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*****Sherry Jenkins hosted a "cousins get-together" this past weekend. They had not all been together in over five years. It was her mom’s family - the Brown side. They arrived on Thursday, stayed Friday and departed on Saturday. Tales, food, bingo, food, chicken foot and a lot of memories were shared and made. Plans are already set for next October 2011. There were eight "cousins" who enjoyed this time of memories and fellowship.

*****Quick recovery wishes to Joy Watson and Steve Hill, who both had knee surgery this past week. Joy is recovering at Windcrest Rehab Center in Fredericksburg.

*****On that note, Eunice Byars is at home after recuperating at Windcrest for her rehab after surgery. I understand Cora Byars is also recuperating at home from her recent surgery.

*****On Wednesday, July 14, Betty and Chuck McNallen entertained Kimberley and Trent Staton and their children, Sierra and Dakota, for part of the afternoon. Many of you remember the Statons who lived in JC until they moved to Oklahoma in the summer of 2005. They subsequently moved to northern California in 2007. Sierra will be in the seventh grade and Dakota will be in the fifth. Kimberley says that they love living where they do in California, but that they still remember fondly their Johnson City friends.

*****Every Tuesday, Dominoes are played at 10 a.m. at the 1st United Methodist Church. All are welcome.

*****Mike, Laurie, and Ellie Park just returned from Vegas where they had a backstage tour with the cast of Jubilee and saw the Rat Pack in concert. The girls shopped and swam while Mike watched the World Poker Tour players. It was 112 degrees but FUN!

*****Mari Renee Grossheim and Michael Earney were in Johnson City last week to visit with dad Mike Earney and admire his new blue truck.

*****Sandy Lee must be a true Texan now! She outscored 49 other cooks to come in 7th place in her virgin cookoff at Becker Vineyards on July 4th. Her children think she must have had an in with the judges, as she neither cooks regularly nor even likes to eat chili! Becker Vineyards is a fabulous host to the POD on the Pedernales cookoff every July 4th, donating space and wine to help with the partnered charity, Fredericksburg Habitat for Humanity.

*****Patty and Tim Elliott were so happy to get the news that youngest child, Rachel and boyfriend, Aaron Kakos, of Boston, have announced plans to get married! They don’t know if it will be a Texas wedding or Boston one, but you know there will be lots of celebration in either location!

*****Joe Stewart is back at work after having back surgery. Take it easy, Joe!

*****Evan Stevens, son of Scott and Laurie Stevens, is spending a couple of weeks in Johnson City with his grandparents, Jim and Kay Odiorne. He is cutting cedar with his grandpa and doing landscaping with his Uncle Brit. They are keeping him busy and Kay is feeding him well! He is also spending some time with his other grandparents, Harry and Patty Carpenter.

*****During this month and next the earth will be closer to Mars than it has been in the last 5,000 years. During August it will rise in the east about 10 pm and reach its azimuth by 3 am. By August 27 it will be be the brightest object in the sky excluding the moon and you can see it with the naked eye because it will be as big as the moon. This will not happen again until 2287. So start watching the night sky in August to see Mars ascend higher in the sky.

*****Margaret and Wilbur Mengers visited Roy and Julie Zesch, and their big family of 10 children, at the Zesch Ranch near San Angelo this past weekend. They inspected the round pen that Patty recently acquired for horse training, and saw that it also came in handy for separating the calf from the milk cow. They missed Patty though because she has been on a two-week church youth mission to Brazil. She returned home mid-week after their visit.

*****Beverly and Bill Voron have been in Sitka, Alaska visiting their daughter, Corrine Ferguson and family. Bill has returned but Beverly is staying a while longer.

*****Lyman and Bryan Maddox are visiting the Crider Ranch compound! Friday night Rebecca Crider, Irma Nell Simpson, Lyman, Bryan, Sam and Ann Debo all went to Round Mountain for all you can eat catfish. According to them, "It was really good!"

*****Angie and George Stearns have just returned from a 3-week vacation following George’s retirement from the Kerrville firm, primarily to visit old friends and relatives (and making some new friends along the way). They prowled parts of old Route 66 in Oklahoma and the old Lincoln Highway from Iowa to Indiana, visited several transportation museums, the Will Rogers Memorial in Claremore, floral quilt gardens in Amish country of Indiana, and the Gateway Arch in St. Louis, winding up with a family wedding (George’s niece) in Dallas. Unexpected highlights were getting to ride around in a 1925 Rollin from the display floor at the Crawford Museum in Cleveland, and a Detroit Symphony concert on the front lawn of the Edsel Ford mansion on Lake St. Clair. They spent a delightful afternoon and supper with Flora Cox and her nephew. She was having a good day, told us all about her recent visit from Steve and Charlotte, and sends her best wishes to all here in JC. The firm gave George a GPS navigator at a retirement lunch, and Angie was well-equipped with quilt shop addresses to let it find, all along the way!

*****Welcome home to Tom and Jane Mills who have been gone several weeks assisting Tom’s sister Nancy in Florida.

*****Our condolences to Randolph Hurt and his family on the passing of Elaine Oliver Hurt. What a lovely dedicated Christian lady! I couldn’t even begin to count all the students she taught in Sunday School at First Baptist Church in Johnson City – children and adults alike. Randolph is back home after traveling to her burial in Little Rock, Arkansas.

*****You might be a Johnson City native if you can remember when Furrs Café was in the building that houses Adams Insurance. Teemer and Roberta Furr ran it.

*****Happy Birthday wishes to: July 23rd – Boots Mauldin, Christopher Ulrich, & Amber Sultemeier; July 24th – Pat Dildine, Ethyl Moreland, Brooke Wood, Whitney Wood, Kiley Wood, Tina Zbytovsky, Delbert Kelley, Pat Hartmann, Marrissa Chambers & Todd Phillips; July 25th – Shay Zbytovsky, T. C. Bruns, Randy Solomon, Missy Fenton, Hunter Gustafson, Nina Saxton, Martha Danz, & Wilber Mengers; July 26th – Aaron Humphrey, Jason DeBusk, Jaxson DeBusk, Dexter Williams, & Connie Harrell; July 27th – Kim Hodge, Kendall Holcomb, Julie Timmons, Katherine McWilliams & Amber Schultz; July 28th - Carl Monkhouse, Nathan Axtell, Kaiser Birck, David Garrett, & Cynthia Smith; and on July 29th - Bobby Fenton, Leland Corley, Rilee Moser, Brandi Brussell, Sally Baker, Katelyn Barrientes, Regan Weirich, & Rosalie Joehnk.

*****Anniversary congratulations to Joe & Peggy Ginn on July 23rd; to Kevin & Carol Stueler on July 24th; to Mark & Melanie Crawford on July 25th; Todd & Camille Swift on July 27th; to Lloyd & Mary Francis Madison on July 28th ; & to Randy & Katherine Rutherford on July 29th.

*****A light hearted Tip for the week: Avoid cutting yourself when slicing vegetables by getting someone else to hold the vegetables while you chop.

*****I’ll see you again when there’s more news! Speaking of news, if you have some, email it to imasnoop01@gmail.com.