Your Committee at Work

I thought today's photo would make you think that your committee is working themselves to the bone but, truthfully, we are having too much fun! Here are some bits from last night's meeting.

Harry Pund and Butch Murdock have coordinated the efforts of this group.

Saturday Night: Pete May has planned a fun evening with BBQ, dancing and memorabilia. Tables will be placed around the room for displays of your 'stuff' for ARC, Langford, Murphey, Tubman and the Potpourri (those who went to Junior High in other places.) You'll be able to sign in, browse bits of the past and have a mini-reunion with old junior high buddies. A short show, dinner and dancing will fill the night as you begin to recognize old friends in new faces. Betty Reed Keenan and Donna Andrews Pittman are decorating, so you know it'll be cool.

Saturday Morning: Don Patterson has arranged for the school to be opened for touring at 9:00 with the class picture on the front steps at 10:30. Then we'll head down Walton Way and turn left onto 15th Street. Turn right onto Greene Street just after you cross the Butts Memorial Bridge. An immediate right turn will take you to the parking lot of the Enterprise Mill complex where you'll find the Petersburg Boats on the Canal. Be sure to allow lots of time for the Interpretive Center before and after the cruise. Pick a spot for lunch and enjoy your afternoon.

Saturday Evening: Janice Johnson Dixon wants this to be a memorable and fun evening. We will have the entire floor at the Country Club to ourselves, so there will be no crowded rooms. A buffet dinner as only the ACC can do it will begin after a greeting and invocation by co-class Presidents Frank Stafford and Jayne Dye Snell and the Memorial to our deceased classmates. Charles Henry will emcee the evening and a DJ will provide our favorite music. We'll still be visiting as the last song ends. If you are wondering what "dressy casual" means -- put on something a little special but be comfortable -- you are gonna dance; you're gonna hug; you're gonna eat. You want to look good in the pictures.

Thursday evening and/or Friday lunch: If you are coming into town early and want to join classmates for a meal, let me know and I'll put together a little group.

The Memory Book: Ron Colvin and I have received lots of information for you. If you still have bios or photos you wish to send, please do so. We will squeeze you in as late as possible. If you run across an interesting photo of yourself as an adult, don't hesitate to send it.

The books will be available both evenings, so you can pick one up either night. Your name will be on it, so don't worry about losing it.

Oh, the things you have shared. I can tell you this:

• Few look the same.

• Most are more interesting.

• Most don't care who you used to be, just who you are today.

• Few will care if you have grey hair or no hair; if you are fat or thin; if you are wrinkled and pruney or smooth and lifted.

• They WILL care that you made the effort to come to share the weekend with them.

A reunion is like a walk in the early spring woods. You never know what you'll find after the long quiet winter, but the Unexpected will make it Memorable.

photos: Sunday Walk in the Woods

--

Guest Blogger: Charles Henry

Charles Henry will emcee Saturday Night at the Country Club. He is today's guest blogger.

Fifty years! How can it have been fifty years since we walked the halls of Richmond Academy? After just looking in the mirror, I now believe it. What a cathartic opportunity we have the first and second of May! I realize those of you who live in Augusta may feel very much at home, but to those of us “out-of-towners”, it will be different returning to the familiar named streets that no longer look like they did fifty years ago.

Speaking of the reunion, it is to be quite an event. And, if you have not planned to attend there will be some very disappointed people who are traveling to Augusta in hopes of seeing literally everyone again. I cannot imagine anyone living in the area not attending.

There will be some surprises and many a smile. I even heard there would be some music reminiscent of 1959. There are a lot of people working doubly hard to make this a memorable event for everyone. Sure hope to see you there!

Charles Henry

The Old School Tour

The tour of our old school seemed to be a highlight of the 45th -- someone even managed to get the band room open! Caroline LeRoy Ayers sent these photos. Can you name all the people? If not, you should definitely come for the 50th and meet these old friends again.

The Gifts in Life -- The Stories of Two Freds

Freddie Lamback and Frederick Fuller have reasons to be proud, yet their stories are not their entirely their own.

When we left high school in 1959, we were excited about the possibilities for ourselves. We just knew we could do anything! As many of you have pointed out, we lived in a golden age - it was a special time.

We began to make choices as semi-adults: college, marriage, jobs, children. In our twenties, we still had a lot to prove to others and to ourselves before we could really feel like adults. But most of us made it to real adulthood! And for some the challenges took on a new perspective; the challenges were no longer just about US. The challenges involved our families. And that was scary.

For Freddie, the challenge was a son with cerebral palsy. Starting Lantz with swimming at age nine, Freddie and his wife, Donna, helped him compete in able-bodied programs until he was 14. Since then, they have cheered him on to winning medals and breaking records. In 2008, Lantz Lamback won four medals at the Beijing Paralympics -- including his first GOLD.

Always there for Lantz in spite of work schedules, Freddie's interest in supporting other young people with special needs has led him around the globe. He continues to participate in seminars on disabled swimming and recently assisted in setting up disabled programs in Egypt and other parts of Africa. Donna thinks he should retire so he can do more! Now 22, Lantz continues to give as well. A student at Augusta State University while not training in Colorado, he can be found sharing with local young people and inspiring their dreams. Not unlike his father.

For Frederick, the challenge was a daughter-in-law with the need for a transplant. Dealing with the frightening heart condition of their son's wife and the mother of three of their grandchildren was not on the list of 'family activities to do' for Frederick and his wife, Mary, but the love and prayers which enabled them to raise their own family was passed along.

It is what carried them all through the eventual heart transplant of Jeannie Fuller and which fills the days of their son, Chip, and the grandchildren. It is what enables them to celebrate the two year transplant anniversary while prayerfully remembering the family who made Jeannie's new heart possible. One only needs to read blog messages to spot the way this family accepts the Gifts in Life. And, yes, Frederick's big wide smile is still there.

Read more of Jeannie Fuller's story here.

These two classmates have given support and care to the next generation -- it's just what you do -- and they have come to understand that the Gifts in Life are not always what you expect them to be.

From that we can all take a lesson.
For that we can all be proud.

---

Another Favorite Song --#5 "Ain't That a Shame"

Fats Domino, Ain't that a Shame



--
Are you up and dancing yet?! Gee, you ARE old!

What You've Said! #2

NASCAR is my # 1 passion!

Anonymous until the Memory Book is revealed

I love it that this person has a passion.
With an exclamation point! Too many of us don't.

We think we are so old
-- we are not as old as we look.
We think we have become our parents
-- they never had as much fun.
We think we can barely make it through the day
-- a little passion can cure that!

And then, I love this gull's cocky, confident attitude.
"I am who I am." He could be one of us.

He knows you would like to intimidate him
-- he doesn't care; he'll leave you a present.
He knows he looks a little funny
-- have you seen his friends?
He knows he really CAN soar
-- passion will do that for you!

Come to the Reunion.
Bring your PASSION.
Bring your Attitude.

-----
Photo: VanGull on his painter's palette.
I rediscovered him this week and couldn't leave him out!
For another version of this post, check here
@Annette Bush

News You Can Use: Things to See and Do

If you arrive in Augusta early or stay over on Sunday, you might have a little more time to check out your old hometown. If you live here and haven't visited most of these sites, shame on you!



The Augusta Canal Interpretive Center and Petersburg Boat Tour should already be on your ToDo list for the weekend. website One of the Petersburg boats has been reserved for class members and their guests for Saturday morning.

Come be a part of the morning and explore the history of the country's only industrial power canal still in use, learn about the people whose lives centered on the canal, spot some wildlife and a familiar site or two from "the other side" and visit with old classmates aboard the 65 foot replica of the original boats. I don't know which is the best part of the experience -- inside the Center or outside on the cruise -- so don't miss this a minute.

Later in the day, you might want to bike the tow path or canoe the canal.

Morris Museum of Art. website You knew an art museum would be at the top of my list! Well, not necessarily. I've found a few Dull and Boring ones and I was prepared to put this one on the D&B list, too -- until my first visit.

Still in a temporary location in a downtown office building, The Morris is a jewel box of visual treasures created by artists in or from the South. Its library is the Center for the Study of Southern Art and it partners with the Imperial Theater to bring excellent examples of Southern sounds throughout the year. Each permanent gallery focuses on a theme/period and the exhibition galleries showcase excellent and varied art works by both contemporary and past masters.

Even if you "don't like art," you'll find something interesting at The Morris. (Three year old Lucy loves the gift shop!)

Sundays are always free at The Morris and you'll enjoy the view across the Savannah of the new homes on the South Carolina side if you stroll the five-block Riverwalk afterwards.

Augusta Museum of History. website If you remember the Augusta Museum from its old days in the Richmond Academy building on Telfair Street, it's time for you to visit again. An up-to-date facility, with fun exhibits about the region's history from pre-historic hunter-gathers to a space shuttle mission by an Augusta woman, this museum is not dusty old history and the James Brown exhibit rocks!

If you love James Brown's music and want to do a tour of points of interest in his life, check this website

National Science Center's Fort Discovery website On the opposite end of the Riverwalk from the Morris Museum of Art, Fort Discovery focuses on Math and science. More than 250 hands on exhibits make this a favorite for young and old. It'll make your hair stand on end! It's on 7th Street at the River, near the old Town Tavern.

Sacred Heart Cultural Center website Here's a place you could encounter on a tour of Europe, it's just that it's here in Augusta. And we almost tore it down!! If you have never been inside, don't miss it. This magnificent former Catholic Church has more than fifteen exterior brick patterns, marble carvings and stained glass windows. It is now home to several arts organizations and the great hall hosts weddings, parties and events. Pick up a brochure outside the gift shop downstairs.

Phinizy Swamp Nature Park website
If you still have time or just want to get outside, the Phinizy Swamp Nature Park is the place to go. 1,100 acres of swampland! A network of trails, boardwalks and observations decks allows visitors to this nature preserve to get a look at the birds, animals and plants in they may forgotten live in this area. A successful wetlands project, it is a relaxing place to visit.

First Friday on Artists' Row Broad Street on First Friday just might remind you of the days before the malls. Well, maybe not. It's a little more arty and rocking and entertaining. It officially begins at 5:00, but you should stop in a little early around the 1000 block of Broad Street while there is still be parking available. Then we'll see you at the Julian Smith Casino!

The Augusta Metro Convention and Visitors Center has a brochure both online and by mail which has more information and maps if you need more. CVB website

If anyone else has suggestions, just pop them into a comment below. I will be posting places to eat next week, so save those until then.

Photos:
Augusta Skyline
Riverwalk Gulls
Sacred Heart Interior
(c)Annette Bush

--

Here's Another Great Pretender

We come to class reunions wanting to know what you are doing these days, wanting to know what would surprise us about you.

Fred Fidler thinks this would surprise you. Fred and his Hobby have gained recognition beyond the neighborhood, but it is impossible to imagine just what you'll find if you remember this mild mannered engineer and if you've never dropped by. The house is filled with smoke and creepy characters which truly seem alive. The yard is filled with tombstones, dozens of jack'o lanterns and spooky things. It's a Halloween Extravaganza.

The neighbors come to the house down the street with joyous abandon and timid bravery on golf-car mini-hayrides and decorated baby strollers. Friends show up, too. Fred has the most fun of all in his formal attire and Dracula make-up.



Visit, if you dare.


--

Lunch At the Creek

It was a Girl's Day Out Afternoon today.

Lunch usually begins at 12:00 but no one ever wants to leave. We bring out the old annuals, catch up on today's news, talk about the reunion and gossip a little (did you think we wouldn't?!!)

GDO is arranged by Janice Johnson Dixon for the third Thursday of each month at Jones Creek Country Club. We hear there are plans for a road trip to visit Donna Andrews P. soon. An email or phone call will get you on the list. If you live out of town and are headed to Augusta, plan your day around lunch at the Creek.

Photo: February Girls' Day Out; Judy, Betty and Janice

-

The Platters Sing Song #4! on our Hit Parade

"The Great Pretender" with an encore -- "Only You"


Stay tuned for one each week. Our Favorites List was compiled from responses to the 45th Reunion questionnaire.

What You've Said!

There is a reason to have your children when you’re young.

Drew "Dip" Page

Your responses to the questionnaire have been great fun for us to read as we prepare the book.

There have been lots of comments about grandchildren and the joy they bring -- or is it a second childhood for us? George and Mary Todd P. are on their annual trip this week with three grandchildren -- no parents. I have had these two charmers at my house for 26 months now. Carolee sent the BEST photo which defines her days -- you'll have to wait to see it.

There have been indications of having traveled, wanting to travel and going to travel, but little indication of where you've been and fewer anecdotes about leaving a passport at home, being pursued by a gypsy cheese vendor in France, having tea on a blue silk cushion with a Buddhist monk in Japan, being seasick while deep-sea fishing in Puerto Rico or watching the sun come up across the Atlantic with old high school friends. I could tell you ALL those things, but then you would have to share your stories.

Some of you paint or crochet or create things in wood, clay or metal. There are not many pictures. Don Patterson sent the best photos of his days. Or maybe it was Herb Clark. Or possibly Judy Little Murphy . . . . and then there are the black and white photos in batches from several people -- stuff from the 50s and 60s . . . .

We have a tough job ahead. The book will have about a 1/2 page for each person and a directory in the back of all 375 on our roll. Someone called it the Memory Book. I like that. If you think of more memories you'd like to share. There is still time.

Photo: Lucy and Belle on the way to the St. Patrick's Day Parade. They are granddaughters of Annette Adams Bush and the late Henry Bush.

-

Answering Questions!

Here are some of the answers. Hope they help. If there are other questions, use the comment box and we will try to answer them here.

• Concerning the costs. The $75 covers Friday Night BBQ with cash bar; Saturday visit to the school; Saturday Night Buffet with cash bar and the Reunion Book. If there are two of you, you may have two books -- give one to a friend from another class.

The one-price Canal Interpretive Center and the Canal Cruise and Saturday lunch are not included.

Send $22 for the book ONLY if you are NOT coming!

==============================================================

• Deadlines.
  
• The reservation deadline is April 1st. Save Harry and Butch a little trauma by sending yours in now.
  

Call an old friend and make it a foursome or a twosome. (We heard there might be make-out music.)

• The "soft" deadline (isn't that a funny term?!) has passed for the Reunion Book submissions. Now that we have enough to begin the preparation for the printer, we will gladly take others and additional materials for a few more weeks.

Once we are finished, to quote my grandchildren -- "Too bad!" -- so send it in NOW!


==================================================================

• The Host Hotel. These rates have been arranged at the Partridge Inn on Walton Way $109 for a superior king, queen or double queen room, $119 for a suite, and $129 for a balcony. When calling, please reference: Richmond Academy"s 50th Class Reunion.

This link will take you directly to the booking website: Reservations

The Partridge Inn Website is here.

----------------------------------- more later. . . .

We have had a couple of people offer extra bedroom space. If you'd like to stay with someone or if you have space to share, please let me know. email me at <>

Photo of the Confederate Monument on Broad Street

Have Fun!

If this doesn't get you in the mood for reminiscing with old friends, nothing will!

Thanks to all of you who have sent such great photos. We won't be able to use all of them in the book, so we will share a few here. Watch for some other little videos.



Hope you can identify a few of these girls who just wanna have fun!

--

List of Classmates We Can't Locate

Thanks to Mary Ghanz Usher for keeping such great records of where we are. We currently have addresses for more than 375 "found" classmates. We do not know where these are. If you know where any of these are located, comment below but send specific information to me in an email.

Alonzo, Rebecca Romone
Alonzo, Thomas Jose
Arthur, Harold Bradley
Found! Austin, Marie Hutcheson
Barbara Pierson Bennett
Found! Bargeron, Don Jerome
Bateman, Carolyn (Karkoff)
Beasley, Dorothy Ann
Found! Betty Powell Hughes
Braswell, Nancy P. (Longway)
Brooks, Jacqueline E.
Broome, Lawrence
Cameron, Jean Olive
Carter, George M.
Carter, Jane Eloise
Clark, Emory Gerald
Clark, Rita (Mosley)
Coder, Beverly Ann
Cooler, Martha Marie
Cunningham, Barbara Baxley
Davenport, Jane
Found! Davis, Louis Neal
Dixon, Mabel Jean
Docurro, Frances K.
Ducato, Billy Preston (Jackson)
Durden, Billie
Edmundson, Alice (Timmerman)
Ellis, Charles Howard
Floyd, Helen Gale
Ford, Patricia A.
Deceased. Fountain, William Clyde
Franklin, Barbara
Getz, Patricia
Ginsburg, Eileen S.
Goetz, Robert
Goff, Patricia
Goodson, James Lenwood
Goodwin, Jerry Hudson
Graves, June Elizabeth
Green, Jeanette
Hadden, Roy Lester
Hall, Joyce Lea
Hammock, Frances Lucille
Hendrix, Patricia
Heng, Margaret Theo
Hornby, Diane Ellen
Hughes, Carl Gene
Jenkins, Robert Fulton
Jenks, Juanita
Johnson, Bernard William
Johnson, Jeanette H.
Johnson, Margaret Beatrice (Daley)
Johnson, Wallace Dean
Josey, Annette Parsons
Kendrick, Jessie Timmons
Kerr, Jack Russell
Lain, Sandra E.
Lamm, Myrtle (Simmons)
Lawton, Rosa Lee
Leopard, William H.
Leverett, Sara Nell
L'Oisiau, Marie Evelan
Found! Long, Harridell
Love, Dennis
Lowe, Betty
Markillie, Hulde Elaine
Marshall, Martha A (McCoy)
Martin, Barbara Jean
May, Pat (Merritt)
McCarthy, Mary Virginia
Found again!McCreary, Barbara (Sandlin)
Deceased, Melton, Arthur Robert
Miller, Ella Maxine
Miller, Linda Kathleen
Mitchell, Alexander Jerry
Mitchell, Joan Carol
Mitchell, Robert B.
Mixon, Emily Gertrude
Montgomery, Edward E.
Moore, Barbara Turner
Morris, Brenda L.
Murphy, Doris Ellen
Neal, Carol M.
Neal, JoAnn
Nelson, Robert Kenneth
Newcomb, Vicky J.
Owens, Jean Mae
Found! Parker, Tom
Parsons, Edward
Phillips, Lester
Powell, David Mason
Powell, Mary Sue
Price, Janice Michele
Read, Nancy (Major)
Reeder, Robert Eugene
Reid, Patricia Ann
Reynolds, Patricia N.
Rhymes, Edwin Allen
Salyer, Olive Katella
Sandwich, Lynn
Schnedl, Mary Beth
Seats, Betty June
Seigler, Jackie Wardlaw
Smith, Donald Ellis
Found! Stevenson, Jane Mary
Stewart or Brock, Lavaughn
Stewart, Lucy Mae
Stine, Betty Jane
Stole, Michael Edgar
Summons, Annie Lou
Found? Swetman, Robert Echol
Truitt, James B.
Found! Tuten, James
Waddey or Bradley, Jerry Glenda
Found! Weathersbee, Flora Mae (Underwood)
Weeks, Martha Elizabeth
Wilhelm, Glenda Elizabeth
Wilkes, Ruth Marilyn
Williams, Sandra Alene
Wilson or Byers, Winifred
Wooten, Betty Sue
Ziesing, Christel


We believe these are our folks, but we need to verify. If you know about them, please let us know.

THOMAS ALONZO in Michigan?
WINIFRED BYERS in Georgia?
ROBERT E. SWETMAN in Georgia?


If you have been "found," do stay in touch and send a forwarding address if you move.

Are you making plans for the reunion?

It's Song #3

Fats Domino -- Blueberry Hill

Did someone mention parking there once or twice?

*(NOTE: The original video was removed from YouTube. If at some point this one is stopped, please let me know. Annette)

How's Your Hand?

If you have been thinking about all the work required to put on a great reunion, here's your chance to help.

We are still looking for a calligrapher who can put names on labels in a fancy font! We really don't want to do it on the computer and you don't have to live nearby to help out with this one!

We don't promise to erect a monument in your honor like this one on Greene Street, but we sure would say thanks!

Photo: Can you identify this one? It has something to do with writing names!

The Forms. The Forms!

The forms are slowly arriving in Annette's email and Ron's mailbox. What interesting reads they are! And how surprising!

We decided on a simple form this year, just long enough to get updated information. We also decided that we wanted some interesting stuff about our classmates, so we suggested questions as the basis for a paragraph or two.

Some of you have written pithy, funny, interesting bits about yourself. Others of you would probably draw fire from any of our old English teachers with your one word answers. Thank goodness we did not ask for gender because one of you would surely fill the blank after SEX with "yes, please" or "not often" or "when?"

So, if you have not completed the questionnaire, think of what you would like to read about your old friends. Then tell us that same thing about yourself; tell us what kind of travel you love, what bizarre things you collect, or how much your family means to you. Make Miss Allen, Miss Braddy, Mr. DuPuis, Miss Marshall, Mrs. Youmans . . . proud.

In 300 words or less, we want to know how you turned out!

Today's Photo: Danny Miller reading to his young daughter's classroom. And you thought he was just an old Nashville celebrity!

Our Deceased Class Members

We have lost quite a number of the best class of the decade. We have a little information on some and none on others. If you have anything to add, please use the comment option below or email me at annette@annettebush.com. I will be in charge of the Memorial on Saturday night and I'd like to have all the names. Girls are listed alphabetically in the position of their maiden names.

We have some other information, but I hesitate to use more specifics than this. If there is no asterisk, we do not have a date available. * we have only month and year ** we have month, day and year

Marcus Anderson *
Barbara Babb
Millard Beckum, Jr. **
Charles Bignon **
Kenneth Wayne Bobo
Joy Boswell Blount
John Brickle
Beverly Bridges Smith
Phillip Burton **
Henry Bush **
Alvin Butler **?
Carl Carter **
Randall Cawley **
Charles Chason **
Jane Chow Wong *
Robert Cook
Virginia Davis Dreyfus *
Jean Dinkins Morris **
Margaret Eidson Jennings **
Leagree Elliott
Fred Endorf **
Jerome Epstein **
Sarah Elizabeth Foster
Nancy Garrett Phillips **
Sandra Gornto
Donald Douglas Granger **
Elna Grimstead Harris **
Betty Annette Hayden
Helen Hildebrandt Sheehan
Edward Holl *
Richard Holley
Thomas Howland **
Peter Hudson *
Joyce Jackson Rabb
Charles Jackson Jenkins**
Virginia Johnson Laird **
Wanda Kay **
Gene Kitchens
Julian David King**
Terri Klett Vaiden
Tommy Lewis
Ray Maddox **
George Mahlstedt **
Vinson Allen Martin
Carolyn McCaslan
Mickey McGuire
James McNair
Arthur "Tex" Melton *
Danny Miller **
Paul Wolfe fondly remembers Henrietta "Bubba."
Jack Milford
Phillip Moog **
Frank Wright Neal **
Kenneth Nix *
Billy Noles
Tom Oglesbee **
Andrea Ogletree
Jeanette Peterson Lanier *
Judith Rogers
Dennis Roundtree **
Dean Sack **
Harold Silver
Robert Jackson Smith
Charles J. Smith
Betty Sprouse **
Gerald Stanley
Frank Starnes **
Ronald Story *
Dorothy Ann Taylor Foster **
Ernest Thompson
Jenida Tullis Buie **
Robert Turner **
Archie Vaughn
Franklin Watkins
William Wier **
M. Comeria Whittle**
Thomas Whittle **
Larry Horace Williford
DeAnne Wiggins
A. Wayne Wingo *
Joe H Womack **
Norma Wright McDaniel **
Robert Horace Young **
Wallace Youngblood **

These names represent so many memories.
-----------------
Names in bold are new to the list.
Danny Miller
Comeria Whittle
Niki Johnston has added the name of Arthur "Tex" Melton
Paul Wolfe fondly remembers Henrietta "Bubba" Johnson
Madeline Register Bandy has found Robert Goetz which we need to verify.

--

Augusta News You Can Use:

---Congratulations for 30 years to R. Gordon Smith

Yes, it's true. Our Gordon Smith is TV 12s weatherman, Bob Smith. He will be retiring this year after leading the WRDW weather team for 32 years. Wouldn't it be fun to have one of his last live reports from our Friday night event at the Julian Smith Casino!?!

Channel 12's website has these paragraphs about Bob:

Bob has experience in a variety of fields, including flight instructor, Armed Forces Radio and Television, business owner of an audio visual center, drug prevention law enforcement as a pilot and civil air patrol pilot. He is also involved in the Aircraft Owners & Pilots Association, the Experimental Aircraft Association and the American Meteorological Society. Bob holds a Meteorology Degree from Mississippi State University and has received advanced certification for his studies of Doppler radar. Smith is also a recognized member of the National Weather Association.

In his free time, Smith has devoted time to dozens of area businesses, organizations, churches and schools as a speaker. Smith laughs, “I’ve probably given a couple thousand talks over the past 30 plus years. It’s not unusual for grown adults to tell me I spoke to their class when they were young.”

The full story is here. WRDW TV-12
Photo of Bob from WRDW TV website

-----------------------------------ooo-------------------------------------

---The Songs of Peggy Lee at the Morris

If our TopTen list of music has you in the mood for more, drop in at the Morris Museum of Art on Sunday, March 15, 2009 at 2:00 p.m. The Music of Miss Peggy Lee will be presented by Kate Stevenson. It's free as are most of The Morris's Sunday programs. (Before you wonder, Ms. Stevenson is not a 59Musketeer.) http://www.themorris.org

------------------------------------------ooo---------------------------

---Larry Jon Wilson in Concert

It's a Closing Party at the Art Museum for a show of black-and-white portraits of country music legends which includes one of our Larry Jon Wilson. Last year, LJWilson made quite a hit in London where he played to rave reviews. He will perform songs from his new self-titled album and photographer Jim McGuire will answer questions about this photographs and his experiences. Enjoy heavy hors d’oeuvres and conversation with both artists in the galleries at the Morris Museum of Art. Members, $10; nonmembers, $20. Includes lecture, concert, food, and two drink tickets. Space is limited; register early by calling 706-724-7501.

Friday, April 24, 2009
Nashville Portraits Closing Party
6:00–9:00 p.m.

Link to 2008 song "Shoulder"

Article by Don Rhodes, "LJW is a Musical Hero Abroad"


AAB

Another "Song We Loved" -- #2 on our Hit Parade

On Sunday, some folks held a birthday celebration for the Miller Theater. They say it was the 69th. We thought it was old and elegant 50 years ago. I remember seeing Elvis in "Love Me Tender." It was a fabulous place for movie memories. Since this is our No. 2 song, I think others must have made some memories there, too!

Our #2. Elvis. Love Me Tender.



You'll find YouTube links to other versions of Elvis singing "Love Me Tender" in the thumbnails which are scrolling at the end of this one.

A note from a classmate : The Platters Songs in 'American Graffiti' were "Only you", "The Great Pretender", "Smoke Gets In Your Eyes" . . . . I would like to request that our DJ play all the songs from the movie. They were great! . . . . "The Platters recorded such great make-out music - may not be a good idea after all to play their music at the reunion!"

I'll leave you to guess which delightful classmate wrote that. I, on the other hand, thought make-out music might not be a bad thing!

A Request for Assistance

There is a lot to do when a Reunion Book is compiled. We want this one to have as much information as possible about what has happened to our class over the last 50 years, so can you help?

• Return your questionnaire ASAP
• Scan the old Rainbow photos and send them along to Annette
• Do a little calligraphy
  
• Report any deceased classmates which we don't have (I'll include a list later this week)
• Locate Classmates who have disappeared from our rolls or who have not been found
• Contact an old classmate and plan to get together during the weekend
• Let us know what you need to make this a great celebration

Be A Part of the Plan!


Photo: "Out of the Shadows"

What to Expect

Last week's weather was terrific and spring flowers were popping out all over. Yesterday brought some much needed rain for the water levels at Clark's Hill along with a gentle threat of snow. It made me realize that the Reunion is only two months away. Remember how great all the girls looked in their spring dresses?!

This week look for this:
---In Your Mailbox By Snail Mail: Information about the Reunion Book including the questionnaire and photos requests, a few memory joggers, commemorative opportunities (Advertisements, Memorials and Honorariums) and the committee contacts. Ron Colvin made the trek to the post office early on Saturday morning, so if you didn't get it today, you should get it soon. I already have one great reply with an even greater photo!

---In Your Inbox By Email: The Reunion Questionnaire Is Here. You'll get a second email with the questionnaire as an email (not an attachment!) It will be easier for me to send to all the the emails which I have than trying to send to everyone individually. I will still send to those I don't have and be glad to try to answer questions from anyone.

===Just hit reply and add your information and your answers to one or two (or more!) questions -- we are hoping for a variety of topics. Attach a couple of low resolution jpegs and return. You certainly may use the paper form if you prefer.

In May 2009, the girls will still look terrific and the guys will be fabulous. If you don't believe me, you'd better plan to check us out! It is a time for great remembrances and great expectations.

Annette

Photo: Peach blossoms near Lost in the 50s BBQ location at Trenton