GCHS Hall of Fame

On Friday night, Jim's dad was honored at the high school basketball game as one of five inaugural inductees to the Greensburg High School Hall of Fame. Family and friends of the inductees gathered at the far end of the gymnasium to witness the celebration.

The Hall of Fame was the idea of GCS Superintendent Tom Hunter and GCHS history teacher John Pratt, who served as chairman of the selection committee. The five inductees were from a wide range of eras, and included Oscar Ewing (Class of 1906), Nanci Hellmich (Class of 1976),  Fred Craig (Class of  1960), Kathryn Ernstes (Class of 1932), and Jim's dad, John Stewart (Class of 1937). They have each enjoyed success in a variety of fields, and made an impact through their chosen vocation.

Mr. Pratt read biographies of each inductee as they (or their representatives) were honored and presented with a commemorative plaque.

John listens while his bio is read.

He accepts congratulations from Mr. Hunter,

and receives the plaque from Dr. Weigel.

He was touched by the standing ovation he received, which included grandson Jonathan from behind the announcer's stand. It made me think of Wonder, the excellent book, by R.J. Palacio, in which the main character, Auggie, says, "I think there should be a rule that everyone in the world should get a standing ovation at least once in their lives."

I don't know if it was the first standing ovation John has ever received, but at age 94, how special it was for him to be honored by the high school from which he graduated, in the community in which he has lived and worked and served his entire life. Such a blessing.

After the presentation, family members gathered around for a few pictures with Grandpa.

Daryl and Ruthann were able to join us too!

Courtney and Adam congratulated Grandpa.

Janet and Jim posed with their dad on this very special occasion.

Before the varsity game, the Pershing Rifles color guard from that school in Bloomington IU presented the colors. GCHS grads Lance and Logan Hunter, twin sons of Superintendent Tom Hunter, are part of this unit, and proudly participated in the ceremony.

GCHS grad Rachel Kress Harter sang the national anthem.

I didn't get a picture of it, but Coach Meyer brought the varsity players out of the locker room early, so they could witness the Hall of Fame presentation. They are a good group of kids, who, by the way, are the defending Class 3A State Champions! Go Pirates!

There is nothing quite like a high school basketball game in Indiana.

I snapped this photo during the announcement of the starting lineup.

The Pirates won easily over the visiting Indian Creek Braves, to remain undefeated. They are fun to watch.

After the game, there was a reception in the school cafeteria for the Hall of Fame inductees, friends, and family members. Grandpa, always ready to tell a story, took advantage of the opportunity to share some memories with the small crowd.

He told a high school track team story, and a couple of Coast Guard stories, which were enjoyed even by those of us who had heard them several times before.

Fred Craig poses with John. They were the only living recipients in attendance, and learned they are neighbors. The other living recipient, Nanci Hellmich, was scheduled to attend, but had to cancel due to the weather.

It was a great evening, and I think John enjoyed every part of it.

It was especially nice of Coach Stacy Meyer to come up to the cafeteria after his post-game radio interview to congratulate John and the others.

It was a great night of Pirate Pride, and a meaningful way to honor the first five GCHS Hall of Famers.

God Blessed Texas

Happy New Year! With each passing year, it becomes more clear that while the days may be long, the years are short. That is especially true when children are young. As I grow older, time just seems to fly by. Before she died, Jim's mom told me that you're just living your life, and pretty soon, you're 90. What a blessing she was for all the life and love she shared with us.

I wanted to do one more post about our trip to Texas, and what a trip it was! We had to leave at zero dark thirty, and getting everyone up, dressed, and loaded is no small feat. Jennifer and Bryan actually overslept, so we almost had a 'Home Alone' middle of the night morning.

Since it was the day after Christmas, the security lines were busy, but we all made it through and arrived at our gate on time. We knew we had to make a quick connection in Houston, and we mentioned it to everyone we encountered. On the plane, we waited while a mechanical issue was addressed, and left Indy 30 minutes late. That gave me little hope of making our connection, which was only 34 minutes.

Once on the ground in Houston, we sprang into action. Six of us hurried to the next gate, four waited on the gate-checked bags, two went to change a diaper, and I waited in a central location to keep the groups together.

Another family, a mom with her three daughters, joined our group as we rushed through the terminal, onto the tram, and to the next gate. Their little group made 17 of us booked on the same flight out of Houston. We got everyone through, and even waited a few minutes for the pilot, who was clearing customs from his flight in from Mexico. High five Stewarts!

                         

Touching down in College Station, we could see Kyle Field from the airplane.

Welcome to Aggieland!

We checked into our lovely cottage at the Traditions Club, and David made himself at home in front of the TWO flat screen TVs in the living room.

After we decided on who would stay in which room, I noticed this in our bathroom. I guess we made the right choice. Who Dat!

We also had a refreshing welcome gift to greet us. Hmmm those cookies look familiar. :)

Our 'cottage' was a beautiful 4 bedroom house.

Of course, the boys found time for golf.

And spent some time at the 'Chicken' after dinner.

On Friday, the groom and the guys played golf, while the girls did a little College Station shopping. The rehearsal dinner was a Texas barbecue at Caroline and Brian's house. Grandpa Stewart was glad to be there, with 4 out of his 5 children. Carol, Janet, Jim, and Barbara.

Haleigh entertained herself with sticky notes under the desk. Caroline may be finding sticky notes for quite a while!

There were games going on in the garage.

I don't know how to play flippy cup (at least I think that's what they were playing), but it looked like everyone was enjoying themselves.

My girls.

Plus me. :)

A view of Kyle Field as we drove by on Saturday morning. It is huge! And see the crane? I think they are adding on! We did not have a Johnny Football sighting though.

Noah had a bath in the kitchen sink.

All ready for the wedding.

I wrote about the wedding here, but I didn't include Brian and Caroline's getaway transportation. They thought they were going in the truck, but were surprised by a horse that pulled up instead.

Of course, Caroline didn't miss a beat, and hopped right on. Brian needed a little help. :) They took a quick pass around the parking lot, then traded in the horse for the truck, Caroline driving. So much fun.

And of course there was a little after-party at the Dixie Chicken. 

Shylah took this one of Adam and Courtney. So cute!

And then Sunday morning, it was all over and we were heading for home. I think our first flight had 22 wedding guests on board. Here we are waiting for bags.

And taking over the departure lounge. Unfortunately, Andrew, Darci, and the kids ended up spending waaayyy too much time there. :( (Flight delays are not fun.)

Noah was a pretty good little traveler.

So long Texas! Yes, God blessed Texas, and God blessed us. Great is Thy Faithfulness!