Classmates Reunion In Texas

  

On Thursday, October 10th we were invited to Theresa Martin Kitowski and hubby Chuck's 3-story lake house on Lake Travis at Marble Falls, Texas.  We struck out around 8:30 and got there before dark.  Here are some pictures I took of our visit.  Our classmate Myrtle Loviza Alvarado driving her new Toyota Highlander and Sue McNamara Fowler in the front seat.  Ina Lott Whittington and I in the back seat.

Two years ago Sue, Ina and I made the trip in June and had a wonderful time and rode in their boat and went swimming in the infinity pool.

It was fortunate that Kay Hess Simms (classmate) with hubby, Jim flew in from California the day before and Theresa's sister, Rita Martin Holland flew in from North Carolina a week ahead of us arriving and stayed a week after we left the help her sister.  We left on Monday, October 15th.  We have been invited to return next Spring of 2020.  Hopefully, we will get to ride in their boat and also swim in the infinity pool next door.



Our first sunset with a lit Century plant bloom next door.



Enjoying a late meal Thursday night with pretty lit bottles on the table to enjoy..

 

Ina, Sue, Rita and I stayed next door at Chuck brother's two-story lake house.  Kay, Jim and Myrtle stayed in Theresa and Chuck's lake house.



Theresa called and told us to look outside to see the steam coming up off the lake.  A lady commented on my Facebook post that from the mid-west it is called white stallions.  From now on it will be called the white stallions.



Theresa and Chuck's home.  Top floor, steps going up to the main floor and entering the bottom floor by way of garage.  It has three decks that you can sit on and enjoy the fantastic view of Lake Travis.



The back side of upper floor before going to upper deck.



Looking out toward the upper deck, main deck and lower deck is below main deck.



Looking towards the kitchen and living quarters with master bedroom on same floor.



Coming downstairs from the 3rd floor.



Another shot looking down towards the front door.



Theresa's beautiful collection of glassware, etc.



Looking out the window on the middle (main) deck with a beautiful view of Lake Travis.



Theresa, Rita, Kay, Sue, Myrtle and Ina looking through a scrapbook that I made with our class pictures, prom, invitations, old newspaper clippings, etc.  The contents of the scrapbook is all online on our Class of 1959 blog.



Picture I took in Theresa and Chuck's bedroom of their only son/child that was killed in Afghanistan by a roadside bomb serving his country.



A Century plant bloom with lights on it next door to Theresa and Chuck.



Sitting around a bonfire Friday night telling ghost stories and jokes.



Great picture of Sue, Kay with hubby, Jim at the bonfire.



Chuck, Myrtle, Kay, myself, Sue, Rita, Ina and Theresa enjoying the bonfire Friday night.



This sweet little old lady sitting on the couch downstairs where Sue and I stayed.



Another little old lady all dressed up in her finery. 



They are both in the pool room.  Notice pictures on the wall of family members.  A great way to preserve memories.



I took this picture off the 2nd floor deck of Chuck's brothers home where Sue, Ina, Rita and I were staying on a pretty Saturday morning.



Looking beyond the peninsular.



The master bedroom where Rita was staying on second floor.  The bed was not made up with all the pillows.  They were thrown in a beautiful wooden crib to the left.



Looking down at the infinity pool.  We did not get to go into it because the weather had turned cool.



Picture of Ina and Sue looking out over Lake Travis Saturday morning.



A doe staring me down while on the front porch of the house we stayed in. Deer was everywhere.



The lake house we stayed in with Myrtle's car in drive and you can see a part of Theresa and Chuck's home on the left.



Two bucks out on the peninsular early Sunday morning.



Next door neighbors taking their children out on the lake for a Sunday excursion!



How lucky they are!  What fun!



Century plant bloom in the daylight.



Getting ready to eat a Sunday brunch.



Picture taking time!









Love Chuck's shirt that Theresa got him...Take me to your liter.



Enjoying a wine tasking at Flat Creek Winery with Jim, Chuck, Theresa, Myrtle, Sue, Rita, myself and Kay.  Ina stayed at the lake house.



Entrance to Flat Creek Winery not far from the lake house.





Flat Creek Winery in Marble Falls, Texas.



Water fountain on main deck that we all enjoyed.



Leaving a wonderful four days at Theresa and Chuck's lovely lake house with Kay taking one last picture of us with her phone as Ina looked on.  We have been invited to come back in the Spring so we can swim and take a ride in the boat.  We are all looking forward to returning.

Flashes Won Team Championship at MAIS Overall State Swim Meet

St. Aloysius swimmers Adam Eckstein and Tommy Martin, center, and their teammates react to the announcement that the Flashes won the team championship at the MAIS Overall State Swim Meet Wednesday in Flowood. It’s the first state championship for St. Al since it joined the MAIS In 2015, and also the first time in the meet’s 46-year history that a team other than Jackson Prep has won. (Ernest Bowker/The Vicksburg Post)

For each of the past 45 years, the MAIS Overall State Swim Meet ended the same way.

The PA announcer would list the scores, several teams would politely applaud upon hearing their names, and the championship celebration would begin once Jackson Prep’s name came over the speaker.

This year was no different — the names, polite applause, and wild celebration when Jackson Prep was called out. The only change was there was still one more school on the list when it happened.

St. Aloysius won 15 individual state championships and, at long last, ended a 4 ½-decade long dynasty by claiming the team title Wednesday at the 2019 MAIS Overall meet. It’s the first time since swimming became a championship sport in the MAIS in 1973 that Jackson Prep has not won the title.

St. Al totaled 286 points, and Jackson Prep had 266. Madison-Ridgeland Academy was third, with 215.

“It was unbelievable. We’ve been trying so hard and waiting so long. I can’t really believe that we actually did it. Prep hasn’t lost since the MAIS has been in existence, so it was great to punch one through,” said St. Al senior Adam Eckstein, who won the state title in the 50-yard backstroke as well as two relays. “We get to be in the record books now as champions, and not just the boys (champions). We get to win.”

St. Al joined the MAIS in 2015 and immediately became a challenger to Jackson Prep’s reign. That year, the Flashes lost 18 points when a winning relay team was disqualified and lost by 13 in the final standings.

St. Al finished as the runner-up each of the past four years and its boys unofficially won the championship last year. At the state meet, the scores for boys and girls teams — as well as for the Grades 7-9 and 10-12 divisions — are combined for one total team score, and Prep retained despite its boys’ team being outscored by St. Al’s boys.

The near misses made Wednesday’s breakthrough even sweeter.

“We’ve been so close for, like, six years now. When we finally did it, it makes it even more surreal,” Eckstein said.

St. Al’s victory was powered by its steady stream of first-place finishes. The boys’ team won nine gold medals and the girls got six.

Eckstein took first in the 50-yard backstroke, while his fellow senior Tommy Martin won the 50 breaststroke and 100 freestyle. They teamed up with Spencer Carroll and Layne Sparks to win the 200 freestyle and 200 medley relays, as well.

The medley relay finished with a time of 1:47.62, just three-hundredths of a second off the state record St. Al set last year. It was also part of a 1-2 punch that helped the Flashes lock down the team championship. After the boys’ medley relay won its race, the girls relay of Leah Larson, Ann Elizabeth Farthing, Chandler Tucker and Samantha Graves finished first to close out the meet.

“It was really good. We came together as a team. We had three or four state championship relays, so that’s always nice to see. Every time you would see one of us racing, the whole team was behind the blocks. As a team, I think we performed really well,” Eckstein said.

Carroll also finished third in the 100 freestyle, and Sparks was third in the 50 freestyle.

In the Grades 7-9 division, Jon Daniel Busby won the 100-yard individual medley and the 50 breaststroke. Beau Harris was first in the 50 backstroke and second in the 50 freestyle.

On the girls’ side, Larson took gold in the 50 backstroke and 50 butterfly, as well as in the medley relay. Farthing won the 50 breaststroke, while Graves earned a second-place finish in the 100 freestyle.

Emily Cook won two sprint championships in the Grades 7-9 division, in the 50 and 100 freestyle.

“They’re all best times. I’m pretty proud,” said Larson, a sophomore who now has five individual state titles to her credit. “It was a great day. Being on a high school team is different than being on a city team because you’re all going toward a common goal instead of everybody being out for themselves.”

Winning the state meet also was a memorable way for the seniors Eckstein and Martin to finish their high school careers. They were both on the medley relay team that set the state record in 2018, and each has won nine individual or relay state championships in the past five years.

Considering Harris, Busby, Sparks and Carroll are all underclassmen who will be returning for several more years, Eckstein said he’s both proud of what he and Martin accomplished and excited for what the others might do after they’re gone. He hinted it could even be the start of a new dynasty.

“Even though this is our last year, it’s not the last year for St. Al. Beau is faster than I was in seventh grade. We have a lot of great talent, so they’ll be good for years,” Eckstein said. “We definitely have something to be proud of. We came in our first year and got second by, like, six points. Prep has never lost so we’ve really challenged them and we’ve always gotten at least second. Our boys team won last year. We got rings and everything. We’ve each accumulated a bunch of individual titles so it’s a good feeling. I feel like we’ve left a good legacy.”

Sister Mary Fatima Dies

It is with deep sadness that we announce the passing of Sister Fatima Starks.

Sister Fatima gave 30+ years of service to Vicksburg Catholic School and our community.

She will be deeply missed by all that were blessed to have had the opportunity to know her.

Romans 8:38-39 "For I am sure that neither death nor life... nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Jesus Christ our Lord".

Obituary for Sister Mary Fatima Starks

Long-time resident of Vicksburg, Sister Mary Fatima Starks, died Wednesday, September 18, 2019, in Mobile, Alabama. A Sister of Mercy for 72 years, she was 90 years old.

Sister Fatima ministered in education, as a teacher and principal at schools in Mississippi, Louisiana, Illinois and Pennsylvania. Of her 60 years in active ministry, all but 3 years were spent serving the people of Mississippi. Most recently, before moving in 2016 to Convent of Mercy in Mobile, she served as a volunteer at St. Francis Xavier Elementary School in Vicksburg, Mississippi.

The Funeral Mass for Sister will be celebrated Monday, September 23, 2019 at Corpus Christi Catholic Church in Mobile. Burial will take place at Cedar Hill Cemetery in Vicksburg, Tuesday, September 24, 2019 at Noon.

Riles Funeral Home in charge of local services.

My Computer Crashed!

Classmates:  Will be going downtown to 

Senior Center to post until I can get another computer/laptop!  :(  Posting from my Kindle Fire.

Reverend Alfred Camp Dies

It is with deep sadness that we announce the passing of Reverend Alfred Camp this morning, September 1st. Please keep his family in your prayers.

Eternal Rest grant unto him O Lord. And let perpetual light shine upon him.

May his soul and all the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace.

The memorial service for Fr. Camp will be at Noon on Wednesday, September 11th in St. Mary Basilica in Natchez, MS. Fr. Camp personally requested the Basilica before his passing. A wonderful and loving man Fr. Camp will be deeply missed by all that were blessed to have had the opportunity to know him.

Romans 8:38-39 "For I am sure that neither death nor life... nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Jesus Christ our Lord"......

Jackie & Fur Baby

Love this recent picture of Jackie Melsheimer Doiron with her precious dog, Henry.  What a beautiful picture!