Memorial Day Celebration

Memorial Day Celebration May 25, 2009 has come and gone.  Even with the threat of rain, nearly 900 people from the community and far and wide came to honor all Veterans, living and dead and all servicemen serving so tirelessly and bravely to protect our freedoms.

Hope Baptist Church has sponsored this event for the past eight years on the Brown's farm.

This year was very special for us because our whole family was together for the first time in nine years.  It was a busy time, but a happy time.

For more Memorial Day pictures go to www.NCFIC.org

Kelly with Knox Defender

Carol, Blair and I having a tete-a-tete in our bedroom in front one of Deborah's quilts.

Inside the barn

Fred, Carol and Christina had been exploring the property in our Easy Rider.  The Damings motor home was their home away from home. Many thanks to the Damings.

Yes, we really did enjoy the day.


Breakfast is served

David and Taylor are the ultimate sound men.

Cindy Decker is mixing hush puppy mix for lunch. 

Lester Barham did it again.  He is the one who cooks the pigs and the hush puppies.  He stays up all night to monitor the six pigs in the cookers.

Christina and Claudia stacking brownies to be served as dessert.

Rides in jeeps and hay rides provided much excitement.

Carol and Christina are putting the finishing touches on the stage.

Deborah's dad, Tom Albright and Fred are engaged in animated conversation.

The Iwo veterans... Bill Henderson and wife, Dot, Buck Bunn and wife,Pat and Bill and Mary

Ezra Hill a Tuskegee airman gave a wonderful testimony and sang His Eye is on the Sparrow and I'm Proud to be an American. 

Ezra Hill's Congressional Medal.

The Pierce brothers have come every year. Three of them served in WWII, each in a different branch of the service, and one was in the Korean War. With them is a friend who served in WWII.

JoAnn talked with one of the Pierce brothers about his service in the Navy.

Ezra and Mabel Hill and daughter Linda 

Here they are.....The three Brown kids.  

What a joy it was to see Bill's niece Gretchen and husband Brent from Winston Salem. 

Bill was so happy to see Gretchen and Brent.

The days leading up to and the day of Memorial Day were so full of activity that these people were the most we could gather at the same time.

Claudia, Mary, Bill, Scott, Carol,Christina, Fred and JoAnn.