To some,
this is just for info.
To those of
you who could not come to the beach or the party - we are sorry.
To those of
you who came to the party and/or beach - we Sincerely Thank You!!
It was a wonderful time by all - it was so nice to see people welcome one
another with smiles and laughter.
Thank you to
our last year's Mystery Guest, Lefty Driesell, for coming again this year
and especially for bringing his lovely wife, Joyce. Lefty called
yesterday and said they really enjoyed themselves and that he thought we
had more at the party this year than last year.
Believe we
actually did - the morning after the party - the Overnighters and I
counted heads. WE HAD 70 PEOPLE AT THE PARTY!!!!! And, in addition to
the party attendees, 25 others came to the beach. As I have mentioned in
the past, the welcome mat is always there - no scheduling needed.
So many
people came from out of town: PA, NC, MD, Lynchburg, Williamsburg,
Vienna, Gloucester, Virginia Beach, Norfolk, Yorktown, Smithfield,
Richmond, Poquoson, and - of course, Newport News and Hampton.
It was a
real pleasure to spend the first 4 days of our visit with Dick's Brother,
Ron, and wife, Terry, who came from PA.
Thank you to
Jane Penn for flying in, to Sallie and Jimmy Shires for driving from
Lynchburg, to Gail Gaskins for driving from Myrtle Beach, to Melissa
Farster for calling, to Lolly and Jay Burke from Vienna even though they
knew we would be visiting them on our return trip, to Evelyn Casey Snead
and Neta Collins from Richmond, and to Sandra Batsun for visiting with us
(we are so sorry for her most recent loss of her fine partner and husband,
Holly, whom we honored with a balloon release). And congratulations to
our 2 new BRIDES: Joan Sammons (sp) and Kay Knight.
 And
special thanks for Carol Buckley Harty and sister Eleanor for coming!
And to all
of the rest of you for coming and for all your thoughtful Gifts!!! It was
a fantastic Birthday Celebration of birthdays passed and birthdays in the
future.
If God Willing, and the creek don't rise.........we will be looking
forward to another Birthday Party next year!!
The
Greatest Surprise - our Wonderful Mystery Guest of this year,
Allen Foster, who received a New Heart this
past July!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thank You, Thank You Allen for
being with us..........it was touching to all of us - giving us a sense of
gratitude for our life and good health and thankfulness for you. We will
never forget your standing on the deck looking down on the group of
applauding friends - and you releasing your balloon signifying LIFE!!!!
Great
Friends, Great Moments of Reflection! Sharing..........that is what true
friendship is all about.
An exciting
time during our visit was when we had the sudden north eastern
storm............We Were TOTALLY surrounded by the surf - as we all looked
out the windows and water directly below us - we commented that it felt we
were on a Cruise Ship!!!
Our Deepest
Appreciation goes to Sandra Canepa for making our Party Cottage Available
to us - hopefully, she will be our landlordess (new word) again NEXT
YEAR!!
From the
Beach we went to the Burkes in Vienna to their beautiful home on
rolling greens which houses beautiful red foxes. We had the pleasure of
actually going with Jay to see the beginning of his FOX HUNT - outside of
Middleburg - the most gorgeous land that I have ever seen. Grand looking
horses and and outstanding looking riders in hunting attire. To see and
hear the Hounds released was one of the greatest sites we have ever seen -
just to be near when all of this occurred - and to see the Hunt Master
blow his horn to gather the hounds............and off they went!!!!
We learned so much having the privilege to be on site. In addition to the
local fox hunters, there were 3 gentlemen from County Claire, Ireland, who
were guests of the group. I did have an opportunity to talk with one of
them - he was totally impressed with the surrounding land - now, that is a
compliment for sure coming from beautiful Ireland!!
Our trip
home was NOT uneventful: rain, slippery highways: 2 large rubber road
barrels were blown over by passing traffic - one veered off to the right
of us - the second one hit us straight on - hitting the front of the car
and was sucked underneath. Glad I was not driving. Dick let off the gas
and the traffic allowed us to cross the 2 lanes to get safely on the side
of the road where the barrel dislodged. THEN leaving Nashville in early
morning traffic, roads wet, we were rear ended by a lady who skidded into
us after applying the brakes. No damage to our Suburban since we have a
Class C hitch on the back - but she had quite a bit of damage. THEN,
nearly home but not quite, we were just about to pass a tractor trailer
when he decided to change lane to avoid a parked vehicle on his right. He
did not look and pulled right out in front of us - Dick slammed on the
brakes and we avoided hitting them by a couple of feet!!!!
It's our
second day home and I have not even Looked at My Suitcases!!! But they
will be empty by the end of the weekend - and during my unpacking I will
remember Forever Friends who cared enough to attend the Party or Visit us
at the Cottage. Thank you! Until we meet again,
Love, EV
P.S.
And our VERY SPECIAL guest, our SUSAN, whose birthday was Oct 3. We thank
her for flying in from TX to be at the Party and to visit with her Keller
relatives. Left her to the end - because I wanted her to have special
recognition.
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