TJ Class of '68     NEWSLETTER                                                                08/18/07    
         
         

HELLLOOOO Classmates,
Wow.  I have finally been able to clean out the MAIL CALL box in my files.  The messages had been piling up.  I know you will get a kick out of hearing from some of your classmates that you haven't been in touch with for as many as 39 years!  Let's commense with the readin'.....
 

MAIL CALL 

from Fred McCarty in Kingwood  
I enjoyed reading the latest update, and every prior one as well. I will be mailing another check as my contribution to keep this wonderful website going strong. Please don't use the money to go shopping--as you threatened to do on my prior donation! 
;-) 

In late June, I went to Ft. Riley , Kansas where my oldest son, Matt is stationed. He is a Captain in the US Army and the occasion was a Change of Command Ceremony, where he became the Commanding Officer for the Headquarters Company of the 1st Brigade Combat Team in the 1st Infantry Division. He has more than 200 in his Company. As a very "Proud Dad", it was great to be there for the Ceremony. The primary mission of the 1st Brigade is currently to provide training for all Army personnel being deployed into Iraq and Afghanistan to serve as liaisons with various Iraqi or Afghan Army units. 
(We are proud of your son, too!)
 

from Randy Baker in St. Croix US Virgin Islands
I'm currently working in St Croix US Virgin Islands for Hovensa Oil Refinery (Not many virgins here though ;) It's a very beautiful island. Can't believe they're actually paying me to be here. I went SCUBA diving today on one of the top 10 diving spots in the world called "The Wall" the depth goes from about 30 feet to 3000 feet in just a few yards....drops straight down to nowhere. Say "hi" to all for me.

(I call this EXTREME living/working..ha!)
 

from Mindy Marburger Lawrence in Houston
What amazes me is all the talk about retirement and grandchildren.  That seems so remote at this moment.  Our "mini-vacations" are even purposefully planned when someone needs extra help and support...primary recipients being our beloved daughter and my mom.  I suppose we did things a little backwards by living overseas and traveling at the beginning of our marriage, but there are no regrets on that score.  Fortunately, I love the hospice work that I do, the house is paid for, we have so far avoided any personally devastating health crises, and we're happy to be available as we are needed.  At this time in our lives, what more could you ask for?
 

It is remarkable how you and Mike have managed to make a "family" of this large and diverse Class of '68.  You know that this upcoming reunion will be like none other because of your persistent caring and sustaining effort.  
(Mike and I are hoping for a great turnout for the next reunion, but the classmates have to do THEIR part in coming to it!)
 

from Barbara King Ringgold in Naples , FL
I  haven’t been to a reunion in quiet a while, so I am looking forward to next year. I attended the “66 reunion last Oct. with my sister and that was such fun to see the group of people I knew from the little sister’s perspective and unexpectedly run into some friends of my own! 

 I  haven’t been to a reunion in quiet a while, so I am looking forward to next year. I attended the “66 reunion last Oct. with my sister and that was such fun to see the group of people I knew from the little sister’s perspective and unexpectedly run into some friends of my own! 

Right out of college my husband and I moved to western Pa. where Dick got his first engineering job. I did home care nursing in the Alleghenny foothills, driving in the snow and all over the back roads. It was great fun. Our son was born there and shortly afterwards we moved to Baton Rouge with a job change for Dick. Our daughter was born two years later and we were transferred to Houston for a short stint before following the north slope pipeline project work to Dallas , Tulsa and Anchorage . Our fondest memories are the six years we spent in Alaska . We do not lack for exciting stories to tell. I had worked part time in nursing, but once in Alaska started a childbirth education business that fit well with kids and family schedules. We subsisted off of the land simply because my husband loved to hunt and fish. We ate moose in a hundred different ways, caribou, halibut and salmon. We lived above the downhill ski slope outside of town and why my kids aren’t wilderness junkies I’ll never know, but they are surely city slickers today. 

In the 80’s, when the oil industry was in a decline and exploration was being cut back, we took early retirement and moved to Atlanta and started a wholesale coffee roasting plant. That business took us on great travel to Europe so we had great perks in those years.  We had some challenges too, not the least was caring for our nephew who moved into our household to fight Hodgkins. He passed away two years later. I guess we were pretty distracted after that and sold the coffee company and moved to Naples , Florida . Such a paradise. A little of high end shopping, fabulous beaches, Europeans, and old world Florida mixed together.   Every time we think we need another adventure and think about moving closer to the kids we just can’t bring ourselves  to leave. Our son lives in LA and does free lance web design and art direction. Jill recently moved back to Atlanta from San Francisco and manages a group of recruiters for Robert Half company. Both are great kids that bring us a lot of pride. 

Daddy passed away in '01 and Mom in '04. My grandmother was in a nursing home in Port Arthur and just died last November. She was part of the :Hurricane Rita” air lift from the nursing home and was lost for about 3 weeks. Seems the national guard didn’t transport “paper” so patient’s charts, diagnosis, or  medications didn’t follow with the transport. And since the guard didn’t keep good records they weren’t sure where they sent certain people. I’ll stop talking about it now to avoid embarrassing myself. I cannot be civil about losing helpless old people. We did find her and months later she returned to PA, but never was the same. 

Last year,  I gave up my Director of Nursing job in a retirement community nursing home to be able to fly back and forth to PA to see about my grandmother. I was in and out of town quiet often until she died. In the meantime I started a geriatric care management business.   Naples has soooooo many elderly people here with no family to manage how they are cared for, so Voila!  I’m not sure either of us can retire, retire. We have certainly slowed the pace of our lives and  I have vowed to stay busy but never multi-task again.  I find it so interesting to read about the different life paths the class of ’68 took and look forward to seeing old friends at the next reunion. Thanks again for the dedication of all those involved in keeping the web site going.
(You just
think you aren't MULTI-TASKING.) 

from Vicki Brunow in LaVeta, CO
What a treat!!!I REALLY enjoyed talking with you today...I do miss old friends from the high school days...To your knowledge, do any of our classmates live in Colorado??? It will down pour again this evening, so I better get back to designing my French Drain and I'm no engineer, so wish me luck...Also I need to bear-proof my garbage as there was once again a large Black Bear in my yard last night...I feel like "Goldilocks"...Good summer to you,
Victoria Elizabeth Brunow
PS: and yes, I do go by Victoria (my birth name) and have since 1969.

(Sorry, but this is how it works....Vicki you were and Vicki you'll always be down here in
Classmate Land. Check out the CLASSMATES list on the homepage to see classmates living in Colorado.) 

from Charlotte Suire Pellerin in Baton Rouge, LA
Wow, the web site is awesome. John really enjoyed looking at it, too.  In fact, he was in the third grade picture from Sam Houston Elementary.
 
 

Now, for a little Pellerin news.  John and I just celebrated our 35th wedding anniversary.  We have been in Baton Rouge for 34 years.   We have 2 sons.  The oldest, Christopher is 31 years old, a graduate of LSU,  married to a great girl, Brandi, and they have a daughter, Brianna Michelle, who is 3.  Of course, she is the light of her Mimi and Papa John's life.  We so enjoy spending time with her.  Chris is an account executive with ADP and they live here in Baton Rouge.  Our second son, Shane, is a recent graduate of LSU and is working in the IT department of Shaw Group, also here in Baton Rouge.  

John and I both have family in the Golden Triangle so we visit quite often.  I wish we could be at the Boogie Kings concert because they are still our favorite band, ever since we first danced to their music "across the river" in Vinton, LA in 1968.  We get to see them every so often here in Baton Rouge or in Henderson, LA at Pat's.   

I also have enjoyed reading about classmates and seeing the pictures.  Keep up the great work.  Hope to see ya at the 40th.
(So, do you have a cajun accent since you have been in Louisiana 34 years?)
 

from Jerry Nicholson in Austin 
I have been living in Austin since 2000 and work for a huge call center and I am still doing music ministry at a church here in Austin and one in San Antonio. It is really hectic, but I do enjoy staying busy. I am divorced and have two sons that I hear from a lot, one in Alaska (Tommy) and one in Peoria, Ill (Christopher), 2 grandsons and 2 Schnauzers! I love reading and catching up with old classmates. I have been intending to send you some money, but also keep forgetting to do that too.......age! I was in Beaumont recently for my Aunt's funeral, Lillian Dorrell.(Lana Dorrell class of 1960 and brother Don Roy Dorrell class of 1957). It was my first visit since I relocated to Austin. I don't travel there a lot anymore after my parents' deaths, my dad in 1992/mom in 1998. In addition, my brother Danny and his wife Cindy (class of 1969) also live here in the Austin area. I am planning to come to the reunion next year and would enjoy getting to see you all then!  Hope that this will kinda give a few people that might still remember me and idea of what has become of me! 
I do enjoy so MUCH catching up on everything that our classmates are doing.  It is so true that we need each other more than ever now!  What wonderful memories are being brought again to the surface that sometimes, more than NOT, bring tears to my eyes. How precious those remembrances have become to me! 

(Sounds like you travel a lot.  Be careful on the road!)
 

from Dennis Schmidt in Sulphur, LA
I really was glad to hear from someone in our graduating class.  It's been a long time.  I don't know how you found me, but I'm glad you did.  I'm very happy and will be excited to see the old gang again .  I just wanted to touch base with you and let you know that I received your card in the mail. 

(Hey, look up Jean Ann and Wayne Lagrappe in Sulphur.  Maybe  you and Wayne can go fishin'.)
 

from Bobby Isaac in Dallas
It was great talking to you the other evening. I don't know if I should thank you or curse you for making me aware of the class website. I went on it the other evening to show my wife and some 4 hours later (1:45 a.m. on a "school" night) I logged-off. 

When I have some time, I am going to try and locate some pictures to send you. I have some old summer day camp pictures of several of our classmates when we were kids, and also several of us who attended Trinity Lutheran School, such as Phyllis Abshire, Ike Landry, et al, had a group picture taken together during the 30 year reunion. Also, let me know if you are still planning to do a section re-calling peoples' stories from Hurricanes Audrey and Carla. I may have some pictures I could provide you taken during Carla. Even though the city was evacuated, my family remained, since everyone brought their pets to be boarded before leaving town. 

I would like to send some financial assistance to you to help defray expenses associated with maintaining the website. Do I make the check out to you? Also, let me know if there is anything I can do to help with the 40 year reunion.
(Yes, I would love to get some more stories about hurricane memories....even from RITA.  Also, don't forget to locate some photos to share.  And yes, you make the check out to me.)
 

from Billy Caldwell in Mauriceville
Just to drop a note before work to ask when next year will our 40 year reunion take place approximately.  My wife and I live in Mauriceville off north 1442 and between 1136.  I haven’t heard much from any of the class. Occasionally, I see someone at one of the home center stores.

(The reunion will be next summer but we don't have a date yet.  Shhh.  I had a crush on this blond hunk from Lakeview in the 4th grade at Travis Elementary, but don't tell him.)
 

from Sandra Nicks Kelly in Taylorsville, NC
I was surprised to hear from you. I got the card last month but I am busy at this time of year with work, and our farm. I have to pick, shell/shuck, and can what I can't sell. So, I do not have much computer time. 

(Sandra not only lives off the land but works at the hospital. She promises to send photos of her ex-Marine husband for our ARMED FORCES pages.)
 

from Sara Hefty Edwards in Beaumont
I'm still teaching at Henderson Middle School in China, Texas - 7th grade English. Yes, someone has to do it.  My middle child, Bonny, is marrying this November in Austin.  As one of my friends said, "Another one successfully launched."  My oldest "child" Ethan, his wife Kristy, and two children live in Melbourne, Australia.  She is an Aussie which explains their location.  The youngest, Emily, is attending Lamar University this summer working on her Ed.d.  It's nice to have her home at least during the week.  The week-ends she is home in Austin with her husband, a professional guitarist.
 

Next year will be our 40th high school reunion!?!?!?!? One day you wake up, and you're OLD!!  Where did the time go!?!  I just finished browsing through the website.  I'm so impressed!!!!  It was wonderful to stroll and scroll down memory lane.
(Keep scrolling since we TRY to add new items every two weeks. Have a great school year, teach!)
 

from Beth Anne Sutherlin Coakley in Bedford, TX
As always.....time flew by as memories (from looking at the Lee pics and reading the other emails! overcame my aching muscles in my lower back and neck....it is He-- getting old...and the thing is the back is from wearing heels....yikes.....not my old lady flats...Hey...But as soon as I get some
caffeine in me and do some stretches and take some Advil and get moving...I will be all better!
Sandy Ellis...aren't grandbabies FABULOUS????
I may have already told you this...But, I have retired from 10 years at American Airlines (hey I get to keep medical and flight benefits)...and going back to teaching...year # 26.....I can't wait 'til next summer  Oh...can someone help me lose weight.?.I know what to do ..I just forget! I can blame hormones...right?

(You know I started to edit this, but she is so funny.  She writes as fast as she thinks.  I love getting her e-mails.  Did I read she needed caffeine?  Yeah, right!)

from Datha Pugh Dees in Shelbyville, IN
Thank you for sending me the E-Mail with pictures, updates, etc. I have not been in close contact with anyone from my school or church since I move to St. Louis, MO at the end of November,1968.  I have wondered how everyone was doing, but have not taken the time to really inquire.
It was refreshing to look back at the pictures of 3rd thru 6th grades and a few pictures of Jr. High,  I was in the large 10th grade mixed choir, but could not see myself.

(I think you are the only classmate in the great state of INDIANA.  We just passed through your state for the first time while on vacation in March.  Beautiful.)
 

from Shari Louvier Parker at the farm in Malta (west of Texarkana)
Thank you for calling me and I can't wait to dive into the website. I will get you info asap on our business and recipe book. I will still be at the farm for a few more weeks. There is so much to do.

(Shari lives in Houston but also has a farm in Malta where she spends several months.  She will write more about it at a later date.)

 from Pam Owings Hund in Port Neches
I just wanted to say how much I enjoyed Jody Hopkins' story she sent in the last NEWSLETTER on getting older. In fact, I'm saving it and whenever I berate myself for overeating or worrying about how I look in a bathing suit, I'll pull it out :) I could relate to everything it said. I am also kinder to myself and not as critical, but that's not to say I'm totally accepting. Jody, thanks for sending in the story.  It makes me feel better about those lines and bulges and terrible memory.  I've had a phobia about aging my whole life and now that  . . . maturity . . . is here, I'm finding it isn't all bad. I'm even getting to the point that I can ask for the senior citizen discount without flinching ;)   I had to laugh when the story mentioned staying on the computer until 4 am and sleeping until --? I am a computer junkie and for years I stayed on the computer all night, then slept until around 9, which isn't so bad when you count the hours. Still, it's nice knowing there are other computerholics who burn the midnight oil. Just think what we could have done with computers back in our school days! Having Amazon.com at my fingertips would have been a dream come true (and is now!)
(I think we all could relate to at least some of the story.)
 

from Hugh LeBaron (Student Activities Director our Senior Year)
 I was surprised and pleased to receive your e-mail.  My wife and I were in Port Arthur week before last and passed a pleasant Sunday afternoon with Mr. Lionel Rowland and his wife as he prepared to go to M. D. Anderson Hospital for testing associated with his recently discovered cancer.  I learned about his condition by e-mail while visiting in Austin where my granddaughter spent the summer studying ballet at the University of Texas.  I called him yesterday and he was in Dallas on route to Lubbock and then to Colorado on a trip he planned before his cancer condition was known.  You know, of course, that Mr. Rowland is irrepressible because of his faith in God.  Undaunted, he claims the promise of Jesus for believers.  As you may know, Mr. Rowland has been a true friend for the past forty-four years and I hold him in the highest esteem.
  My trips "home" to Port Arthur are becoming fewer and fewer.  My father died in 1989 and my mother in 2003.  My dear Aunt Lois died in 2005.  They are all buried there in Jefferson County.  I still have a brother, countless cousins, nieces, nephews, etc. in Jefferson and Orange counties, so my visits will not disappear for a while yet.
 I have many pleasant memories of my six years at Thomas Jefferson High and I am woefully distressed at the fate of that school.  I was a great admirer of TJ long before I joined the faculty in 1963 and my departure was accompanied with tears and anguish.  The decision to leave was not easy but, in the end, it was the very best thing for me to follow the course I chose.
  I moved to Tennessee where I lived for twenty-two years and worked as a personnel manager for several companies including Westinghouse Electric and Electrolux of Sweden.  Strangely, I changed employers three times while seated in the same chair, such was the acquisition activity in the '70s and 80s.  I moved to Starkville, Mississippi in 1990 to accept a headquarters job.  In the process, I have traveled all over the country and to foreign countries at my company's expense.  I have been retired almost two years and must admit that it is a state that suits me quite nicely.
  I spent today reading the various TJ class websites and was flooded with memories.  I remember everything it seems and still take joy at having been a part of such an outstanding school.  

(Mr. LeBaron was a great mentor.  He helped me a lot when I was Representative at Large in Congress my senior year.  Great to have him aboard as a new viewer of our class website.)
 

OTHER CLASSMATES HAVE WRITTEN IN THE GUEST BOOK PORTION MENTIONED ON THE HOME PAGE OF OUR WEBSITE.  DON'T FORGET TO CHECK IT OUT.

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WEBSITE TO ADD TO YOUR DESKTOP
It is called GOLDEN TRIANGLE WEATHER, but it is
SOOOO MUCH MORE.  Anyone in Texas, or other states for that matter, could find it useful.  It is certainly great to have during HURRICANE SEASON for sure.  Be sure to check it out.  I think you will be surprised if this is your first time to see it.  It is not just WEATHER, either.  It even has Beaumont Police Department's live dispatch.  Just be sure to scroll way down the page to see everything this website offers.   
  http://www.ih2000.net/ira/bmt-wth.htm

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Third Annual "Hooten-Nanny" 
Larry's French Market

Oct. 13, 2007
3701 Pure Atlantic Rd
Groves, TX
(409)962-3381
 

  Doors Open at 5PM and Showtime is 6PM. 
www.larrysfrenchmarket.com/attendees.htm
 

This is a gathering of Bishop Byrne, TJ, and PNG alumni and their guests (but actually anyone can come).  You can eat, drink, mill around and visit, dance (live band), and just have fun.  If you and several others go together or plan to meet, please call and reserve a table (after Oct. 1st).  It is easier on the feet that way.  To check out the last two years pics of classmates from '68, go to CLASS PHOTOS on our home page, then click on Larry's French Restaurant.

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WEBSITE  $$$$$ CONTRIBUTIONS

from Christine Smith Hood
"I'm finally donating to our wonderful TJ website!  Sorry it took me so long."  

from Randy Landry
"Small contribution.  Hope it helps.  Love the site." 

Contribution checks (or money orders) may be made out and sent to me.
Linda DeCuir McFadden
112 Woodsong
Bridge City, TX 77611

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OXIMORONS
1. Is it good if a vacuum really sucks?
2. Why is the third hand on the watch called the second hand?
3. If a word is misspelled in the dictionary, how would we ever know?
4. If Webster wrote the first dictionary, where did he find the words?
5. Why do we say something is out of whack? What
IS a whack?
6. Why does "slow down" and "slow up" mean the same thing?
7. Why does "fat chance" and "slim chance" mean the same thing?
8. Why do "tug" boats push their barges?
9. Why do we sing "Take me out to the ball game" when we are already there?
10. Why are they called "stands" when they are made for sitting?
11. Why is it called "after dark" when it really is "after light"?
12. Doesn't "expecting the unexpected" make the unexpected expected?
13. Why are a "wise man" and a "wise guy" opposites?
14. Why do "overlook" and "oversee" mean opposite things?
15. Why is "phonics" not spelled the way it sounds?
16. If work is so terrific, why do they have to pay you to do it?
17. If all the world is a stage, where is the audience sitting?
18. If love is blind, why is lingerie so popular?
19. If you are cross-eyed and have dyslexia, can you read all right?
20. Why is bra singular and panties plural?
21. Why do you press harder on the buttons of a remote control when you know the batteries are dead?
22. Why do we put suits in garment bags and garments in a suitcase?
23. How come abbreviated is such a long word?
24. Why do we wash bath towels? Aren't we clean when we use them?
25. Why doesn't glue stick to the inside of the bottle?
26. Why do they call it a TV set when you only have one?
27. Christmas - What other time of the year do you sit in front of a dead tree and eat candy out of your socks?
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E-mail ADDRESSES
Our website has e-mail addresses for 
392 classmates!  That means you have no excuse not "to reach out and touch someone" you have not been in contact with for years.  Go ahead and see what happens!  They are listed in the CLASSMATES section on the homepage.  

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 CONSPIRACY?
(Loretta LaLonde Myers shared this cute e-mail)

We MUST STOP this Immediately!

Have you noticed that stairs are getting
steeper?  Groceries are heavier.  And, everything is farther away.  Yesterday, I walked to the corner and I was dumbfounded to discover how long our street has become!  This extension work was apparently done at night!!  Very sneaky stuff...
And, you know, people are less considerate now, expecially the youngsters.  They speak in
whispers all the time!  If you ask them to speak up, they just keep repeating themselves, endlessly mouthing the same silent message until they're red in the face!  What do they think I am, a lip reader? I also think they are much younger than I was at the same age.  On the other hand, people my own age are so much older than I am.  I ran into an old friend the other day, and she has aged so much that she didn't even recognize me.  I got to thinking about the poor dear while I was combing my hair this morning, and in doing so, I glanced at my own reflection.....Well, REALLY NOW-even mirrors are not made the way they used to be! Another thing, everyone drives so fast these days!  You're risking life and limb if you happen to pull onto the freeway in front of them.  All I can say is, their brakes must wear out awfully fast, the way I see them screech and swerve in my rear view mirror. Clothing manufacturers are less civilized these days.  Why else would they suddenly start labeling a size 32 pair of pants a 42, or medium shirt as XL?  Do they think no one notices that these things no longer fit around the waist, hips, thighs, and neck?  The people who make bathroom scales are pulling the same prank, but in reverse.  Do they think I actually "believe" the number I see on that dial?  Heck!  I would never let myself weigh that much!  Just who do these people think they are fooling?  I'd like to call up someone in authority to report what's going on, but the telephone company is in on the comspiracy, too; they've printed the phone books in such small type that no one could ever find a number in there!  

All I can do is pass along this warning: 
We are under attack!  Unless something drastic happens, pretty soon everyone will have to suffer these awful indignities. 

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SUPPORT NEEDED

Steve Wentworth
8615 Joggers Lane
Humble, TX 77346
swentworth@eprod.com

I had knee surgery in May and just got back to work today, Aug. 9. Complications from infections in the operating room. I was operated on three times in three weeks because of some rare bacteria. I'm ok for now. It's still really sore and weak. I was hospitalized for a total of 13 days. Drip antibiotics 24-7. I've lost two of my senses; taste and smell. Hope they return. Been a dreadful summer so far. Had to cancel our annual trip to Destin, Fla. I was bedridden on my birthday, July 26th. I've lost 30 lbs. because I don't feel like eating because I can't taste. My kids are calling me "the grump" and the dog won't even come to me (this is the truth). Hospitals are places to get sick. Went for simple "scope" and ended up damned near getting my leg cut off. I've had six operations on that knee and it still isn't right. I really need a total replacement, but the surgeon says I'm still too young at 58. I keep telling him it isn't his knee. He's one of the best surgeons in Houston or I'd find somebody else to do it. Enough of this
I really am better and back at work!
(30 pounds...so that is what I have needed to do instead of dieting!  Just LOSE my sense of taste and smell!  I've been doing it WRONG all these years.)

 Walter Jones (class of '67)
about his wife-Linda Jones

1304 W. Meadow
Beaumont, TX 77706
(409)866-2031
wdjrel@hotmail.com

I received this from Walter about his wife:

"The fight to defeat Linda's ovarian cancer has begun. The first treatment is behind us. Linda tolerated the chemo well with no allergic reactions. Now the drugs will start to do their job. 
Here are our next prayer requests:
minimal side effects and the cancer drugs do their job.
I'm so grateful that I was able to sit with her all day as she went through the therapy. And I thank God again for MD Anderson."

(Walter has a website listed on our homepage under WEBSITES OF INTEREST.  It is called "Insight by W.J.")

(Deployed in the Middle East)

(Vicki Plaia's son)
Jarrod M. Mahfouz
Company, 3-509 IN (ABN) or Blackfoot/1-501 IN (ABN)
Unit # 40572
APO, AE 09312-0572

GOD BLESS AMERICA!

(Deployed in the Middle East)
(Gail Wilson's husband)
Major Ross Felker
CAOC/STRAT, APO  AE  09309

GOD BLESS AMERICA!

 Sue Miller
(wife of classmate James Miller)
176 Poinsettia
Bridge City, TX 77611
millerfrancis@sbcglobal.net
  
Just got a message from Sue.
She was released from MD Anderson yesterday (Tue) with instructions that she & James stay nearby (in Houston) until Friday.  She has been in isolation for the past month.  
The testing this week continues to look good.
After some final check-ups and check-outs on Friday, they head home.  Keep them in your prayers.

 Joe Pinell
(heart valve surgery in Houston)
620 S. 8th St.
Nederland, TX 77627
(409)722-2795
bellsdad05@yahoo.com
 

(Joe's sister tells me that Joe is doing great.  He's back from Houston, taking a bucket load of RX, but is progressing nicely.  Prayers are answered!  Let's hear from you, Joe. )
 

Ernie Casteneda Bullion
(running tests for extreme gastric problems)
3929 Shadow Bend Lane
Port Arthur, TX 77642
(409)724-6330
tbull50@sbcglobal.net
 

Mr. Lionel Rowland (history teacher at TJ)
2430 11th St.
Port Neches, TX 77651
llrowland@sbcglobal.net

We got back home Thursday, Aug. 9,  after spending four days in Houston undergoing tests at MD Anderson.  They will run some more tests near the end of the month and then decide on the course of action.  We have also had an opportunity to minister to several people that have come to MD Anderson for treatment.  As believers, we have been called to invade the darkness, and I know of no darker place than a cancer hospital.  I am feeling fine and in great spirits.

(Mr. Rowland was recently diagnosed with cancer of the esophogus.)

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CONDOLENCES

Joan Joffrion
(death of her mother) 
7497 Circle 4
Orange, TX 77632-7581
(409)745-4971
ebuz7497@netzero.com

Please
support these classmates during their trials and rough times. 

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PRAYER FOR HURRICANE SEASON

O God, Master of this passing world, hear the humble voices of your children.  The Sea of Galilee obeyed your order and returned to its former quietude.  You are still the Master of land and sea.  We live the shadow of a danger of which we have no control:  the gulf, like a provoked and angry giant, can awake from its seeming lethargy, overstep its conventional boundaries, invade our land and spread chaos and disaster.  During this hurricane season we turn to you, O loving Father.  Spare us from past tragedies whose Memories are still so vivid and whose wounds seem to refuse to heal with the passing of time.

Written by Bishop Schexnayder,

After Hurricane Audrey hit the Louisiana coast in 1957

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Well, your eyes should be tired by this point.  My MAIL CALL box is EMPTY!  You know what that means.  If I receive no new mail, then no NEWSLETTER next time.  Don't procrastinate.  (Shhhhh).  Let's hope HURRICANE DEAN doesn't find out about the Golden Triangle still being a little shelled-shocked from Hurricane Rita 2 years ago.  He might want to play a trick on us to see if we still have any "guts".  My elderly mom and dad are already packed just waiting to leave and the storm is about a million miles out there in the water. Gotta go (pack....hee hee)!

                                                                     Stay safe and keep in touch,
                                                                     Linda DeCuir McFadden
                                                                     lindasuemcfadden@sbcglobal.net
                                                                     www.tjhs1968.com

 

 

 

         
         
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