Harmony Happenings

The Clay County Retired Teachers Association has two fun events coming up soon. President Odena Harper called to say there would be a Pitch-In Dinner, meeting, and guest speaker at the YMCA this Friday, April 17, starting at 6:30 p.m. The Association will provide the drinks and paper goods, everyone else is asked to bring a covered dish or other food item.

Jana Sinders from Outback Gardening will give a talk on "Companion Gardening". Andy Thomas, Executive Director of Indiana Retired Teachers Association, will be there to provide information on benefits and answer questions. Door prizes and raffle items will be available for attendees too.

All teachers who are nearing retirement are invited to become Associate Members and are welcome at the meetings and other events. I think that membership fee is $5 per year but don't quote me. I have enjoyed every meeting I have attended.

CCRTA is also planning a trip to Boggstown on Tuesday, May 19. Riddell National Bank is providing the transportation and making the arrangements. The group will leave the Forest Park Pool area at 9 a.m., and return about 9 p.m. They will enjoy a Cabaret Lunch that includes the meal and entertainment. Boggstown is located southeast of Indianapolis. The fee is $68 per person. Send checks, made out to Riddell National Bank, to Robin Swalls at the bank. Reservations must be in to her by May 1st. Thanks to Robin and Riddell for sponsoring the event and making our costs very reasonable.

There is another sure sign that spring is here even if the weather hasn't quite proclaimed it yet. There are a couple of fish fry's coming up soon. The Humane Shelter will have their annual event this Saturday, April 18, at Kennedy Crossing from 4-7 p.m. The cost is $8 for adults and $4 for children under the age of 12.

House of Hope will have a Fish Fry April 25, along with their Giant Yard Sale. They will be serving from noon-6 p.m. They ask for a $5 donation to cover the cost of the fish and side items. The money goes to support their on-going mission.

You can have fish for lunch and then have it again for supper. The only thing better than a fish fry is having two in one day.

The Brazil National Guard Armory is the site of the next Fish Fry scheduled for that evening. It will be from 4-8 p.m., on April 25. Adult prices are $7.50 and children 5-10 will be $5. Children under 5 are free. The proceeds go to Habitat for Humanity to build a home here in Clay County.

Pat (Cunningham) Chastain, and her mom Blanche, invited me to lunch on Monday. It was so good to get a chance to visit because I had missed Pat and Billy's 40th Anniversary celebration. We ate at Double N and then just sat and talked for quite a while.

Pat is president of her Lion's Club at Brownsburg and is kept very busy with the group. They are planning a big club event that should keep Pat and Billy out of trouble until at least July. Then we plan to get together with some other classmates for an outing at Plainfield.

Harmony United Methodist Women will meet at 7 p.m., April 27, in Fellowship Hall at the church. Barbara Pell will present a lesson on Prayer and Self-Denial. Kenda Dierdorf will be the hostess. We will continue plans for the Mother/Daughter Banquet scheduled for May 18. All ladies are invited.

A sign-up sheet will be circulated at church on Sunday, April 19, for volunteers to prepare the baked goods for the Pie Auction that is scheduled for April 26th at Harmony United Methodist Church. Chris Pell will be the auctioneer and will begin right after church on that Sunday. The HUMW will use the monies raised at the auction for missions. All donations are appreciated.

I hope everyone had a nice Easter. The brothers and sister-in-laws and Mama Kate Trout were here for supper on Saturday night. We sat out on the sun porch even after the sun went down. You would think that brothers and sisters would see each other every couple of days when they live in the same town but we don't. Still I am grateful that we get together more than most families and enjoy each other's company. We feel blessed to be related and good friends, too.

I do have good brothers but just don't tell them or it will just go to their heads. They have a tough time supporting all that weight between their shoulders now. I wouldn't want to cause any undue head trauma. What with Alzheimer's on the Roach side of the family, we live in fear of anything that might mess with the cranium. One misplaced item is a week's worth of, "Have I got it?" "Would I know if I had it?" "Does everyone else know I've got it but are just too kind to tell me my brains are scrambled?" Anxiety attack.

My aunt and uncle had invited me out to their cabin for Easter afternoon. Between allergies and almost knocking myself out with an opened bathroom cabinet door (head trauma!), I almost had to cancel out on everything. I didn't have to go hunting for colored eggs, because the goose had laid one on my forehead. Although it had a cautious start, the day was great.

After a round of shared and satisfying culinary abuse, the grandkids hunted eggs and the adults sat on the deck and enjoyed the rare April sunshine. Sippy cups dripped on the floor keeping company with the raisins. The ladder to the loft tempted all the little feet to risk getting scolded for their safety. Chocolate fingers touched everything. We solved all the world problems and caught up on the events of family and friends.

Cousin Nete and her fella took some of the kids for a walk through the woods while others rode the lawn tractor. They took pictures of the waterfall and brought them back to share. Grandpa John took some of the kids over to Cousin Dave's to see the critters. The neighbor's pit bull/lab mix decided to be my lap dog when someone started target practicing in the distance. Covered in dried mud and dog hair, it was a good day with family.

Members of the Art Gallery at Rockville are having an art show starting April 30. They will have approximately 40 pieces of new work to exhibit. The artists do a variety of different media including watercolor and oil painting, scrollwork, jewelry, photography, and pottery. I am sure I didn't mention all of them. It is easy to find the gallery on the Courthouse Square at Rockville.

Sister-in-laws Karen and Eva Roach and I are still busy planning that couples shower I keep talking about each week. We spent most of Tuesday around my kitchen table folding stuff and writing in notebooks and making more lists of who was going to do what. We are so looking forward to Erin coming home and for the rest of us to get to meet her fiancé, Joey.

Erin called while we were working so Eva Kay put her on speakerphone. By the time she hung up, we had her half believing we had turned her shower into a circus. We'll just keep her guessing until May. We've planned our menu now (no, we aren't serving raccoon on a bed of fungus) and the decorations for the Harmony Community Center are all arranged, if only in our heads. Now we just need to decide on serving platters, dippers, ice containers and other items of momentous importance. We want everything to be just right but we still want to worry Erin just a bit, can't make it too easy on her.

Happy April Birthdays to Kathleen Sanders (17th), Erie Bell (22nd), Gail Weaver (27th), Mitch Maurer (28th), and Damien Tackett (29th).

Harmony United Methodist Calendar

April 19 -- Worship Service 9 a.m., Sunday School 10:45 a.m.,

April 22 -- Women's Bible Study 9-10 a.m., Christian Quilters 9 a.m.-3 p.m.

April 26 -- HUMW Pie Auction after church

April 27 -- HUMW Meeting 7 p.m.