Traffic a Nightmare but Reunion was Wonderful

Give me just a little bit more time to recoup and then I will post follow up information on the reunion. We will have ROLL CALL online since we were unable to do so on Saturday afternoon because of the time factor. I also hope to set up a photo link. I will start a photo album with the few pictures I had time to take and invite you to add your photos to the same album so that we may share them with everyone whether they were able to attend or not.

THANK YOU for a wonderful day!

REUNION IN only THREE DAYS!

I'm so excited but also a little anxious that our reunion event is in three days! Final preparations and last minute details are being taken care of and it looks like it is going to be a beautiful weekend weatherwise. Thank you Lord!

Reunion Attendees: The two slide show presentations that we will show at the reunion have been recorded on a DVD which may be purchased for $5 each. (Exact change would be appreciated.) We are limiting these to one per family on Saturday unless you want to hang around afterwards and see how our quantity is holding out. If you want to purchase an extra copy for yourself or another family who couldn't attend, you will be asked to write your name on the list and prepay for your order. If you aren't able to receive all of your requested copies that day, we will then mail the remaining copies to you as soon as possible. Directories will also be available for each family at no cost.

More reunion information regarding parking, registration, and assistance for those with physical limitations may be found in the previous post dated Wednesday, January 28.

Can't Attend? If you aren't able to attend but would like a directory or DVD, please send your order by email and mail your check payable to Sun Valley Reunion, c/o Clear Lake Church of Christ, 938 El Dorado Blvd., Houston, TX 77062.

We look forward to seeing you soon.

Reunion Date is in Sight!

Hallelujah! Our reunion is in 10 days, and I'm so excited that so many of YOU are planning to attend. Please be praying for good weather and that everything will go smoothly for this event.

To give you an update, we are expecting about 344 people. Please use the parking lot on the back side of our building which runs parallel to El Dorado Blvd. and enter the doors leading from the right hand covered awning walkway marked "Guest Entrance."

Wheelchair Assistance: Since we are not getting any younger, we will have three young men from Boy Scout Troop 957 who will be available to assist guests into our building. You are welcome to pull up and unload anyone who may need wheelchair assistance whether you have brought your own or not. The scouts will be running guests in and out of the building with three wheelchairs to save a few steps for those that have physical limitations.

Once inside, please proceed to the ladies at the Registration Table: Check in, acquire a Name Tag for all members of your family including your children, get instructions/directions to the restrooms, nursery and play areas, and render your donation if you haven't already paid.

You are then free to visit, view memorabilia, and/or partake of the refreshments before our "program and festivities" get underway. If you have other questions, comments, or concerns, let me know.

William "Dub" Hollander Called Home

I just learned that William C. "Dub" Hollander died on December 27, 2008. He was 80 years old and had suffered with Alzheimer's the last several years. A memorial service was held at the Veteran's Cemetary on January 9, 2009. His former wife, Nell Green, and son, Mike, are living in Bowie, Texas. Condolences may be sent to the family at wmhollander@hotmail.com.

The names from left to right:
Vickie - 51 - recently re-married & living in DFW metroplex
Dub - deceased at age 80
Minjon - 48 - married living in SE Houston
Eddy - 55 - married living in Victoria TX (actually Dub's brother)
Mike - 55 - divorced living in Bowie TX
Lajuan - 48 - married living in SE Houston
Nell - 75 - recently widowed living in Bowie TX
Mark - 53 - married living in Austin TX

Update on Jack Harris

A praise--Jack Harris is recovering from heart surgery on Thursday, January 22. It was only necessary for him to have a triple bypass rather than a quadruple bypass as previously anticipated. Jack will remain in the ICU at Hermann Hospital for several days and will move to a regular room after the threat of infection has passed. I know the family would appreciate your continued prayers.

Prayers for Jack Harris

Jack Harris will undergo quadruple bypass surgery today. He is currently in Room 540 of the cardiovascular unit at Hermann Hospital. Please pray for a successful surgery and a quick recovery.

Memorial Service for Robert "Bob" Root

A memorial service will be held for Robert O. Root on Saturday, January 24, 2009 starting at 3:00 p.m. at League City Church of Christ (1801 East Main St., League City, TX 77573).

There will be an open mic session where anyone who wishes can share a brief (3 minutes or less please) favorite memory of Bob.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to offset Bob's final medical expenses. Checks should be made payable to: Robert O. Root Memorial Fund, c/o Capital One Bank, 231 S. FM 270, League City, TX 77573.

To view the online obituary, go to http://www.hcnonline.com/bay_area_citizen/obituaries/

Bob Root is Resting with the Lord

Bob Root died this afternoon in his home around 4:30 p.m. after being surrounded by his family. He is now completely healed, free from pain, and enjoying a homecoming like no other on this earth. Funeral arrangements and memorial donation information will be posted as soon as it becomes available.

Update on Bob Root from his daughter, Jeraine

My dad, Bob Root, was released from St. John's Hospital yesterday and is under home hospice care. He should be joining the others from Sun Valley who are with the Lord soon. At this time, none of the rest of us Roots can commit to being at the reunion on February 7, but will certainly enjoy seeing photos that Debbie is sure to post on the blog following it. If you want all the gory details, you can review my blog http://jeraineroot.blogspot.com/ and thanks to all of you for your prayers.

Jeraine

Prayers Requested for Bob Root

Bob Root had a bad reaction to some new chemo in the last couple of weeks. He is in room 331 at St. John Hospital (2050 Space Park Dr., Houston, 77058, Phone: 281-333-5503) and the family will be calling Hospice. Your prayers are requested for Bob, his wife, Millie, and their children Denise, Steve, Jeraine, Lori, Shari and their entire extended family.

Reunion Countdown Begins to February 7

I'm excited that our reunion date is only a little over a month away. I, for one, have been living with this idea for nine months (since April, 2008) and like an expectant mother, I'm ready to birth this baby! For our February 7 date, most of the former members still plan to attend the reunion, and we've even added a few people who would have been unable to attend in September. Of course on the flipside of that, a few who had been able to attend in September will not be able to join us this time around, and we will sincerely miss them.

If you haven't returned your reply card yet, please do so as soon as possible. We would appreciate receiving your reply by January 17 in order to make final preparations.

We look forward to seeing each and every one of you.

Second Round of Reunion Invitations are in the Mail

Reunion invitations should be arriving in mailboxes either today or tomorrow. I challenge you to read the entire information and return your reply card in the envelope provided this week or at least by January 17. Don't let your invitation get lost in your holiday greeting cards or laid aside and quickly forgotten about. Most of you know at this very moment whether or not you will plan to attend; and we would greatly appreciate the courtesy of a reply, one way or the other, so that we may make adequate preparations.

It's very important that everyone return their reply card again. For those who made a previous donation, you do not need to pay anything further unless you are adding guests who will be attending. Your invitation will indicate the previous paid guest count and any donation we have received from your individual family. If you paid for your "children" or person(s) in another household, it will reflect that on their invitation. Please email me if we have listed your guest count/donation incorrectly or if you have any additional questions.

Happy Holidays! We will look forward to seeing you on Saturday, February 7, 2009.

Update on the Ken Berry Family

Ken, Gail, Brian and Robin Berry left Sun Valley in May 1982 and moved to Round Rock, Texas. Ken had been transferred to the Schlumberger location in Austin at that time. When we moved, Brian was 8 yrs old and Robin had just turned 4 yrs old. We have now been here for a little more than 26 years. I will try and give an update of all that has happened over the years.

Ken remained working for Schlumberger until 1999 when he retired after 30 years of service at the age of 52. As many of you know, he had two very strong passions, the outdoors and classic cars. In fact, the reason he will not be at the reunion is because he and a friend will be canoeing a 500 mile stretch of the Mississippi River. Over the years he and Brian experienced many unique and exciting adventures in the outdoors. As for his love of classic cars – well, after his retirement he actually opened a restoration business. I have lost track of the number of restorations over the years, but there have been many. Right now we own three classics: 1956 Studebaker Golden Hawk, 1925 Dodge Brothers Touring Car and a 1930 Ford Model A. Needless to say, we spend a lot of time involved in car club activities. In January of this year, Ken was approached by Medallion Rubber Seal to be an outside rep for them and he said yes. He is quite a busy guy and still going strong.

Gail went to work for the Round Rock Church of Christ in 1983 and left in 1988 to pursue another job. For the next 11 years she worked in downtown Austin. However, in 1999 she couldn’t pass up the opportunity to go back to work at the church and that is where she is today. She serves in the finance office for 3 ½ days each week. Her parents moved down the street several years ago so we could keep an eye on them. Two years ago, Gail’s mom passed away, but her dad is still living in the house down the street. He will be 89 in December.

Brian grew up doing a lot of activities outdoors with Ken. Along the way, he earned his Eagle Scout award. After graduating from high school in 1992 he spent the next 4 years at ACU getting a degree in Finance and playing lead guitar in a band (he got his musical talent from Gail’s parents). After graduation, he went to work for US Gypsum in Sweetwater. About a year after that, he was transferred to Chicago to work at the corporate headquarters. While in Chicago he met Samantha Johnson and they were married in March 2001 in her hometown of St Louis. Over the next several years they adopted two baby boys from Russia and Brian earned his Masters Degree from DePaul University in January 2004. By this time, they were longing to leave behind the harsh winters in Chicago. In June 2004 Brian received an offer from Louisiana Pacific in Nashville and they moved in September of that year and they now live in Franklin, Tennessee. Brian works in downtown Nashville and is one of the executive accounting managers for the company. He also became a CPA this summer. Their lives are very busy with the boys. Cameron is 6 years old and is in 1st grade and Carter is 5 years old and is in Kindergarten.

Robin grew up to be a really beautiful young lady. After graduating from high school in 1997, she too went to ACU. She stayed there long enough to get an Associates Degree in early childhood development and has loved working with children. In September 2004, she married Daniel Reed (she actually knew him in high school). They live in Cedar Park which is about a 20 minute drive from us. On June 19, 2008 they became the proud parent of a baby boy named Adam Dale Reed. We are just thrilled to have a grandbaby close by. Daniel’s family started a business 37 years ago and Daniel works for the family business now and will be taking over ownership in a few years. They stay real busy with family and friends. They attend church at RR Church of Christ so we see them often. It’s great seeing Adam as he grows up.

Overall, the years have flown by since we left Houston, but at times we reflect back on our days at Sun Valley with great joy. Those were some really good times. It will be nice to see some old friends and talk about old times.

Family Update from Craig Roll

My sister, Kim (Roll) Padget, told me about your reunion plans and wanted me to contact you with my info. I just finished reading all of your posts and it sure brought back some memories, especially Camp Mohawk. Although I grew up at Pecan Park, we lived only a few blocks from Sun Valley and I attended often as a visitor and knew most of the kids there.

I have lived in Augusta, GA for 19 years now. As noted in your "In Loving Memory" section my wife Debra died many years ago (1993). I met my new wife Terry in 1999 and we were married in 2002. She has certainly been a blessing to me and my children (who are both grown with kids of their own now). We attend Journey Community Church, where I am an elder.

Can't say if we will have the opportunity to make it to the reunion, but we will see if we can swing it.

Craig Roll
3956 Almon Dr
Martinez, GA 30907
(706) 495-3466
croll54@gmail.com