2008 Reunion Report & Photos

FOR THOSE WHO COULD NOT ATTEND THE REUNION      

CELEBRATING 52 YEARS OF POST GRADUATION FRIENDSHIPS 

I just want to go to the pictures...

      The crowd for our 52nd was slightly smaller than last year's.  What that did was give us more time to spend with one another. 

      Helen and Joe were called out of town on a mission of mercy that they turned into their first vacation in several years.  Joe is feeling better than he has in a good long while.  Even though Helen could not be with us, she carried through with her threat to provide a cake that would not let any of us forget that this is the year we turn 70.  The frosting on the cake was an edible picture of our high school as we remember it, not in its present condition.  I don't know if it was the big 70 on the cake, or just the full bellies it produced, but something depressed us to the point that we did not repeat last year's musical chairs episode. 

      I place a good part of the blame on Carolyn, without whom the cake would not have made it to the gathering. 

      Helen's "This is sure to make you feel old" cake caused Diane and Don to confess they had a bid in on a one story house with no steps.  Plus, it is close to her "little" brother Mike, to enable him to care for them in their old age.  Diane conveyed well wishes to all of us from Sharon R. who could not make it from Colorado this year. 

      One of the first timers was Don Gregory's Judi.  You may recall that Judi did not make it to last year's gathering because of a fire at her home.  No word yet on whether it was having a fire in her house or meeting Don's classmates that was the most disturbing. 

      Another first timer was Thom's Barb.  She's from Minnesota, too.  She speaks Minnesotan fluently.  She and Thom competed in the Hospital Hill Run in the morning of the day of our gathering.  I participated in the event.

The words "competed" and "participated" were chosen with care.  Please note the distinction.  At our gathering, Thom bragged on her.  It seems she noticed a family trying to get a picture taken as she was running by.  So she stopped and offered to take the picture, so all of them could be in the picture.  After taking the picture, she was off again, and won her age group by three minutes, according to Thom.  I checked.  It was three and a half.  And there were only four women in the three age groups younger than her who had a faster time.  Thom won his age group, and would have won the next three younger age groups.  I came upon a friend I did not expect to see at the event.  He has had a hip replacement within the last year, and only recently had two stents placed on his heart.  He didn't beat me by much. 

      Huber O'Dell is adjusting to a retirement from a career in trucking.

Huber lost his wife in 2004, and projects at home left over from a few years of putting things off keep him busy.  When the O'Dells come to their class reunion, they have a family reunion as well.  Ruby, has been a widow since 1995.  It sounded like she works harder at home than most folks do on a job.  Ruby registered late for our reunion.  She was not sure when the treatment for a cancer diagnosis would begin.  She registered when she learned it would not start until the following week.  Just in case you let it slip your mind, last year Ruby was a little late in arriving.   It took her awhile to extricate the exhaust system from under her truck where it got wadded up after it came loose as she was driving to the gathering.  For the second year in a row, Ruby has given conscience problems to all those with weak excuses for not taking part in our gathering. 

      Don Lindsay and Beverly came from South Carolina to be with us.  They were in town for a few days before our gathering.  Don's classmates are not the only people in town they like to see.  A couple of days before our gathering, I was at Stroud's for a family gathering of my own.  To my pleasant surprise, there was Don.  It could only have been better if he hadn't asked, "Didn't you use to be Mike Maloney?" 

      Fred is continues to have to deal with doctors about one thing or another.  It is hard to explain to the doctor that ordered bed rest how you broke ribs when the tractor turned over.  Ruth continues to have to deal with Fred. 

      Jim Troeglen is heavy into volunteer work, but he doesn't let it interfere with the "dog's life" he so much enjoys.  His dogs still rule the roost at his house. 

      Jim Tate is not cut out for "retirement".  So he finds new work each time he "retires" from something else.  That keeps him out of the house.

His Judy is not complaining.  Jim and Judy have a meal with Harvey and Suzy Seely most every week.  So if you want to know what's going on in Liberty, just ask Jim.  If he doesn't know, he can ask Harvey soon thereafter. Harvey will know.

      Howard Dunn will learn to sit around doing nothing about as quickly as I learn to fly.  Having excessive spare time has caused him to take up shooting.  So, if you ever want five 10 penny nails driven with no more than six shots, just call Howard.  His Barbara does nothing to discourage him.  My suspicion is that you can't practice shooting guns in the house, and that is just fine with Barbara. 

      Karol and Dwayne have adjusted to retirement better than anyone I have talked to.  Dwayne retired first.  He established turf at home, and when Karol retired several years later, she did not try to reclaim any of that turf (which I understand to be exclusive responsibility for most of the household chores.) 

      The Food Czar's Barbara, known to all of you as "Bobbie", retired from her staff position at Pleasant Valley Baptist Church on May 31st.  No sign yet of her wanting any exclusive responsibility for household chores. 

      Sharon M. is effusive about how good life is.  Bill2 smiles and nods his head in agreement.  Some marriages really are made in heaven. 

      Eiker always makes it up from Kennett.  When he got home, he learned that two spots on his face were cancerous and needed to be removed.  The spot on his nose was already gone when I heard about it.  The spot on his lip was soon to follow. 

      Dick Jones was well enough to make it this year.  He is battling emphysema.  Frankie is taking good care of him. 

      Tom King did not join us.  But a recent meal with him revealed that

2008 will be his last year of employment.  Retirement beckons.  His health is good.  He got into the glass business many years ago, and stayed.  He has been with the same company for close to 18 years.  He was with another company for 20 years before that.  Tom's working years in one industry reminded me of another no show, Gene Eppard.  Gene got into the book binding business and stayed. 

      Our Ozark classmates were absent.  Ken and Allis have to ration gas between the car and Ken's fishing boat.  The car had used up its quota.

John and Joan are always with us unless John is working his way through major health difficulties.  They missed this year.  There is some thought that one of John's heart valves is loafing on the job.  If true, it will soon be replaced. 

      Speaking of major health difficulties, here's what I learned when I called Bill Sterling to see what kept him away from our gathering.  Bill has been dealing with diabetes for quite awhile now.  But he is also having some problems that don't necessarily go along with diabetes.  His family doctor sent him to a neurologist for consultation.  Bill describes him as an "Iranian".  The neurologist, without asking Bill, made an appointment for Bill to see a psychiatrist.  Bill cancelled the appointment and told the neurologist, "I've been like this all my life!"  I told him if he needed anyone to back him up on that to just let me know.  He is hoping that whatever is wrong with him gets better by itself.  He's had it with the doctors. 

      Art Warman had to stay home with his cows.  With the health issues he has had to deal with, it was good to know that he is well enough to carry out his midwife duties with the herd. 

      Tony was on an ocean cruise with grandchildren.  He gets an excused absence. 

      I saved the best 'til last.   I heard quite a few people privately thanking Jim Harris for the web site he puts so much into for the benefit of our class and all the other classes of the 50s.  I wish that I had heard our glorious leader publicly do the same.  The "Food Czar" got a lot of praise.  Karol and Dwayne were thanked for their work in making the clubhouse nice.  The "Food Czar" suggested that our glorious leader's year round efforts to make our gathering happen deserved some praise.  Not a word of public praise or thanks for all Jim does to keep us from missing stuff we would only hear about later, usually too late to do what we would have done with timely notice. 

      Thom's 800 number was the glue that held us together for decades.

For the last 10 or 15 years, Jim and his web site serve that function in the modern world.  When I think about how much good we get from Jim's efforts, it makes me want to do something real nice for him.  But if I try to say the alphabet fast, backwards, the thought goes into hibernation. 

      Not everybody who offered an excuse for not joining us has been mentioned.  Come next year and make your own excuses.  Be advised that a good time was had by all who took part this year. 

      The motion to rent the Clubhouse June 6, 2009, passed.  Thom and/or Jim will keep you up to date as the year goes by.  If you are not coming to these, you don't know what you're missing. 

            Mike

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