Champion’s birthday extravaganza celebrating Betty Henson, Dolly Parton and J.C. Owsley drew friends from far and wide.  Ethel Leach furnished the fabulous chocolate cake again.  She had just shared one on a recent Wednesday—yummy.  Kaitlyn McConnell brought her amazing Apple Crumble pie and her stalwart traveling companion Mike O’Brian.  Mike is in wonder that Kaitlyn seems to know every interesting spot in the country. The long table was full of pies and cookies and snacks adding to the sweetness of Saturday midday out on the Bright Side!  Good wishes and expressions of genuine appreciation for the good humor and hard work required to keep our precious community hub spinning arose from near fifty friends and neighbors gathering to sing that song.  Betty’s Skyline friends shared a “Go Tigers!” shirt with her in appreciation for all her support of our vital little rural school.  Carissa Rene sang “Beautiful Star of Bethlehem.”   She had planned to sing it for Betty at Christmas, but for various reasons had been delayed.  Her beautiful voice is a gift she shares happily.  As the crowd left the store keeper was seen going about her regular work.  Thank you.

More birthdays to celebrate are those of Skyline sixth grader Paxton Elgie and the amazing Brenda Massey on January 22nd.  Brenda seems to be in the middle of many good works in the area, generally adding an unexpected element of fun. Eighth grader Blake McIntosh has the 24th for his big day.  The 25th will be celebrated worldwide in honor of Robert Burns who tells us in verse, “O wad some Pow’r the giftie gie us To see oursels as ithers see us!”  That line comes in a 1786 poem, “To a Louse, On Seeing one on a Lady’s Bonnet at Church.”   He also gave us “Auld Lang Sine,” where we are encouraged not to forget our old acquaintances.  Joyce Coonts will party on the 26th.  Jackie will make it a good day for her.  Shannon Alexander will do that for Skyline alum Kay Alexander on the 27th.  Dax Loveless is a prekindergarten student at Skyline with a birthday on January 28th.  We remember Dwane Collins on the 29th.  The 30th is the big day for dairy farmer James Brixey who was reported to have been 40 in 2012.  The 30th is also party time for the lovely Loneda Bennett.  We wish you Champion-style birthday extravaganzas one and all.

Karen Ross joined the fun in Champion Saturday remembering the ten years she carried the mail to us here on her 122-mile route, always carrying dog treats for our friendly canines.  She retired at the end of the year with 26 years of service on her three different routes for the post office.  Kirt Dooms had been her postmaster in Norwood.  She enjoyed seeing him and Judy at her retirement party on January 3rd.  She said her first postmaster was also there to welcome her to retirement.   Hopes are that she will have time to meander back this way often, though retirement often marks the start of really getting busy.  Her friends here will just count ourselves lucky when we see her coming.

News has come that Eva Loyce Henson Phillips passed away on January 5th.  She attended all eight years of elementary school at Champion, graduating in 1949.  She had been living with her son in Nashville for a while.  They enjoyed coming to the Champion Reunion usually held on Saturday of the Labor Day weekend.  Her son said that she was very much looking forward to this year’s event.  Her brother down in Houston, Texas, Kenneth (Hovie) Henson, is now the last of the Ezra Henson children living.  He says he is the last of his clan now.  Hovie has had health problems of his own, but hopes are that he and Dawn will make it back home for the festivities this summer.

Football fans enjoying the weekend games get to hear the National Anthem performed by a variety of talented people.  In these tumultuous, troubling political times it is worth the effort to listen to the words of our song to reflect on whether we are still the land of the free and the home of the brave.  One Old Champion who has heard that song often in his eighty-plus years says that none of them lately have done nearly as good a job as David Richardson does.  David is a busy guy, a genuine local talent, flying around and still playing basketball in his 60s (early 60s) and making music all over the place–Mansfield, Norwood, Mountain Grove, Dora, Vanzant and sometimes on a Wednesday in Champion—Looking on the Bright Side!

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