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Sheila’s Potpourri Two

Sheila’s Potpourri Two by Sheila Scogin The cool fronts that have come were wonderful even though the last one made a fast exit. I am hoping the cooler temperatures will keep coming or they can just stay here all the time. Beamon is already saying it is cold and I accomplish more in two days than I did all through the summer. Of course, in East Texas the humidity is what zaps a person’s energy.

October is evidently a good month to have been born. Our Uncle Cletus Russell is going to be 95 years old in a few days and his daughter Nancy Allen will celebrate this month. Our Neal Shaw, Sawyer Garrett, Anne Marie Morgan, and Luke Young will be a year older this month. Long time friends Tina Duren Randolph and Robin Reynolds share the same birthday. Happy Birthday to all! Bruno Barry is surprised that he has made it to the age of 89 but I tell him all the time that he is in pretty good shape to be that old!

Christal Shaw of Nacogdoches visited in Mansfield with Neal, Carrie, Colleen and Walker Shaw. The weather was great and she enjoyed seeing Walker play in two games of flag football. It had been so long since she had seen anybody play the game that way she had to do some thinking of the rules.

Charli Paige was born to Seth and Lyndsey Little Smithhart. Grandparents are Monica Little Ivy, Carl Smithhart and Bill Little. One of the great-grandparents is Melba Duran and the late Jack Duran.

At the beauty shop I was happy to see Dean Durant and former neighbor Bobbie Forrest.

Pat and W.C. Scoggins, Betty Westbrook and Jodi and Janie Morgan were off to College Station to celebrate Sawyer Garrett’s third birthday. He is the son of Reilly and Danielle and his brother is Ryder Garrett.

Beamon has been occupied for several days due to someone logging a tract of timber on past us. He watches the trucks going up or down the road. He gets kind of aggravated at me when I tell him that the white truck or the green truck or whatever color is coming up the road with a load or when one stops at the stop sign and then comes our way. When Jessa Berry was little we would be a t her house next door or at our house. If Beamon happened to be home he was amazed when I told her that her daddy Mark Berry was on his way home. She believed me but he wanted to know why i thought that. Mark drove an 18-wheeler and he had just turned at the red-light headed our way. By that time I would tell them he is stopping at the stop sign or there he is turning in their driveway. Every truck sounds different and each driver (man or woman) drives different. Randy always listened and he could recognize each truck.

My sister Christal Shaw helped Randy and Eileen at the Catfish Festival and Karen Redd Hopson asked Randy who she was. Karen was happy to learn that Christal and Neal had been at Huntington Methodist Church when Neal was little. Karen knew her but could not put a name to Christal. Dwight and Kathleen Walker also found Christal. We are not only cousins to Dwight but he and my sister were in the same grade all their school life.

Team Allegro was in Arlington to serve lunch to the corporate folks at Albertsons. Most people like to be surprised with something different occasionally. That group was so appreciative and declared everything was delicious. When Randy and Eileen went to a food show several years ago in Chicago they met a young man who is a part of the grocery world. When he learned they were to be feeding folks he flew down to see them and enjoy lunch. That was a surprise for them.

Congratulations to Lulla and Bob Adams of Lufkin. They will celebrate 50 years of marriage early in November. They have two children Brent Adams and Karla Carroll. Grandchildren are Cade, Cole and Ella Carroll and Kaitlyn Adams.

The Huntington High School Class of 1962 gathered at Lufkin Barbecue for a great time of fun, fellowship and food. Attending were Calvin and Susan Carrell, Monahans; Dianne Junge Stubblefield, Kennard; Madelyn Johnson Rakestraw, Houston; James and Carol Jones Clark, Friendswood; Wilma Hopson Mettlen, Travis and Gayle Stanbery, Lufkin; Don and Margie Yeates, Buffalo; Christal Russell Shaw, Nacogdoches.

From Huntington were Marjorie Clark, Dwight and Kathleen Walker, Frank and Wanda Harris, Harold Jones, Doyle and Lucille Phillips Burnett, Billy and Claudia Castleberry, Byford and Sandy Sheffield, Martin and Lou Ann Cochran, Lola Shofner Hanchey, Linda Page Clark, Coach Lloyd Dickens and Minnie Barnett Kirkland.

I inquired about two year old Brittany and Bellamy Ross from their dad Michael when I went into Loper’s Pharmacy. Everyday is an adventure with them. The family went to the deer camp for several days. The girls really like camping and of course, roughing it is with a trailer and they have an outside shower for warmer weather. Their eight year old brother Clayton is patient with the girls and one of their favorite things to do is climb into the deer stand. They are in awe of how far and how much they can see from up high. Michael told me I did not know how long it takes for them to climb the ladder into the stand. I can imagine.

They MUST climb up by themselves which means their dad picks one up and she puts her feet on the bottom rung and her hands are on the rung above. Finally finished and in the stand he goes back and starts the process with the other one. No step is missed. Time to go back down and process is done backward. Parents have to have lots of patience. Time to load and head for home but that is not a game plan for the girls. I think Betthany is usually the renegade and leaving was not for her. He had told them they needed to get home and get a bath and eat supper. The outside shower was the best place for them to get clean. He managed to persuade them home was the best place for them to be. They are not going to be able to find a deer because they talked nonstop while the deer stand.

Another of our Denman cousins passed away at the age of 66. Barbara Charanza. She was the daughter of Aaron and Reba Denman Clark. Barbara married Joe Charanza and they were married 47 years. He survives her. She attended Huntington schools and Massey Business College. For years she worked for Lufkin Telephone Exchange as a long distance operator. For those who remember, you had to call the operator and she put the call through. She had a recall of numbers and she probably could remember the first number she ever put through the first day she worked.

Barbara is survived by daughter Jill and Donald Young, grandchildren Jordon and Ashley Young, Tiffany Young and Luke Young, great-grandchildren Kayla, Dakota and Kady Summers and Ellie Young. Her sisters are Genee and Charles Boykin of Virginia; Kathy and Bob Comunale, Willis; brothers Frank and Eleana Clark, Lufkin; George and Lynn Weaver of Rockdale. Aunts and Uncles surviving Barbara are Joyce Webb, Neal Denman, Polly and Pete White, Paul and Patsy Clark, Billy and Linda Clark, Marjorie Clark, Vera McGaughey and Mildred Denman.

Jack and Melba Duran started their pool business from their house when he was working at Texas Foundry. He sold pool supplies after work and on Saturdays and that finally grew enough to get into a place where they could continue to grow. Jack was full time into pool repair and installation of pools and spas. Melba was the “chief cook and bottle washer” as the old saying goes at the store. Grow they did until one day Barbara Charanza walked in the door and told Melba she needed a job. She worked there for 22 years which included Jack and Melba wanting to retire so they sold the business and Barbara kept working for the new owners. By the time she stopped working her health declined so she had been sick until death took her away.

Team Allegro got a break and was able to stay with us a few days. They were supposed to help with the cystic fibrosis benefit in the Houston area but that was canceled due to Hurricane Harvey. They then were doing demos of Allegro products at Brookshire Brothers store number one on Chestnut and our store which is number fifty-two. Randy was happy to see Damon Buckner, Andy Spivey, James Crawford, Crystal Haygood, LaWanna Gainer, Jerry Evett, Tommie Lowery and Christal Shaw. As I was leaving the store Rachelle Ebarb was going in.

Randy is very good for the economy and they were our meals on wheels drivers. Eileen likes IHOP for breakfast and Randy prefers Charlie’s at the Pilot Truckstop so they ate at one place one morning and made the other one on another morning. He shopped at Abney and Sons hardware, Boots True Value, Sam’s, HEB, Wright GMC, MeLinda Harris cut his hair, WalMart, one of the Mexican grocery stores, Bed Bath and Beyond, Dean’s Meat Market, William George and to Corrigan to buy wood for the smokers.

Randy had been trying to find someone to detail his pickup and he wanted the engine steam cleaned. He had tried before they left home on this last trip and then tried in Lufkin. Finally he found Auto Detail Plus in ‘Doches and the owner Eugenio Guardado and his guys did find job. The truck really looked like ti had just rolled off the showroom floor. They were appreciative of the business. That called for a rental car because Randy is not good at staying still so they met Christal Shaw for lunch and he and Eileen toured the Old Stone Fort. Randy had been there long years ago but he enjoyed going again. Another day they had lunch at Fredonia Hotel and someone showed them around the newly remodeled building.

I cooked a special lunch one day and Randy cooked another day and they brought us lunch from Dean’s Deli, Sonic, Cheddars, the Spud and they ate Mexican food one day and Chinese another. I am particular where I eat and Randy tells me often I need to broaden my horizons. I’m afraid I am broad enough!

Even if Barbara Charanza’s memorial was sad it was good to see my first cousins who were able to get to Lufkin. I am the oldest of these cousins and they are Genee Boydin of Virginia; Kathy Comunale, Willis; Frank Clark, Greg Denman, Lufkin; Rita Blevins, Arlington; Jan Baker, Highlands; Teresa Moore, Ft. Worth; Barry Hancock. Lufkin; Christal Shaw, Nacogdoches; and Sam Webb. Billy and Heidi Schmidt were here for the memorial service and they were able to be a part of his Lufkin Class Reunion. Happy 53rd Anniversary to David and Gracie Stone of Lufkin!

The Huntington State Bank has a Christmas tree decorated in the Festival of Trees in the Museum of East Texas. Some from the bank who put their talents to good use were Barbara McIver, Stacey Willmann, Meagan Leclaire and Tommie Lowery.

When we had the brief cold front with frost things I did not expect happened. I usually get the garbage cart back to the house and by the time i could get a jacket on Ruben had brought the cart back for me. He and the driver Perry are so good to us and the next week it was raining and Ruben again brought the cart back. They work for My Trash Service which is owned by Mike and Rachelle Ebarb. Thanks!

The next week one of those little lights showed up on the dash of my car. I looked in the manual which did not explain too much to me so I dashed into Huntington Lube Service. Shane Phillips and Jeff Swearingen took the matter in hand and worked their magic. That wasn’t enough aggravation and the heating unit died. I called before Tom Brown and crew opened and left a message. Along about lunch time Beamon declared they were NOT coming out here. I told him to put another layer of clothes on and yes, they would be here before bedtime. Just about quitting time, Eddie and his helper showed up and fixed the problem. We have so much to be thankful for. There are so many good people to help when we need them.

The merchants of Huntington handed out candy on Halloween night and Michael and Hailey of Loper’s Pharmacy was telling me how many trick or treaters they had.

When Randy worked in the music business years ago he said that the entertainers fell into two categories. They were either great or bad to work with. I asked him if he had he heard that Fats Domino had died? He had and told me of when he and another sound tech were sent to work a festival that Fats and Chuck Berry were one of the acts. Fats was always smiling or laughing and Chuck was more serious but both ere easy to work with and always put on a good show. He said he really hated it when the tour was over because they were great entertainers.

Dr. Biff Beard had left Family Dental in Huntington due to health issues. He and his wife Ginger have been a great fit for patients and friends and they will be missed. We now have a lady dentist, Dr. G. Raina who is stepping in for Dr. Biff. Onetta Roebuck and husband Roe were grocery shopping and we did not have time to talk. Elaine Nerren was shopping for her Thanksgiving groceries. Too often when our kids get grown and the “grands” arrive we have to rearrange meeting and eating.

J.C. Boone was just arriving at the store as I was leaving. Earlier in my life I never thought of getting someone to cook a meal or part of one for me. Now I don’t put much thought to it because it is so easy to step in and place my order for holiday food at Dean and Michelle’s business. I renamed the eating establishment to Dean’s Deli. Both were on the premises the busy day I stopped.

I made a special effort to vote when the time came and one man was almost ready to leave when I went in. Before I go I know how I will vote so it took mere seconds to get the job done. Pat Williamson and I think the former Lou Nell Nerren were helping and another lady was helping that I did not know. Unless there is a big turnout for an interesting race, voting day can be long and boring.

Beamon and I enjoyed celebrating Pat Sroggin’s birthday. Her better half W.C. did most of the cooking. Bettie Westbrook, Jodi, Byron and Janie Morgan, Leslie and Patrick Richards, Reeva and Bruce Brumley and Shane, Jackson and Alexa Scroggins enjoyed the food and fellowship.


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