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Carol, I hope you have the most wonderful Christmas with your family. I'll be with my sister and hers in Tampa, altho it will be too warm for me. I grew up on the "sacred soil." so I think Christmas should at least be cold, if not snowy. This was sent to me via email. Altho it may not be a true story, it will probably still have an impact on everyone.

Happy and sad at the same time!

It's just a small white envelope stuck among the branches of our Christmas tree. No name, no identification, no inscription. It has peeked through the branches of our tree for the past 10 years or so. It all began because my husband Mike hated Christmas --oh, not the true meaning of Christmas, but the commercial aspects of it -- the overspending, the frantic running around at the last minute to get a tie for Uncle Harry and the dusting powder for Grandma --the gifts given in desperation because you couldn't think of anything else.

Knowing he felt this way, I decided one year to bypass the usual shirts, sweaters, ties, and so forth. I reached for something special just for Mike. The inspiration came in an unusual way. Our son Kevin, who was 12 that year, was wrestling at the junior level at the school he attended.

Shortly before Christmas, there was a non-league match against another team sponsored by an inner-city church. These youngsters, dressed in sneakers so ragged that shoestrings seemed to be the only thing holding them together, presented a sharp contrast to our boys in their spiffy blue and gold uniforms and sparkling new wrestling shoes. As the match began, I was alarmed to see that the other team was wrestling without headgear, a kind of light helmet designed to protect a wrestler's ears. It was a luxury the ragtag team obviously could not afford.

Well, we ended up walloping them. We took every weight class. And as each of their boys got up from the mat, he swaggered around in his tatters with false bravado, a kind of street pride that couldn't acknowledge defeat.

Mike, seated beside me, shook his head sadly, "I wish just one of them could have won," he said. "They have a lot of potential, but losing like this could take the heart right out of them." Mike loved kids -- all kids -- and he knew them, having coached little league football, baseball, and lacrosse.

That's when the idea for his present came. That afternoon, I went to a local sporting goods store and bought an assortment of wrestling headgear and shoes and sent them anonymously to the inner-city church. On Christmas Eve, I placed the envelope on the tree, the note inside telling Mike what I had done and that this was his gift from me. His smile was the brightest thing about Christmas that year and in succeeding years. For each Christmas, I followed the tradition --one year sending a group of mentally handicapped youngsters to a hockey game, another year a check to a pair of elderly brothers whose home had burned to the ground the week before Christmas, and on and on.

The envelope became the highlight of our Christmas . It was always the last thing opened on Christmas morning, and our children, ignoring their new toys, would stand with wide-eyed anticipation as their dad lifted the envelope from the tree to reveal its contents.

As the children grew, the toys gave way to more practical presents, but the envelope never lost its allure. The story doesn't end there. You see, we lost Mike last year due to cancer. When Christmas rolled around, I was still so wrapped in grief that I barely got the tree up. But Christmas Eve found me placing an envelope on the tree, and in the morning it was joined by three more. Each of our children, unbeknownst to the others, had placed an envelope on the tree for their dad. The tradition has grown and someday will expand even further with our grandchildren standing around the tree with wide-eyed anticipation watching as their fathers take down the envelope. Mike's spirit, like the Christmas spirit, will always be with us. May we all remember Christ, who is the reason for the season, and the true Christmas spirit this year and always.

God Bless! -- pass this along to those friends and loved ones who you know are the givers who understand the true meaning of Christmas.

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL!

Thank you very much for the birthday wishes yesterday, the 16th. Funny - I still feel 67! Thanks, too, to

John Bateman ('70) for his wishes. John, I will look for that stapler; however, we have moved so many times since Surry, I'm not sure I still have it.

Carol, I know you will have a wonderful time visiting your family during Christmas. Please have a safe and happy trip.

Now, here's something amazing: After going to your son Dale's site and reading his biography section, I learned that

he (Hillsboro HS, IL / American School, IL - '02),

Diana (Lyons Harty - Portsmouth HS, NH / Eastlake HS, CA - '05) and

Buckley live in Franklin, MA.

http://www.theamazingturnip.sys-techs.com/portfolio/

For the fun of it, I "Mapquested" the distance from Westwood, MA, where Doug and I are going for Christmas to be with my son and his family, to Franklin, MA. Hold onto your hat - the distance between them is 20.6 miles!!!!! It's a shame you couldn't ride up with us and be in two places at once!

Have a lovely Christmas, and thank you again for all you do.

Betty Brockwell McClure (58)

Thanks so much for re-introducing me to my childhood buddy,

Al Simms ('60 - of VA) and also for leading me to the NNHS web site. You are correct.....Carol is amazing. Since receiving your email, I have been reading the names of so many of my past friends and re-living my HS days. In 1956 I transferred from NNHS to WSH after moving to Hidenwood and I therefore lost contact with many of my grammar school (Stonewall Jackson) and NNHS friends. Carol's web site is like my stepping back in time. Believe me, I will pay a daily visit to her site in hopes of re-connecting with many lost friends such as Al.

Thanks again and enjoy the Utah slopes. Tell Sylvia (Hall Hammond - '66 - of UT) "Hi" and we hope to see you soon.

I hope you and your family have a wonderful holiday and Happy New Year. It was great seeing you at Buckroe.

I wish you & your family a very Merry Christmas. You do so much for your Typhoon Family & it is so nice that you can get away from your computer for a few days. I do hope that you don't go into computer withdrawal!!

My family & I wish everyone a Healthy & Happy New Year. May we find Peace in whatever we are looking for.

Happy Holidays to all,

Mary Massey Lyle Class of 1961

*Fabulous 50's Christmas Songs*
A Holly Jolly Christmas Burl Ives	Away In A Manger Loretta Lynn	Christmas Alphabet The McGuire Sisters
Christmas Country Christmas The Statler Brothers	Christmas In My Hometown Sonny James	Christmas Song Alvin & The Chipmunks
Christmas Times A Coming Bill Monroe And The Bluegrass Boys	Christmas Waltz Frank Sinatra	Christmas Without You Kenny Rogers Dolly Parton
Frosty The Snowman Gene Autry	Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer Elmo & Patsy	Hard Rock Candy Christmas Dolly Parton
Hark The Herald Angels Sing Nat King Cole	Have Yourself A Very Merry Christmas Rosemary Clooney	Home For The Holidays Perry Como
It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas Bing Crosby & The Andrew Sisters	I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus Jimmy Boyd	It's the Most Wonderful Time Of The Year Johnny Mathis
Jingle Bell Rock Bobby Helms	Jingle Bells Roy Rogers Most Interesting Middle!	Jingle Bells Perry Como
Jingle Bells The Jingle Bell Piggie	Joy To The World Nat King Cole	Leroy, the Redneck Reindeer Joe Diffie
Let It Snow Andy Williams	Let's Put Christ Back Into Christmas Tammy Wynette	Little Drummer Boy Neil Diamond
O Christmas Tree Nat King Cole	Please Come Home The Platters	Pretty Paper Roy Orbison
Rocking Around The Christmas Tree Brenda Lee	Rudolph The Red Nose Reindeer Gene Autry	Rudolph The Red Nose Reindeer Unknown Group
Santa Baby Cynthia Basinet	Santa Claus Is Coming To Town Bing Crosby	Santa Claus Is Watching You Ray Stevens
Silver Bells Bing Crosby/Peggy Lee	Silent Night Dean Martin	Sleigh Ride Johnny Mathis
The First Noel Andy Williams	Up On The Housetop Gene Autry	White Christmas Bing Crosby
White Christmas The Drifters (1954)	Winter Wonderland Brenda Lee	Christmas With Elvis

	Hamburger Stroganoff
	1 pkg. wide noodles 2 lbs. hamburger, browned & drained 1 can cream of mushroom soup 1 can cream of chicken soup	1 can cream of celery soup 1 pkg. dry onion soup mix 1 lg. container sour cream
	Prepare noodles, rinse and drain. Add four soups to cooked hamburger; heat for 5 minutes. Add sour cream and heat for 5 minutes. Combine hamburger mixture with noodles. - Carol Buckley Harty, Hillsboro, MO, 1984