Published: June 25, 2008 04:53 pm         

Prayers go out to friends of Gardendale Civic Center

Gardendale Senior News by Mack McConnell

The North Jefferson News



Our condolences go out to one of our members, Catherine O’Neill, in the loss of her daughter.

Our prayers and sympathy are out there for Peggy Reeser as she recovers from a broken hip after a fall. She is recovering in UAB. We wish you the best, Peggy, and may the Lord bless you as you recover. Peggy has always been so active she will probably be up and dancing around on crutches before long.

There’s lots going on the rest of this week. Today, Chris Taylor of Edward Jones Financial will be presenting some useful information. I am sure you met him at his booth during our anniversary celebration Saturday.

Tomorrow, the Golden Eagles will go on their trip to the radio museum.

All you seniors who are aged 55 to 100 who are living in North Jefferson County are invited to attend the Senior Citizens Prom which will be Friday from 7 to 10 p.m. There will be a $3 admission fee. Four Picks and a Bow will be doing the honors for the music. This event has been a happy success in the past.

We will have two sessions in July which may help us save lives or property. The first will be on July 2, and will be on the fundamentals of disaster preparation. Then on July 9 at 10 a.m., we will have a safety program with the Gardendale Fire Department.

As the commercial says, “Life comes at you fast.” It is always better to already know what to do before the crisis hits. There is an old saying, “What a fool does in the end the wise man does in the beginning.” So be wise and come into the center for these two sessions.

It is a little ways off, but I know you will want to be here on July 18 at 6 p.m. to hear the Harmony-Barbershop Quartet. I understand that they are really good. There will not be any admission fee.

I told you last week that there would be a Glaucoma Screening by the UAB School of Optometry on July 10. This has been moved back to Aug. 7 at 9 a.m. Please correct your calendars as this is too important for you to miss.

The center will be closed on July 4. What does Independence Day mean to you? To some it may just mean a barbecue or some other outdoor activity, but it is so much more. The freedom of self-rule and the freedom to worship as a person wanted catapulted our nation into one of, if not the, greatest in the world.

We had a wonderful musical day yesterday, as the Four Picks and a Bow wound up our monthly schedule of Tuesday morning bands.

The Country Pickers came back at 6 p.m. to delight our hearts with the best of sounds. Seven of this eight member band are also vocalists and each has his own individual style of singing. They may all sing in the morning bands, but it sounds much better when the lights are dimmed and the tables are pushed back in a party mode.

Come on in and enjoy, seniors. It doesn’t cost anything and you are free to leave at any time, although once you get there they may have to run you off when it is over at nine. The finger foods that the group brings to enjoy during the band breaks seem to get better each week.

On the morning of July 2, Craford Rook and his Bluegrass group will be back with us.

I know that I’ve said this in just about every column I’ve written, but it bears repeating again: our members appreciate the time and talents that all of these bands share with us so that our hearts may enjoy the songs of yesterday and today. Bless each and every one of you who have taken such an important part of making our center the success that it is.

I have had the privilege of writing articles for the North Jefferson News for some time now. It has been a real honor to keep the interested ones informed of our many activities. I have asked our director, Peggy Clark, for a hiatus for a while.

When we have an active program going on all the time as we do, we try to keep everyone informed to the best of our ability. We have other capable people who will fill in for me while I am out. I know that you will enjoy the change. Cara Lee and I still plan to be at the center all that we can.

The light that shines the farthest shines the brightest nearest home.

Thanks again to all of you who have checked in with me each week.

Until we get together again, God bless.