This group gathers about once a month to celebrate birthdays and this meal was in honor of Kathy Martz’ birthday. All of these were also associated with the school district, mostly retired teachers. Those attending included: Gloria Gregory; Sue and Joe Baker; Becky and Charles Donahoe; Marie and David Cochran; Polly and Jim Leavell; Gala Canada and friend; Dianne and Mike Gipson and everyone was glad to see and visit with Ray Carswell whose wife Martha was one of the four original teachers that started “The Lunch Bunch” monthly meeting. Dianne reported the food was very good.

Dianne Gipson helps me tremendously by sharing news. She wanted to tell everyone about how impressed she is with “Brandy’s Mutt Hut” a place to board your pets. Brandy has experience from working in veterinarian offices and loves pets. Dianne said she has kennels decorated for those who are Dallas Cowboy fans or Princesses for the young ladies. There is also a large secure play area for the pet-guests. Dianne’s princess “Zoey” rated the facility A+ the Mutt Hutt is located in Pollok at 336 Aldridge Circle and the number is 635-9117.

The Super Seniors of Diboll First Baptist gathered and traveled to “My Place” in Livingston for a delicious meal and a time of fellowship. Chris Walker drove the van and got us there and back safely. Enjoying the trip were: Pastor Kenny Hibbs, Peggy Burt, Bettye Greer, Garvis Baldree, Ruth Mullins, Mary Lou Havard, Kathreen Chuck, Earl & Joyce Carr, Elaine Winfrey, Dianne Gipson, Betty Capps, Betty and Bryant Page, Ginger Capps, Betty Kee, Geneva Ard, JoNell Placker, Camille and Leonard Robison, Jr., Joe Miranda, Sue Beaty, Bess Andrews, Polly and Jim Leavell, John Ralph and myself. Those of us who know Bro. Kenny could not believe he ate a meal without ANY dessert! Peggy Burt came home wearing an attractive black floppy brim hat she purchased at the restaurant. These young-at-heart Super Seniors meet the first Tuesday of each month for a noon meal and short program at First Baptist Church. If you’ll admit to being a super senior, you are welcome to come join this group February 2nd.

Jan Albritten brought information about Crimson Christian Academy’s Spring Golf Tournament which will be at Neches Pines Golf course in Diboll on April 29th at 1PM. Crimson Christian Academy is an accredited school offering k through 12th grades. The school is growing and needs your support. If you are interested in sponsoring this event, please call Jan at 936-639-1222 for more information. For anyone waiting to enter, the cost is $75 per player and we have Team Registration forms here at Poulands’

Mark your calendars for the Fifth Annual Black Tie Bingo on February 20th in the Lottie and Arthur Temple Civic Center. This special event that supports Diboll’s Boys & Girls Club includes a meal, silent and live auction, bingo, casino games, live entertainment and more. Individual tickets are $65 for dinner and bingo or $45 without the bingo packs. To be a sponsor, reserve a table or for more information, contact Patsy Colbert at 829-3543.

February 13th is the date for “Dining Delight by Candlelight” an evening to enjoy great food, entertainment and dessert auction. Proceeds benefit Project Graduation and tickets are $25 for one or $40 per couple with a choice of ribeye or chicken breast. Your elaborate table awaits you at 6:30 PM in the Fellowship Hall at Diboll First Baptist.

Dortha Jackson, a website guru, has been working to improve the www.poulands.com website and if anyone is interested, past issues of The Round Table News are available to read and print from the website which also has a resource tab for fast reference links to Diboll and Angelina County.

Come see us…’round the table.

 
Miss McGillicuddy is moving back to Diboll. As a child, Mandy Smith’s dad, Raymond Smith, would embarrass her in front of friends by calling her “Myrtle McGillicuddy”. She hated it most of her life until it came time to find a unique name for a unique boutique that Mandy and her mom, Kim, were planning to open in Diboll. The girls agreed it was the perfect name when Raymond suggested “Miss McGillicuddy’s” The shop will move into the former building where Simple Simon’s was located. They are hoping to open the dress, accessories and gift shop by February 1st. The hours haven’t been set as yet but plans are to be open Tuesday through mid-afternoon on Saturdays. Mandy is married to Todd Foley, Diboll ISD’s head baseball coach, and they have a 5-month-old daughter, Maisie, who has two sisters; McKenzie and Lexie. Grandparents are Pat and Karen Foley and of course, Raymond and Kim Smith.

Mandy (Smith) Foley attended Diboll High School and was a Diboll Day candidate. We laughed about the queen candidates competing that year in a Lawnmower Race in the park. Matt Smith, Mandy’s younger brother, graduated from DHS in 2011 with an outstanding pitching career with the Lumberjacks and went on to play college ball. Most recently, Matt completed MCRD training, Marine Corps Recruit Depot, and graduated December 10th in San Diego. Proudly watching the graduation were his parents, Raymond and Kim Smith; his sister and brother-in-law, Mandy and Todd Foley and his special niece, Maisie. He is now in CampPendleton for 90 days of technical school and will immediately receive his assignment after completing the school.

Stubblefield Cleaning Services which is comprised of a husband and wife team, Patricia and Kenneth Stubblefield, have outgrown their storage building at their home off FM1818. They have moved into the former Flowers Body Shop building on Highway 59 that was purchased by Leonard and Billie Robison. They have expanded their cleaning services from just residential to commercial, churches, new construction and have plans to eventually add carpet cleaning and auto/truck detail. They have 14 years of experience. If you are in need of cleaning services, the number to call is 936-212-1885.

The Rustic Cactus is a new business that made an extreme renovation to the former Flowers Body shop at the corner of highway 59 and Brookwood Drive south of the Diboll Depot. The new owners of The Rustic Cactus is Cheryl Loggins of Huntington and Billy and Linda Edwards of Hudson, they have 10 years’ experience in retailing rustic items. The building is full of western décor, terracotta, metal works, yard works, home décor, dining tables, beds, kitchen and bath items, cow and buffalo heads, chimeneas, small gifts and lots of crosses. Their telephone number is 829-0388. Cheryl’s daughter-in-law is the former Michelle Weaver of Diboll and is married to her son, Clayton Weaver and they have two children: Case, age 4 and Lila, age 2.

Another new business in our area is the Building Blocks Academy at 211 Morris Road in Burke. The new owners are Ashley and John Courtney. John is the high school principal at Hudson ISD. Ashley is also a real estate agent for Timber Country Real Estate and they have three children: 15-year-old Cade; 12-year-old Carson and 7-year-old Addison. John and Ashley have been busy renovating the facility which includes a heated and cooled indoor gym. The Academy is now enrolling children ages 6 weeks to 12 years of age and for a limited time, offering a $50 gift card for referrals (some stipulations apply). For more information, call 936-829-2933 or bbadiboll.llc@gmail.com

Jimmie Woodard went to the Grand Opera House in Galveston this weekend to see Academy Award-winner Olympia Dukakis in a one woman performance of Rose. A two hour reading that retells the story of an octogenarian who survives the Warsaw ghetto and finally builds a life in American. It was a funny, touching and entertaining play. While in Galveston she also got to see the new beach that was just finished from 61st to 77th streets. She said it was pretty awesome imagining the amount of sand they had to haul in to build that beach. On the way to Galveston on highway 146 she stopped to visit the Winnie Flea Market but it was too cold to stay very long. Of course, while in Galveston she had to eat and chose Fisherman’s Wharf where she decided to dine on the Chicken Elissa! Although she said it was very tasty, I can’t believe she didn’t eat some selection of seafood.

Betty (Wilkerson) Wilson of Diboll celebrated a birthday lunch at the Red Lobster with her daughter, Bettina and 14-year-old granddaughter, Taylor. Another mother and daughter joined them; Betty Murphy and Debra Buster.

Eugene May celebrated a birthday on January 9th with his wife Sandy baking him an “Earthquake” cake. This is an award winning recipe that their daughter Meridith baked at a former Youth Fair baking competition some years ago since she is now graduated from college and working toward a doctorate.

Brenda and Benny Dickens are getting indoctrinated into the world of 4-H competition. Brenda’s great nephew, 12-year-old Garrett Peck, is a 4-H member and participated in the Belt Buckle Bash last Saturday in Groveton. Garrett’s mom, Star Peck, accepted the responsibility of the concessions at the event and got volunteers from her mom, Susan Payne and her husband, Rick, former 4-H’er Dillon Mason, and her aunt and uncle Brenda and Benny. The group traveled to Groveton Friday evening before the event on Saturday morning to get everything set up to sell hot dogs, chili dogs, nachos, popcorn and all the other good stuff sold in concessions stands. A severe thunderstorm arrived about the time they were leaving to come home. Although Benny was driving Brenda was fearful of the large hail breaking the windshield and was grateful to make it home safely.

Looks like ‘ole man winter finally made it to Texas. Stay warm and come see us…’round the table.

 
2016 is only a few days old and some folks have already celebrated their birthday for the year, one being Margie Harrell on the New Year’s Day and Kathy Parrish on January 3rd. Margie celebrated her birthday with a traditional New Year’s meal of cabbage, purple hull peas and plans to watch as many bowl games as possible. Margie loves sports, especially football and basketball. Her favorite athlete is Stephen Curry who she has been watching since his college days. He now plays for the Golden State Warriors and Margie would love to have one of his tee shirts if anyone happens to have an extra one laying around.

The lake home of Don and Sandy Hendrick was the gathering place for New Year’s Day for them and their guests: Mike and Dianne Gibson; daughter and son-in-law, Laurel and Bob Youngblood and their grandchildren, Jayla and Aiden. Sandy and Dianne had pictures made wearing New Year Eve hats since they didn’t stay up to see the New Year in. Dianne told us that Wanda Wesch, owner of “Mama Tried” is closing her shop as of January 31st.

Jay, Kaye, JJ, Chad, Chaney, Chloe and Chandler along with Reggy & Cindy Saxon with their grandkids Slade and Sydney; Mick & Mona Murry with their kids Kenzie, Kendall and Dallas; and Randall, Gina and Heath Murry traveled to Georgia, Atlanta for The Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl to watch the University of Houston Cougars beat #9 Florida State, New Year’s Eve. On the way some of the family visited Duck Dynasty and the day before the game they all enjoyed visiting The College Football Hall of Fame, The Hall of Fame captures the stories and accomplishments of the players who broke records and cementing their legacy in a one-of-a-kind experience that pays homage to greats that have played and coached the game. From the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl Skill Zone on their 45-yard replica field, and The Playing Field, an indoor half-football field that includes a massive 36-foot high definition video board and a regulation goal post that both kids and adults enjoyed participating in field goal attempts, pass attempts, and also admired all of the college football teams helmet on display on a gigantic wall, and also on display was University of Houston artifacts with the 1976 commemorative football when the Cougars beat U of Texas, which was extra special because Jay played on that team that won. They also enjoyed eating at one of the oldest restaurants in Atlanta, The Pitty Patts Porch Restaurant. The story is told that when Scarlett O’Hara visited Atlanta she always stayed with Aunt Pittypat. During those visits, Aunty Pitty would prepare only her best recipes. At Pittypat’s Porch, the tradition continues and the food was delicious. The drive was long but the Cougars played an awesome game and it was well worth the drive!! It was a great time had by all.

Charlotte and David Carter own His & Hers Trade Days on Hwy 59 in Burke. They recently celebrated their first wedding anniversary shopping for antiques in their new van. The following is an email I received from Charlotte about their trip: “Our intentions were to go to a primitive auction in Illinois and our little ‘treasure’ spot in Indiana. Our first stop was Blue Suede Shoes in Bryant, Arkansas, one of our favorite antique malls. We started filling our storage boxes with several ‘smalls’ there. We traveled on to see our friend, Mr. Earl a picker just a little north of Forrest City, Arkansas. We gained a few washboards and other odds and ends there. Being on a tight schedule to get further north we made it to Marion, Illinois for the night. We reviewed our wishes for the trip and listened to reports about the flooding and decided that we may need to change our plans to get back across the Mississippi River by the weekend. Every highway we were on as we got from northeast Arkansas on had water on both sides of the roads. We detoured east of Marion but before we got out of town a little shop caught David’s eye so back we went. We gathered a few items and it seemed everything we took came from a certain gentleman’s house. As it turns out the lady and her husband had been caring for an elderly gentleman who was in poor health and they were helping sell the contents of his house. She offered to let us see what they had. We followed her husband to this house up on a hill outside of Marion. A nice little home with furniture from the 1940’s – 50’s. We proceeded to get a couple of dressers, chest of drawers, bench, old pew, steel bed, and several other items. Our Transit was packed from top to bottom!

The best part of our trips are the people we meet and this nice couple will be on our list to go back to see on another trip in the near future. We then drove east to Shawneetown, IL. We found a neat little Mom & Pop restaurant called Rudy’s. We enjoyed their special of the day which was chili and grilled cheese sandwich. While there we visited a gentleman who gave us a few leads on goods on down the road. We really didn’t have room for much else but we did go through Sturgis, Kentucky and on to Marion, Kentucky (yes, another Marion). We found a quaint little shop, Our Picket Fence Antiques & Primitives. Once again we were getting caught at dark trying to get back across the Mississippi river. We only found one road closed and made it to Blytheville, Arkansas for the night. As we started home I couldn’t forget a few things Mr. Earl had at his place that caught my eye so we stopped there again. It was there I picked my favorites of the trip, a tobacco cutter and a miniature Pepsi bottle that was a lighter. David got a vice and a few blacksmith tools that he had eyed as well as a couple of shingle froes. We had a great trip but will have to go back with blinders on so we can get to an auction! “

Steve and Mary Brasher have their first grandchild, Callie Elizabeth Waterman, born December 31st and weighed 6 lbs. 7 oz., 20” long. Her parents are Justin and Sabrina; her Uncle Chris who works in PA sent her a 5’ stuffed bear. Steve works for Kahuna Engineering and works near his son Chris in PA. Steve’s wife Mary travels with him most of the time but plans to stay near “Callie Beth” and help take care of her.

Enjoyed visiting with Glen Ringo when he stopped by. Glen is a retired “bull hauler” who grew up in the Woodlake/Groveton areas. He is a member of The Clean Cut Country Band and invites anyone that likes country/gospel music and home cooked food to come to the Groveton Senior Citizen Center the 4th Saturday evening of every month. Other members of the band included: William and Steven Truss; Dennis Davis; Larry Dunn, steel guitar; Woody Bridges and Homer Simmons who both played with George Jones; Maudine Biddick and Linda Trammel. It’s free but donations are greatly appreciated.

Come see us…’round the table.