Our Spirits Soared

For several years, a nervous committee had suggested, rejected and planned for a weekend which would be The Best Ever while classmates marked dates on calendars and set travel schedules in hopes of a great reunion.

On Thursday night, a few of the out of towners and a few locals gathered for a "Beyond Casual®" meal. The first of the HUGS, the exclamations of greetings and the astonished comments about how-good-we-all-looked set the tone for the evening and let us know that we had nothing to fear. As copies of the Memory Book were opened for the first time, the magic began to happen.

On Friday night, Purple and Gold reflected in the old arched windows and off the old polished floors of the Julian Smith Casino. Many of us came early, taking advantage of the announcement that Weatherman Bob Smith (AKA Robert Gordon Smith) would be doing his 6:15 segment from his 50th High School Reunion.

We all felt like celebrities on the Red Carpet as he greeted and interviewed us between giving weather facts. His old neighborhood friend Michael Danish arrived from Maryland; Dorothy Lanier Cravey popped in from South Georgia, Gilroy Garner came from Texas, Madeline Register Bandy came from Florida and . . . and . . . .

Jane Bass Moxley's registration committee checked off names and passed out nametags with BIG lettering! Ron Colvin made sure classmates got the Memory Book as they came in. Laughter filled the rotunda and spread into the great stone-walled casino.

It was just the beginning of a fabulous night of BBQ, memories and dancing -- exactly as planned by Chairman Pete May and his hard-working committee. The magic continued as the purple and gold balloons were released into the night sky. (Okay, it was an accident, so don't get weird.)


On Saturday morning, we climbed the steps of the school -- were they always this high?!!









We sat in desks ready to answer questions, wondered about high tech props in the Auditorium and strolled the halls looking for the 'hottest' guys and gals.



We took floods of memories with us to the front steps in time for the official picture. The photographer atop the firetruck lift was not as 'high' as we were as we squinted past her into the overcast sky.





With the Canal not refilled enough to float the Petersburg boats, Co-chairmen Harry Pund and Butch Murdock and Saturday Event Chairman Don Patterson made the decision to substitute a cruise of the Savannah River aboard The Patriot.

Mary Todd Pyott probably put it best: "We loved everything, especially the river cruise (in all my years I had never been up the river!)"

I didn't get reports from everyone about after-lunch activities, although I heard there were a few small get-togethers of close friends and a few naps. Well, maybe more than a few naps. . . .



On Saturday evening, we all worried a little about dressing for the Augusta Country Club -- Old insecurities die hard, don't they? -- What does "dressy casual" mean anyway? What is too fancy? What is too casual? We quickly learned that whatever we had on was exactly right! (No one cared -- except the CC staff which has rules about denim, no jackets and cell phones.) And as one dear hubby said, to reassure his spouse when she said that she wouldn't know anyone and that she was old and fat, "all of us are old - and half w(ill) be fat, so not to worry."

Well, we didn't worry. And we were all comfortable because everything was perfectly planned by Janice Johnson Dixon and her committee. No detail was left to chance so there were no glitches to make anyone wonder what came next. The flowers, the music, the food (oh, yes! the food!) and the program were spectacular! Helen Gnann Byars' husband Joel said, "I've had more fun at your reunion than at mine. It was really FIRST CLASS!"


Frank Stafford and Jayne Dye Snell began the formal portion of our weekend with the same sense of decorum and humor which made them our student council co-presidents fifty years ago.








Charles Henry* had prepared to serve as our emcee with more gentleness, fun facts and coincidences than anyone could expect.





When we stood for the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag and sang out "Glory, Glory, to Old Richmond," we knew why we had come.

And by the way, Bubber Best can still make us swoon, Rae Brown still delights the heart, the basketball teams could still win a few quarters, Joyce Blanchard and Minta McDairmid still have the figures we love to hate, and not a few members of the Sabre Club can still pass muster.

The magic was still around as we called for our cars. Our Spirits Soared.

We stood in the driveway and chatted as if we didn't want it to end.

Somehow, I don't think it did.
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* For copies of Charles comments, please see my email for his corrected email addy.
For copies of the official photograph, please see my email for the Photographer's info.
If you are not getting the email blasts from me, why not?

Annette
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Have you missed me? It's Earth Angel

Announcement: "The Blogger has been away from her posts while she has finished the Reunion Memory book." True. But I have been thinking about the 59 Musketeers as I have edited your bios and cropped photos and double checked your information. The Memory Book is different from those we have had in the past. It has been my privilege to create this special edition. More about it later -- a few sneak peeks. Maybe. heh heh.

Meanwhile, enjoy our Song #9. Earth Angel by the Penquins. It's a newer version and they're closer to our ages.




If the video doesn't come in, try this link

Here's an interesting raw recording of Elvis singing Earth Angel in Germany. Not the best recording of Earth Angel (or from Elvis) but the photos are interesting ones of Elvis's Army years.

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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

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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.

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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!

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