Merry Christmas!

And Happy New Year to all!

Merry Christmas!

Happy Holidays, and a very Happy New Year to everyone. There hasn't been much in the way of news lately, but we're still searching. If anyone has something they'd like to share, please let me know.

'til next year, unless something comes up!

2010 State Of The City ::

This is very interesting!

Uh Oh ::

If you've tried to look at any of the linked photographs since yesterday you've been presented with an "account suspended" page. The photographs should be back up later today so check back. I generally use throw-away prepaid debit cards for most things I do on the internet just in case there is a problem with a purchase on-line. I ran into something like this a short time back and had to switch cards yesterday.

Although this blog is hosted by Blogger, all of the linked photographs are up on another server located in Arizona. This gives me a lot more flexibility in being able to present different sizes.

Be patient and we'll be back up soon!

The Revolutionary War Memorial ::

Outside Quaker Cemetery:

Veterans Day-2010 ::

In Flanders Fields
By: Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae, MD (1872-1918)
Canadian Army

In Flanders Fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

Kathryn Scheldt, Camden Native ::

I came across a Facebook link to Kathryn Scheldt (I remember her as Kathy Scheldt) on Pam Mosier's Facebook page. Kathryn is a singer/songwriter now living in Fairhope, Alabama, and she has 4 CDs available for purchase, one of which, "In The Middle Of It All", has a song titled "Camden". Now, I'm a firm believer in supporting local independent artists and Kathryn's music is available from several sources including Amazon and I-Tunes.

I haven't bought a physical CD in several years now and I generally buy my music from the Amazon MP3 store and then download the music to my Ipod, but I urge everyone to go to one of the download sites, listen to the 30 second clips, and support Kathryn's music by buying what you like.

Rutledge Street ::

An oldie from a trip in 2006:

Camden High Bulldogs ::

Sad ending to the season:

Berkley--36
Camden--28

It was still a good run!

A Topiary Garden In Bishopville ::

I came across this photo essay in Harpers Magazine and thought it was very interesting. Here's a link to the photographs on the Harpers web site. It is a large PDF file so give it time to download. I hope it's not behind a paywall. I subscribe to Harpers and have access and hopefully everyone else will also.



I may try to visit Bishopville on my next trip to Camden. I haven't been there in over 40 years. I wonder if it's changed any?

Camden High Bulldogs In The Playoffs ::

This coming Friday night Camden will be playing Moncks Corner in the first round of the state AAA playoffs.

Best of luck to the team! I'll update the score when I get it late Friday pm.

Bethune Pottery ::

I shot this on a S.C. trip in November, 2009:



I was wondering how I could get the chicken home and put it in my front yard!

Camden High Bulldogs ::

Looks like this was a squeaker:

Camden High Bulldogs--7
Marlboro County --3

Marlboro went into the half leading 3-zip so this must have been a great defensive game.

I do believe that this is the final game of the season and next up come the playoffs. I'll update any playoff information as I get it.

A Photograph ::

This image is from a trip about 3 years ago and, as I recall, this was somewhere around Rembert:

Camden High Bulldogs ::

Camden High Bulldogs--14 26
Lakewood--0

Congrats on another win!

[update] I updated the incorrect score. That's what I get for relying on Johnny Deal for accurate information!

Contact Info For Another Teacher And Coach ::

I got this from Buster just a short time ago:

Chad Merrill called this past Sun. and said that he had a nice long conversation with Spencer Johnson, who now lives in Spartanburg. Spencer coached track, basketball, and football while we were in school. He is now 79 years old but then we are all close to reaching medicare eligibility.
Spencer's address is 105 Monroe Rd. Spartanburg29307 and his phone is 864-583-2230. B.

I remember Mr. Johnson well. He coached me on the track team for one year when we were either in Jr. High or the 1st year of high school. Unfortunately I was very slow and terrible with no future in track!

I'm happy to hear that he is doing well and I'm sure that we all wish him the best!

We may love or hate the internet, but there is no denying that it is a great medium to get back in touch with those from our past and it is a great way to share information! I have been able to reconnect with several people that I served with in the Navy, including my old division Chief from both Adak, Alaska and Rota, Spain.

Camden High Bulldogs ::

Final score this Friday night:

Camden Bulldogs--35
Darlington--25

Still looking good even though they have 1 defeat!

Camden High Bulldogs ::

Unfortunately go down in defeat to Hartsville:

Hartsville--17
Camden Bulldogs--13

I was following Johnny Deal's postings on Facebook and apparently Hartsville jumped out in front early and the Bulldogs made a great effort to come back, but fell just a bit short.

There's always next week!

An Article About The Camden High Bulldogs ::

From this mornings The State newspaper:

Camden posed for title run
By AKILAH IMANI NELSON
ainelson@ thestate.com

It is too early for Camden coach Jimmy Neal to say it, but with a 6-0 record, his football team appears to be one of Class 3A’s top programs.

Neal, who led the Bulldogs to back-to-back 3A championship games in 2001 and ’02, will not say whether this squad reminds him of the team that won the ’01 title.

“Some teams fade down the stretch, and we don’t want to be that team,” Neal said. “All you can do is play one game a week. All you want to do right now is play better next week.”

While the Bulldogs’ strong start has excitement building among the fan base, Neal and his team are trying to not focus on the six games they have won by an average of 14.8 points.

“It is kind of cool how you work hard all week and it pays off every Friday,” senior tight end Drew Charles said. “We don’t need to focus on our 6-0 record. It just needs to be about doing what we have to do to win this week.”

The Bulldogs are a team-first group.

“We’ve got some guys who are a little more talented than others, but the egos are not there,” Neal said. “Our better players are concerned more about the team than their own personal recognition.”

The Bulldogs have weathered injuries and close games, but “one of the biggest things is that these guys have not panicked this year,” Neal said.

They’ve had little reason to with Dillon Morrow leading the way. The quarterback has completed 63 of 114 passes for 1,277 yards and 15 touchdowns. JoJo Brevard fuels the rushing game, averaging 60.8 yards per contest.

“We all trust each other that, no matter who’s going in, he’s going to do what he has to do,” Morrow said.

The result, on offense, has been a unit that averages 360 yards and 29 points per game.

“It’s in our heart to be winners,” defensive lineman Tim Dixon said. “It took us a while to figure that out, that we can do this, but we understand it now.”

As well as things are going for his team, Neal isn’t making any predictions of a return trip to Williams-Brice Stadium for state championship weekend.

“It’s too early yet to say anything like that,” he said. “Right now, it’s fun being around these guys, being their coach, doing what we’re doing. But teams change in a matter of weeks. Things change overnight.”

The Bulldogs are banking on that change — for the better.

Camden High Bulldogs ::

And the Bulldogs pull out another win:

Camden High Bulldogs--28
Crestwood--0

Congrats to the team!

Revisiting Memories From The Day Of The Reunion ::

When I was on my way to the reunion last month I made a very slight detour to see my great-uncle who lives on Flat Rock Rd. just a few short miles from the Shrine Club. I had not seen him in many years and I just wanted to say hello. He will be 91 in November, lives alone, drives himself around, and still runs a small herd of cattle. He looked great and it was wonderful to see him!

This will lead me into my reminisce about the photograph below.



When I was a little guy this building housed county prisoners who made up the chain gangs that went out and did road work. It is diagonally across the road from my great-uncles house and his father-in-law worked there in some capacity. I don't remember just what he did. He may have been in charge or he may have just been a guard, but I seem to remember him being in some administrative position.

When the ditch in front of my grandparents house would clog from dirt run-off after rains my grandfather would call Mr. Burch and he would send over a chain gang to shovel out the ditches. I vividly remember them wearing the striped uniform of prisoners and their hobbling leg irons all the while with a shotgun armed guard watching over them. I don't know when this building was put out of service as a work camp, but it surely does remind me of Cool Hand Luke!

Just to add a bit more to this post, My great-uncle is J.E. Horton, father of Betty Slade and grandfather of Laurie Slade Funderburk. When I was a kid I spent many wonderful times playing with Betty!

Times surely have changed!

Camden High Bulldogs ::

And the Bulldogs march on. Last night score was:

Camden High Bulldogs--33
Andrew Jackson--14

I got this score from The State newspaper this morning since Johnny Deal was busy dressing in drag last night!

Oh yeah, Camden is leading the region 6-3A standings.

Camden High Bulldogs ::

The latest courtesy of Johnny Deal:

Camden Bulldogs--20
Lugoff-Elgin--10

Congrats to the team and its supporters!

I'm curious. How many of you who live in or near Camden still go to Bulldog football games? I've never been back to a high school game anywhere I've lived since I graduated from high school.

A Photograph ::

from the morning of the reunion:

Camden High Bulldogs ::

This is a bye week so there will not be a score. Good luck to the team next week when they face Lugoff-Elgin.

All Things Change ::

I think that I must be getting more nostalgic as I get older. I remember driving by this building for many years and I always considered it to be a landmark. I am sure many people remember this as the garage in Lugoff with the Studebaker on top. I remember reading in the on-line edition of The Camden Chronicle-Independent a couple of years ago that the building was going to be remodeled. Here is the result:




A laundromat! The owner of the building could have at least remodeled as another garage. Here is what the lot looked like on a trip to Camden about 3 years ago:





I have to say that I very much prefer the the building and lot the way they were before the remodel job! Here's another view from the previous visit with part of the building visible next to the fence on the right:





At least they put the car back on top of the building. I happen to love Studebakers and I love seeing them restored. There used to be a garage up in Shelbyville, Tenessee specialized in restoring old Studebakers. Sadly it is now long gone also.

Johnny Jaynes Photographs ::

Johnny's photographs from the reunion are now up with the link over on the right. I still have a few more photos to put up and I'll post here when I do.

A Message From Jim Ring ::

About the reunion:

A week has gone by now but each day I think about the reunion last Saturday. What a great party! Jerry Sheheen and his crew did a fine job putting it together. Having not lived in Camden for 45 years means there were a lot of childhood friends I saw there for the first time in forever. My only sadness is that there just wasn't enough time to spend with everyone I wanted to. But that's my problem. Bottom line is that it was wonderful seeing so many people who were part of my youth.



Many thanks to Fred Deaton, Paul Rowell and Johnny Jaynes for taking all those great pictures. I look at them every day. The pics will allow me and everyone else to to look back on August 28, 2010 with great big smiles as often as we wish to.



It was sad looking at the board honoring the classmates who are no longer alive. I'm glad the committee made sure they were part of the reunion, at least in spirit.



Will we have a reunion in 2015? I hope so. We are not getting any younger and opportunities such as this are no longer in abundance.



Again, thanks for the great party. I had a ball.

I have to add my thanks to Jim's for the effort put on by the reunion committee to make this a great success! There will be more photos posted in the next couple of days. I have some from Bonnie and John Jaynes, but if anyone else has photographs they'd like to share please forward them to me and I'll put them up also. After looking through some of the photos I've downloaded I'm surprised at just how many people I did not get a chance to speak to!

New Reunion Photographs ::

I finally got Paul Rowell's photographs up. If you looked at them earlier this morning they were not displaying properly because I had the pages trying to call up a style sheet from another location. Everything should be fine now, but if you see any problems let me know and I'll fix them! I've tested the pages in both IE7 and Firefox (my preferred browser) and everything seems to be ok.

I still have some other photographs to put up, but that'll have to be a little later this weekend. Time to cut the 2 acres of grass!

Camden High Bulldogs ::

Final score:

Camden Bulldogs--32
West Florence--27

For the season 3 wins and 0 losses!

Reunion Photographs ::

I've been collecting some photographs from other attendees but I've been pretty tied up trying to catch up from the trip over the weekend. I hope to have more up on other web galleries by sometime this weekend so keep checking back!

Chairs Hanging On The Outside Wall ::

Not to mention the lit christmas lights!



I was on my way to the reunion this past Saturday evening when I saw these chairs on the wall of a thrift shop. I couldn't stop then, but I made it a point of going back early Sunday morning. I long ago learned not to pass up a photograph because, more often than not, the scene is gone when you return!

I've been curious after the past few trips to Camden also. Are there any real businesses left in town other that the big box stores like Wal-Mart and Lowes and thrift stores? I forgot about the weekend flea markets! I did drive by the farmer's market and it seemed to be pretty busy, which is a great thing. I live within driving distance of several farmer's markets and I visit them all the time. The food is much better and, more often than not, the prices are pretty good.

Porch Sitting And Times Past ::

From Buster:

THIS IS A ROUGH DRAFT OF AN ARTICLE- NEED YOUR THOUGHTS, INPUT, AND ASSISTANCE. PLEASE RESPOND


RECENTLY THERE WAS AN INTERESTING PIECE OF INFORMATION IN A POPULAR NEWSPAPER THAT STATED THAT LESS THAN 10% OF THE FAMILIES IN THE U.S. HAD A MEMBER OF THE FAMILY WHO HAD SERVED IN THE MILITARY. IF YOU THINK ABOUT THE EXPERIENCES OF THE LABELDED 'GREATEST' AND 'BABY BOOMER' GENERATIONS THEN THAT IS AN ASTONISHING PIECE OF NEWS.
IN THE SUMMER OF THE 1950'S MANY OF THE MEN IN OUR NEIGHBORHOOD WOULD SIT AROUND AND TALK ABOUT THEIR WAR TIME EXPERIENCES. DEWITT HUCKABEE WOULD TELL OF HIS PARATROOPER EXPERIENCES IN ITALY AND SOUTHERN FRANCE. DOUG NIMS WOULD TALK ABOUT BEING A FORWARD ARTILLERY OBSERVER IN THE PHILLIPINES AND BILL VINSON WOULD TALK ABOUT INDIA. HOWARD SHUMATE WOULD NOT EAT A BABNANA BECAUSE HE HAD SO MANY IN THE PHILLIPINES. BOB MONTGOMERY WOULD NOT EAT ANY FOOD THAT HAD BEEN TOUCHED BY A FLY BECAUSE OF HIS EXPERIENCES ON SOUTH PACIFIC ISLANDS AND EVERRETTE BRADY COULD RECALL HIS EXPERIENCES AS A BOMBER PILOT OVER JAPAN.
ONE OF MY REMEMBERANCES IS AS A YOUNGSTER WAS WHEN WE WOULD VISIT ONE OF MY GRANDMOTHERS WHO LIVED IN THE COUNTRY. IN THE EVENING THE GROWNUPS WOULD SIT IN ROCKERS ON AN UNSCREENED FRONT PORCH AND TALK WHILE SHELLING BEANS AND PEAS. THE ADULTS WOULD CHAT AND SIT IN THE DARK BECAUSE THE ILLUMNINATION WOULD ATTRACT BUGS.
OCASSIONALLY THE KIDS WOULD SIT ON THE PORCH AND LISTEN- THE RIGHTS AND PECKING ORDER FOR KIDS HAS NOW SOMEWHAT EVOLVED- AND YOU WOULD SOMETIMES HEAR CONVERSATION ABOUT YOUR GRANDPARENTS FAMILY AND WHAT TIMES AND EXPERIENCES WERE LIKE DURING THE WAR BETWEEN THE STATES AND THE OCCUPYING YANKEE DAYS OF RECONSTRUCTION. A KID WOULD HAVE NO IDEA WHO UNCLE NED OR GRANNY MOLLY WAS, BUT THEY WOULD KNOW THAT THEY WOULD HAVE HAD A COLORFUL PLACE IN FAMILY LORE AND LEGACY.
THE 65TH ANNIVERSARY OF VJ DAY RECENTLY PASSED AND IF YOU DO THE MATH, AN 18 YEAR OLD IN AUG. OF 1945 IS NOW IN THIER 80'S. THE VETERANS OF WW11 AND THE FAMILIES THEY CAME HOME TOO ARE FEWER. EVERY AMERICAN WAS TOUCHED BY WW11 FROM SUGAR AND RUBBER SHORTAGES, TO GAS COUPONS, TO WOMEN WORKING IN INDUSTRIAL JOBS, AND TO FAMILIES RELOCATING.
THE BABY BOOMER GENERATION WHO ARE THE CHILDREN OF THE GREATEST GENERATION, GREW UP ON THESE WAR TIME STORIES AND THOSE OF OUR FAMILY COPING WITH THE GREAT DEPRESSION. THE IMPACT OF THE WAR IN VIET NAM AND THE SIGNIFICNCE OF TELEVISION ARE PART OF OUR LEGACY. EVEN TODAY WHEN I HEAR ABOUT A KID DROPPING OUT OF COLLEGE I FLASH THINK OF THE MILITARY DRAFT EVEN THOUGH IT HAS NOT BEEN AROUND FOR DECADES.
UNFORTUNATELY, MANY OF OUR GREAT FAMILY STORIES ARE NOW FORGOTTEN AND LOST. I ONLY RECENTLY FOUND OUT THAT MY GRANDPARENTS DID NOT HAVE ELECTRICITY AND IN DOOR PLUMBING UNTIL THE 1930'S AND THAT ONE OF MY GRANDMOTHERS GOT UP AT 4:00 AM TO CATCH A BUS TO GO WORK IN A MUNITIONS PLANT WHICH WAS LOCATED TWO HOURS AWAY. SHE MADE THIS JOURNEY WHILE ONE OF HER SONS WAS LISTED AS A MIA AND SHE DID NOT KNOW WHETHER HE WAS ALIVE OR DEAD. YOU HAVE FAMILIES WHO MADE SIMILAR SACRIFICES. WE DO NOT KNOW IF WE DO NOT ASK.
THE CAMDEN HIGH CLASSS OF 1965 RECENTLY HELD ITS 45TH REUNION AND THE CLASSES BEFORE AND AFTER US WERE INVITED. IT WAS A MICROCOSM OF CAMDEN AND KERSHAW COUNTY IN THE 1950'S. ONE HAD TO BE STRUCK BY THE IMPACT OF DUPONT ON LIFE IN THIS COUNTY AND THE SIGNIFICANCE OF A RELIGOUS AND SOCIAL TOLERANCE OF THIS COMMUNITY. THERE WERE ATTENDEES FROM NEAR AND FAR AND THE MAIDEN NAMES WILL BE USED.
WHAT IS INTERESTING THAT THROUGH THE INTERNET MANY OF US HAVE RECONNECTED. DELORES COLE.. AND RICHARD REED BOTH NOW LIVE IN OHIO AND WITH JIM RING IN VA., DIANA ELLIOT.. IN MD., BONNIE NOWLEN.. IN GA., SUZZANE STEED IN CHARLESTON, SANDRA COLE.. IN ALASKA AND ARTHUR HUDSON IN GREENVILLE, THE JOKES AND STORIES FLOW FREQUENTLY. FRED DEATON, WHO LIVES IN ALABAMA, IS AN INTERNET GURU AND HAS ESTABLISHED A CLASS OF 1965 WEB SITE AND WITH THE TOUCH OF A COUPLE OF BUTTONS YOU CAN COMMUNICATE WITH THE FOUR FORMER CLASSMATES WHO LIVE IN CALIFORNIA, NEW ZEALAND, ALSASKA OR THREE BLOCKS AWAY LIKE JACKIE LYLES OR JOHNNY JAYNES.
THE LAST NAMES WILL BE EASILY RECOGNIZABLE. THERE WERE QUITE A FEW ATTENDEES WHO NOW LIVE IN GA. SARA LEE KELLY.., DONALD SHAPLEIGH, LEE CARRIER. .......HELEN HARTER ..WHOSE FATHER RAN THE BUICK AND CHEVROLET DEALERSHIPS WHERE PART OF THE COUNTY COURTHOUSE NOW SITS LIVES NOW IN N.C. MARTHA MCMURDO.. RESIDES IN PHILADELPHIA. JAMES WILLIAMS,WHO IS FIGHTING CANCER AND ONE OF THE ALLTIME GREAT FOOTBALL PLAYERS IN THIS COUNTY, TRAVELED DOWN FROM CHARLOTTE.

/// LOOKING FOR HELP HERE ON OUT OF STATERS////

WHAT IS NOW INTERESTING IS THAT STORIES, JOKES, HISTORY, POLITICAL OBSERVATIONS, AND FAMILY BENCHMARKS ARE THE NEW PICNIC TABLES AND ROCKING CHAIRS. COMMUNICATION THROUGH THE WIZARDRY OF SATELLITES IS COMMON AND DAILY. SEARCH YOUR MEMORY BANK FOR A MOMENT AND THINK ABOUT WHAT THE HEADLINES AND STORIES WERE WHEN THE RUSSIANS LAUNCHED THE SPUTNIK SATELLITE. THOSE DEATH RAYS FROM OUTER SPACE WERE GOING TO TURN YOU INTO A CRISY CRITTER.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION.

Reunion Photographs ::

I've put up my photographs over on the right. Clicking on the thumbnail will bring you to a larger captioned version. Clicking on this image will bring you to a very large file suitable for downloading and printing.

I would like to post as many photographs from other attendees as I can. I've been trying to set up my ftp site to accept anonymous public uploads, but there seems to be a problem. In the meantime you can e-mail me any photographs that you would like to share:

fred(dot)deaton(at)gmail.com

replacing the (dot) with a . and (at) with @. I'm just trying to keep my e-mail address off the web crawlers!

If you have any questions or problems just e-mail me and we'll work out another way to get the photos.

Once again, I had a great time seeing everyone again and I loved the large turn-out!

Reunion Photographs ::

I have my reunion photographs ready for posting here, but there seems to be a problem with my server being down. Hopefully this will be straightened out soon and I'll be able to post instructions for others to upload their images to the ftp server so that I can add them.

Stay tuned!

What Happened To The Flag?

I always looked forward to seeing it as I pulled into town!

Camden High Bulldogs Football ::

1st 2nd(?) game of the season:

Camden: 34
Ware Shoals: 14

I didn't realize that there had been a previous game and I have no idea of the outcome. I'll post the score when I can find it.


[update] OK, that was easy enough for The Google to find the score for the 1st game:

Camden: 28
Spring Valley: 21

Reunion Photographs? ::

I haven't brought this up before, but I've been thinking about it and I'll probably take some photographs and hopefully others will also. I would like to gather everyone's photos and put them together into a gallery of the soireé. I've been trying to work around some issues with my ftp site, but that doesn't seem to be happening, so I'll have to approach this in a different way, but, if you're at the reunion Saturday night and you take photographs, I would love to get them to post on the web site! We'll work out details on getting them to me later.

Hitting The Road ::

We'll be pulling out Friday morning for the 7 hour drive to Camden. Hopefully I'll be eating dinner Friday night at the Old Armory Steakhouse on Rutledge St. and listening to great music from Jeff Norwood!

More Names Added ::

John Jaynes fed me a few more names and they've been added to the list.

Columbia, S.C. ::

Shot March, 2006 on Two Notch Road.



Another scene that is gone forever!

More Names Added ::

To the reunion attendee list.

Michael Varner ::

I asked whether or not anyone had heard from Mike and got an e-mail from Jim Ring with Mike's last known e-mail address so I fired off one this morning hoping to connect and I was successful. Here is the return message from Mike:

Thanks for the message. I wasn't aware of the reunion. I guess I haven't been keeping up with things. What is the date?
At any rate I probably will not be able to make it. Right now I am in Phnom Phen, Cambodia and won't arrive back home until next Tuesday 24 August.
Sorry. I would love to attend. If there is any way to send greeting to my former classmates and friends I would like to do it.
Thanks.

Michael

I just got another e-mail from Michael a few minutes ago:

Thanks for the info Fred. I know I won't make the reunion. My wife was just in SC this past week at our house down on St. Helena Island. Next time I'm out that way I'll look up some of the guys in Camden. I still have a sister living there.
I'm here in Cambodia with Habitat for Humanity building some houses. We've finished up the work and I'm doing some sight seeing before returning home to San Francisco.
Thanks for keeping the Class of '65 connected.

New Names Added ::

To the reunion attendee list courtesy of John Jaynes. The turnout is really looking up now!

[update]Jim Ring just e-mailed me with a couple more names.

A Reunion Invitation ::

Has anyone gotten in touch with Doug Elliott? I thought I had his e-mail address, but I can't find it since we haven't been in touch for a couple of years. He was living up in Rock Hill, so he's close by.

[update] I just got an e-mail from Doug and he will be attending the reunion.

Updated List Of Reunion Antendees ::

Thanks to John Jaynes and Jerry Sheheen I have an updated list of reunion attendees over on the right. I apologize if I misspelled any names, but this came from a scanned hand written list. There were several names which were illegible, but I'm going to try to get some clarification from Johnny and Jerry tomorrow.

Looks like the turnout is going to be pretty good and I'm looking forward to attending.

Taken May, 2006 ::

Highway 1 just west of the highway 34 turnoff.

Buster On TV ::

The embed link from WIS TV didn't work when I copied the code so follow this link for the video from the station's web site.

[PS] I forgot to thank Richard Reed for sending me the link to the video--Thanks Richard!

Buster Interviewed! ::

By WIS TV for a story about development in Boogertown:

CAMDEN, SC (WIS) - The Boogertown neighborhood of Camden is in the news again, and not just for its strange name. Some people in Boogertown are concerned a future development will create too much traffic.

The area is right beside what used to be Camden middle school, right off the town square. We told you a few weeks ago how a similar development failed, but now another development is in the works on that same property.

It doesn't look like much now, but Robert Horton says there are new plans for the old place. "We're looking for young professionals and retirees," Horton said. "It'll be a good mixture here, I think."

Horton works with a developer who has a contract on this land. Theirs comes after another developers plan fell through. Horton says they plan to turn the Camden Middle School property into a neighborhood.

"The location's the main thing, there hasn't been a large number of lots available in downtown Camden in probably 30 years and we're looking at between 18 and 19 lots," said Horton.

Buster Beckham has lived for 30 years on the street behind the school in that neighborhood with an infamous name. It's not so much development he's worried about, it's something else.

"They can put houses with monkeys tumbling monkeys over there, we just don't want the road open," said Beckham. "We don't want this to become a thoroughfare."

There are no sidewalks on his street, and he says neighbors stroll up and down. If the plan goes through, it would extend his road and be open for people in the new neighborhood to use.

"It's a safety factor, and who wants to live next to an interstate?" Beckham said.

"I really don't think there is gonna be much traffic from this development going that way," said Horton. "I'd say with 19 lots, 13 or 14 of them are going to go this way every time they want to go to Broad Street."

No matter what happens to his street, Beckham says his address will stay the same. "Maybe start a filling station for all the people who drive through here," he said.

This is by no means a done deal, but there is a contract. If it goes through, the city planning commission will make the final call as to if that street will be extended.

And in case you're wondering where the name Boogertown came from, one of the theories is that a man who used to live their was a fan of a baseball player from Boogertown, Arkansas, and nicknamed his neighborhood.

Curious! I never thought of Camden has having a town square. I'm not against well thought out development, but I think Buster has a point about the safety factor not to mention how the historical aspect of the neighborhood will be forever changed.

I'm hoping someone has TiVo'd the interview and can send it to me so I can put it up on YouTube.

South Carolina Fun Via Bill Cosby

Found courtesy of Delores:

Reunion Attendees ::

If you plan to attend the reunion shoot me an e-mail (fred.deaton(at)gmail.com) so I can post your name over on the right. If you know someone who does not follow this blog but who plans to attend then please let me know so I can add to the list. I'm looking forward to seeing as many people as possible.

I wonder of Sandy Cole Raynovic could bring some Moose meat for a barbecue! I've never had Moose although I have had some Elk. It tasted just like deer to me.

I flew into Anchorage, Alaska on Labor Day, 1969 on my way to being stationed at the U.S. Naval Communications station on Adak, Alaska (an island in the Aleutian chain) and my flight out to Adak was cancelled so I had to take a bus for an overnight stay at Elmendorf AFB. We hadn't gone more than 1/2 mile from the airport before 2 moose (mamma moose and calf) crossed the road in front of the bus. An interesting experience!

Gamecocks In The College World Series ::

I almost forgot about this and I'm watching in the 2nd inning with no score, as yet. USC can put it away tonight! Best of luck to them from someone who attended Clemson!

[update] UCLA scores. Now 1 to zip not in the Gamecocks favor!

[update] UCLA scores one, but the first base runner is thrown out trying to steal second. Gamecocks coming up to bat now

[update] Still 1 to zip, favor of UCLA, in the bottom of the 8th. Gonna go to bed so you have to get your own updates.

night, night!

[I lied--I'm still up and watching!] The Gamecocks have tied it up in the 8th with 2 out and a runner on 1st. Oops, the inning ends with the score tied.

[update] Going to the bottom of the 9th tied up with USC at bat. Fingers are crossed!

[update] Going into extra innings--definitely bed time right now. When I was younger I could have stayed up, but, unfortunately, I'm not the most interesting man in the world and I do have to work early tomorrow morning!

[next morning update]The photograph tells the story:


(photograph courtesy of The State)

Congratulations to the Gamecocks on winning the College World Series!

NCAA College World Series ::

8th inning and the Gamecocks are up 6 to zip. I'll be pulling for them, but it's looking pretty good right now!

[update] now 7 to nil Gamecocks. I'm not gonna see the end of this game-gotta leave in a few minutes, but I hope SC doesn't find a way (ala Clemson) to blow this!

[update] Just got back at 10:30pm CT and Carolina wins 7 to 1 with the next match tomorrow at 7:30 ET. I'll probably come into the game a little late, but I'm hoping that the Gamecocks can put it away.

I wonder if they've ever won the college world series in the past. Gonna have to check that out tomorrow.

Clemson vs SC At The College World Series ::

I came into the game late and SC is up 3 to 0 right now. I've watched both teams on tv the past few days and was both happy and surprised that the Gamecocks pulled out the win last night. Of course I'll be pulling for Clemson to go all the way in this, but I'm glad the home state college baseball teams are doing so well!

[update] Passed ball and Clemson scores! Now 3 to 1.

[update] SC batter hits a homer. Now 4 to 1 SC!

[update] SC still up 4 to 1 and I've got to leave for about an hour, or so, so I'll probably miss the finale. My congratulations to whichever team wins!

[last update] I just walked back in and turned on the tv and the winning pitcher is being interviewed by the ESPN sportsperson. South Carolina bests Clemson by a 5 to 1 final score. I'll have to check the time for tomorrow's game, but I'm pretty sure my time is spoken for if it's a late afternoon or night game.

West DeKalb St.

An empty building photographed January 24, 2007.

Donald Sanders Obit ::

LUGOFF - A memorial service for Donald Reid 'Donnie' Sanders, 62, will be held Thursday at 6:30 at Powers Funeral Home. Rev. Dr. Charles Everett will officiate. The family will receive friends Thursday 5:00 - 6:30 p.m. at the funeral home prior to the service. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Walter M. Crowe Animal Shelter, 460 Fair Street, Camden, SC 29020.

Mr. Sanders died Monday, June 21, 2010. Born in Lancaster, he was a son of the late Purvis L. and Berline Jewell Rucker Sanders. A graduate of the University of South Carolina BFA, he was co-owner of Salt Pond Farm and Garden. He was a prolific artist in the mediums of oil prints, wood sculpting and pond pottery.

Donnie was an avid animal lover who accepted and nurtured all animals. Even thought he did not have children, he loved and treated his niece and nephews as his own.

Surviving are his brother, Lt. Col. Purvis L. 'Fuzz' Sanders, Jr., U.S. Army (Ret.) and his wife, Linda, of Lynchburg, Va.; sisters, Sandra Sanders Hicks and her husband, Roger, of Lexington, and Judy Sanders Corbett of Pickens; nieces and nephews, Rick Hicks, Kathy Snelgrove, Michelle Painter, Andrea Porterfield, Jonathan Sanders, Ellen Sanders, Christi Leigh Corbett, and Turner Corbett; and numerous great-nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by a niece, Lara Miller.

As a part of Donnie's celebration of life and his relaxed life style, the family request that all of his friends dress in casual attire.

Sign the online register at www.powersfuneralhome.net.

More Sad News ::

I got an e-mail message from Delores earlier today with the news, via Joe Stines, that Donnie Sanders had a massive heart attack and did not survive. I'll post the obit if it becomes available at a location where I can grab it.

Class Of 65 Reunion Attendees! ::

I've put up a list over to the right of those who have let me know they plan to attend. If you plan to attend, or know of someone who plans to attend, let me know and I'll add the names.

Reunion News ::

Here's the latest that I gleaned from a post on Facebook:

Reunion tickets are $25/person and checks can be sent to:
Jerry Sheheen
112 Sycamore Rd.
Camden, S.C.
29020

I'm going to try to compile a list of who is planning/confirmed to attend and post it over on the right so if you have plans to come please e-mail me at:

fred.deaton(at)gmail.com

and I'll add your name to the list. I plan to be there and I'm looking forward to it! Jerry says that there will be more information forthcoming and I'll pass it on when I have it.

James Taylor and Iris Dement ::

This is a pairing I would never have thought of:



I happen to be a huge fan of Iris Dement and was always a bit ambivalent about James Taylor, but I'm coming to appreciate him more as I get older!

A Short Blurb From Buster ::

Concerning the reunion:

Our class reunion [decreasing rather quickly] is set for Aug. 28th and we are expecting a big turnout. Please notify Jerry Sheheen [geraldsheheen@bellsouth.net] or Jimmy Ring [jimringsales@comcast.net] concerning your intentions. A good time to be had by all. B.

I'm looking forward to attending and hope that many classmates will also!

Memorial Day, 2010 ::

Quaker Cemetery from a trip several years ago:



I usually visit Quaker Cemetery every time I'm in Camden for remembrances of the past!

A Lesson In Leadership ::

from the dancing shirtless guy:



This is courtesy of a TED speaker. If you've never been to TED to experience any of their offerings then you're missing a real treat given the inspirational content that is provided. I try to visit regularly and it's always a wonderful experience!

[note] I just previewed the embedded YouTube here and a good portion of the short film is cut off for some reason. I've never seen this happen before, but you can view the original on YouTube here.

Breaking Reunion News ::

Hot off the wires from Jerry Sheheen:

Class of '65 Reunion is set for August 28th, 7:00 P.M. at Camden Shrine Club.

From A 2007 Trip ::

International Space Station Sighting Opportunity ::

The shuttle Atlantis, on it's last mission, is docked with the ISS and the Columbia/Camden area has a good sighting opportunity tomorrow night, Monday, May 17, at 08:49 PM.

The ISS will approach from 20 degrees above the NNW horizon tracking to a departure 17 degrees above the ESE horizon. The maximum elevation will be 43 degrees for a total of 4 minutes.

Since Atlantis is docked with the ISS the light will be especially bright so look for a bright white light traveling rapidly through the sky.

People in other areas of the world can find optimum sighting opportunities at NASA's Human Spaceflight web site.

Here's a photograph of Atlantis' launch last Friday:

A Buster Article On Moonshine ;:

I supplied a small anecdote which is included in the article. There were a couple of others that I thought of but did not share since some of those involved might not be appreciative! I do remember someone who lived, as I recall, somewhere around where the high school now is who sold bonded spirits and beer out of his house after hours. I think he had a pretty good business going and I never remember him getting busted!

Here is Buster's article and, as always, I have posted a printable PDF over on the right under the "Digital Ink" heading.

This article was sent to the local newspaper and will soon be published. Thanks for your input.




In the late 20's Jim Thorton and his buddies would go by a downtown blacksmith shop where the blacksmith would let them fan the bellows to help keep the fire hot for iron work and to also keep his liquor still warm.
The late Charlie Williams could recall as a little boy going with his family to help unload the small boats which had been sent out to the rum runners who were located outside the national 3 mile line. Charlie's job was to serve as a lookout.
Fred Deaton can remember in the Westville area a kind black gentleman who would periodically get arrested for making moonshine. Every four years when the sheriff's election race would come around this gentleman would get busted and then after the election his business would return to normal.
The late Henry Thomas said that during prohibition his father kept what he needed to make home brew behind the family wood stove, which was used to cook all of the family meals.
If you were born between 1920 and 1933, you were born in the era of prohibition. The prohibition movement had begun in the late 1800's but there were several factors which allowed the 'drys' to defeat the 'wets.' The prohibition amendment was the most violated law in U.S. history.
Prior to prohibition the tax on alcoholic beverages provided almost 40% of the government's revenues, but in the teens the personal income tax was imposed which gave the government a new source of income. The Anti Saloon League proved to be a formidable political force, and even though women were not allowed to vote until later in the 1920's, Carrie Nation and other suffragists attached themselves to the prohibition movement and this moral tide became the law of the land.
WW1 was also a driving force to eliminate alcohol sales, paticularly beer. Pabst, Schlitz, Miller, and Blatz were German companies and the propaganda of the war changed attitudes. Frankfurters became hot dogs and sauerkraut became Liberty Cabbage.
In both the rural South and Midwest a major prohibition force was the Ku Klux Klan. The Klan had looked with distrust upon the cities with the recent growing population of Italians, Germans, and Irish. The Klan from 1870 to WW11 was a social, political and an economic force. There was a rumor in the 1890's that the Pope was on a paticular train and he was moving the Vatican to Indiana. At the various town stops, the locals met this train with signs of protest. I can recall in the 50's a big sign on the outskirts of Kershaw which said "The Ku Klux Klan Welcomes You to Kershaw." In the early 60's the Jaycees replaced the Klan.
There were three legal ways to have a drink during prohibition.One could attend a Catholic Church, ferment your own produce, or for medicinal reasons. The Catholic Church was allowed to serve wine as part of their religous ceremony. This of course allowed the California vineyards to remain open. Farmers were allowed to have their fruit drinks fermented, which provides us with the definition of hard cider and Doctors were allowed to give you a prescription for 'medicinal alcohol,' which allowed druggist the latitude to keep Jack Daniels on the shelves in case one got a sore throat.
In the 1500's various government began levying taxes on alcoholic beverages and the spin off for a new business was born. As in any government effort to raise revenue by taxation, there have been people and ways to circumvent the tax increase. Pirates were some of the first bootleggers.
Stock car racing can draw part of its heritage from bootleggers. Those boys in the mountains of N.C. jetted up some awfully fast cars to outrun the law. The former Pat Price remembers her grandmother feeding lunch to one of her sons visiting friend from the N.C. Mountains. She never asked what was in the trunk, and she did not want the visitor to stay much past dessert.
Henry DuRant had an old mountain buddy named Sam who had his still hooked up to his home's wood burning heating system. Henry once took Sammy Small to see the still but Sam would not show Sammy , because he thought Sammy looked too much like a revenue agent. Sam was later amazed by the wonders of satellite television. He said it was amazing that you could watch 'preachin' on one channel and flip to another station and see a French movie.
The former Lyndell Price of Camden can recall finding an illegal still while walking through the woods in Dillon County. Of course in Dillon County (home county of David Sloan) you can do anything but vote if you are 15 years of age.
Every Christmas Vic Paschal's grandmother would use French Brandy to make homemade eggnog. One year Xmas fell on Sunday and the grandfather had forgotten to purchase the brandy, so he went to a friend's house and returned with some apple shine. In family lore this Christmas is referred to as the one where everyone threw up.
In the early 60's, Jim Ring's parents felt that he and his older brother Kirk were responsible enough to be left alone for a weekend. Kirk convinced Jim to ride with him to Rembert to purchase some 'swamp water.' The 13 year old Jim stayed in the car while his older brother went inside and watched the liquid burn a pure flame, which is what Kirk's head felt like as he practiced the art of commode hugging the next morning.
Tony Perez says that when you receive some moonshine, put dried peaches in the bottle and let it sit for a couple of months and then the 'shine will taste like a good French brandy. Ed Walden contends that a good DuPont measure, which he learned from several of his engineer buddies, is to filter the moonshine through charcoal in order to remove any impurities.
All of your friends and neighbors have moonshine stories. Some are humorous and some tragic. It is not the alcohol which makes the alcoholic no more than it is the drug which makes the drug addict. A majority of my uncles and grandfathers chased a good drink with the back of their hands and my family like your family has witnessed the battles of the 'Wets vs. the Drys.'
Thank you for your attention.

My grandfather made homemade muscadine wine in his barn in the DeKalb community. I never thought of that as moonshining, but I guess that it could have been considered so. The only time I ever remember him drinking any was at Christmas and my uncle Claude would have a pint of Jack Daniels. Other than that I never remember any hard spirits when I was a young guy. I have had moonshine several times in my life of varying quality. Some was smooth as silk and others burned with a horrible after taste which meant that it went down the drain pretty quickly. Reading Buster's article has made me wonder just how hard it would be to set up a small still, for personal use only of course, in my garage!

The Tams ::

From 2007

Becky Moody Update ::

From Buster:

This past Sat. nite, Suzzanne Steed Blakeney (who is still a true delight) and our spoues attended Toni Rush (Bruce) marital ceremony to Gary Faulkenberry (couple of years older than us).
Suzzanne has been seeing Becky Moody... and Becky is now doing much better. Part of the good news is that a pill she needs to take at $2000 per pop, will be covered by insurance.
Nice to know that one who was so sick that they were debating whether to pull the plug, is now making a nice recovery. B.

I've been there on the "pull-the-plug" decision and know intimately how it feels!

Another Article From Buster ::

This is an article about the Camden neighborhood behind the old CHS. The school property is now abandoned and there has been a controversy over development and the running of a thoroughfare thru this neighborhood. Johnny Jaynes always edits these articles and his contributions are in red, so you can see why my SAT verbal scores kept me out of Harvard. B.

I have also saved this as a PDF with a link to it over on the right. (note: the red highlighting referenced above does not carry over to the pasted blockquote, but is viewable in the PDF.)

Boogertown has always been known as the neighborhood of "newlyweds and almost deads.” The official location of Camden's oldest subdivision is:
North of Potlicker,
South of Dusty Bend,
West of Saddle and Paddle, &
East of Cherokee Place.
In 1811, C.J. Shannon came to Camden and taught at the Orphan Academy (which was the early public schools.) After the great fire of 1829, which burned most of Camden, C.J. Shannon bought 30 acres and built The Camden House on Broad Street. The Shannon Field behind his house was drained by a large, man-made ditch which was part of a system of drainage ditches and canals found throughout the county. This Shannon Field is where the CHS marching band started practicing in the 30's.This drainage ditch is now covered by Jordan Street.
Over the years, this acreage was often sold, and many families such as Villepigue, Cantey, Carrison, Jordan, McDowell, and Hirschberger owned various parts of Boogertown. At the turn of the century, this area was a cotton field, and Dr. Bob Davis's house built in 1832 was the manor house. In 1924, the McDowell and the Carrison families began developing lots on Hampton Street with the statement, "Now for sale and on reasonable terms to desirable purchasers. It is not expected to interest persons buying for speculative purposes or persons who contemplate building homes of less than a $5000 value."
In 1926, Dr. Stevenson and N.C.Arnett bought and began developing the area of what are now Jordan and Carrison Streets. Dr. Stevenson is one of the two sources for the origin of the name Boogertown. Dr. Stevenson's favorite baseball player was from Boogertown, Alabama or Arkansas, so he dubbed this neighborhood Boogertown.
Over the decades, this neighborhood has seen its share of colorful characters. There were two gentleman nicknamed for their lower appendages. Footsy Hilton was the county sheriff and Foots Boykin could inhale a cigarette and blow smoke out of his ears. A flamingo dancer once lived where Betsy Greenway now resides and Betsy maintains this legacy. Clarence Mahoney now resides in a house where the only man in America to hold elected positions in two houses in two states lived. Murdock Johnson was both a Senator and a House of Representative member in both N.C. and S.C.
Mrs. Church, whose husband was a diplomat in Italy, lived in three different Boogertown houses. The Bakers had a fabulous Europeon art collection. Hospital directors, judges, doctors, newspaper owners, and mill administrators once called this area home. One of the early residents of my home is the second originator of the two Boogertown names.
In the 30's, one of the Shannon descendents on Saturdays liked to imbibe several adult drinks, and the more he drank, the more he disrobed. By midafternoon, he was inebriated and nude. When he would walk out on the street, the local ladies would tell him to go play in his own backyard. The boorish, drunken, and sometimes spirited behavior of Shannon and some of the other neighborhood drinking buddies must have produced searing hangovers which the polite ladies would explain as bad sinus headaches. Thus, the term Boogertown was coined to explain their husbands’ medicinal absence from church.
Boogertown consists of narrow, tree lined streets with small lots and no sidewalks so the common meeting place is in the street. Because of the dearth of traffic, the streets are filled with mothers pushing carriages, strolling seniors [with and witout dogs], skateboarders, and bicyclers [with and without the colorful Italian apparel].
Because of the tree lined streets and the narrow lot frontage, many people park in the street. I used to park in the street until a fine, currently practicing, local physician knocked one of my cars 25' into the next yard.
To address the "MAINTAIN BOOGERTOWN'' stickers, and the recent controversy concerning the development of the school property, there are two issues for us 'boogers.' First, the residents of Boogertown did not want the proposed thoroughfare. With narrow streets and no sidewalks, we do not need more traffic, but then also neither does Kirkover Hills, Sunnyhill, or Gettysburg. Ask the residents of Hermitage Village how they like the new thoroughfare. Many villagers will not let their kids play in their front yards. We want to see the school property developed. If the city administration would have approved the original plan of the developers, then all concerned would be happier. With a little bit of better leadership and foresight by the city elders, there would not have been any controversy.
Secondly, we Boogers never had an opportunity to enter into any dialogue with the city administration, committees, or elected officials. According to city code and the constitution of the great state of South Carolina, we should have had a place at the table, even if it was at a private dining room in a restaurant. If the city manager, who is paid with our tax dollars, meets with developers then we should, as well as you, if you live in an adjoining neighborhood, have the right to express our concerns.There is also something in the U.S. Constitution concerning individual citizens’ rights.
The residents of Boogertown have been good, tax paying neighbors for over 80 years. We have worked hard not to let our property values decline, so we should have been recognized, and we will be heard. If you lived here, you would also. There is no government body (federal, state, or local) whose decisions are mistake free or whose intentions are ''as pure as the driven snow."
Thank you for your attention.

Another Obit ::

I just got an e-mail from Buster stating that this is not the Jimmy Belk that went to school with us. My apologies for the error. Here's the e-mail from Buster which also has some good news regarding Tim Horton:

Ran into Tim Horton and congragulated him and when he showed me a picture of his 3 month old son, I told him he was my hero. I bet you two could fire some real bullets for another youngun'. He said he has learned how to change a diaper with one hand.
We were talking about contemporaries who were moving to the great beyond and I mentioned Jimmy Belk and he said that the Jimmy Belk whose obituary was in the 'tri weekly astonisher' was not the same Jimmy Belk who went to school w/ us. He knew the families. B.

James L. Belk

CAMDEN - A memorial service for James Lawson Belk, 62, will be held Tuesday at 10:00 a.m. at Powers Funeral Home. Rev. Dr. Condy Richardson will officiate. The family will receive friends following the service at the funeral home. Memorials may be made to Alzheimer's Foundation, 322 Eighth Avenue, 7th Floor, New York, N.Y. 10001.

Mr. Belk died Saturday, April 17, 2010. Born in Camden, he was a son of the late Samuel English and Mamie Christine Melton Belk. He was an avid sports fan.

Surviving are his sister and brother-in-law, Dorothy and Doyle White of Keystone Heights, Fla.; brother and sister-in-law, Delano and Peggy Belk of Camden; 3 nephews; and 2 nieces.

Read more: http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/thestate/obituary.aspx?n=james-l-belk&pid=141985882#ixzz0lXTzgJkC

From This Morning's The State ::

Sad news:

Photo
CAMDEN - Linda Cecile Bowers Shaw, 63, of Lake Wateree, died unexpectedly on Thursday, April 8, 2010.

Born in Columbia, SC, January 28, 1947, she was the first child of Cecil Augustine and Evelyn Ruth Reynolds Bowers. She was a licensed practical nurse, having worked in Camden, Columbia and Loris, and was recently employed by Alltypes Transcription Service in Camden.

Linda was a genuinely kind and giving person who always gave all she had to her children, husband and family. She loved the beach, beach music and Christmas. She recently moved to Lake Wateree to enjoy the water and her retirement. Linda loved her family dearly and her Lord Jesus Christ.

She is survived by her husband of 32 years, Robert Lewis Shaw of Lake Wateree, two daughters, Lori Evelyn Young of Lugoff, and Sandra "Sandy" Cecile Shaw of Camden; granddaughters, True Gabriella Young, Lauryn Lee Young and Sierra Madison Simms; brother, Stephen Reynolds Bowers and his wife, Elaine, of Milledgeville, GA; sisters, Rebecca "Becky" Bowers Mooneyhan of Columbia, and Julie Evelyn Bowers Moniot and her husband, Daniel, of Greenville. She is also survived by nephews, Brian Edward Bowers and Kevin Reynolds Bowers of Milledgeville, GA, Steven Elliott Mooneyhan of Jupiter, FL, and nieces, Jennifer Ruth Mooneyhan and Alyson Alayne Mooneyhan of Camden, Shannon Rebecca Monneyhan Campbell and Sarah Lambert Moniot of Greenville, and numerous aunts, uncles, cousins and lifelong friends.

A memorial service will be held Saturday, April 10, 2010, at 4:30 p.m. at Kornegay Funeral Home, Camden Chapel. The Rev. Greg Sweet will officiate.

Kornegay Funeral Home, Camden Chapel, is in charge of arrangements.

On-line condolences may be sent to Linda's family by visiting www.kornegayfuneral.com.

Read more: http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/thestate/obituary.aspx?n=linda-cecile-bowers-shaw&pid=141647132#ixzz0kguNbQlM

Jim Ring Blows His Horn ::

Attached are pics taken in Waynesboro, VA last Friday nite. The eight of us played in a band called The Rotations in 1967-1968 (actually there were eleven of us in the group back then). We were in town to help raise money to renovate the old Wayne Theatre. Sounded pretty good. most of all we had a lot of fun.

Jim

Buster's Writing ::

This article will appear soon in the local paper.


Sometimes you are at the right place at the right time. Once or twice in your life you will catch lightening in a bottle. In 1964 many of us local youths had the stars aligned appropriately and became members of a team that is legendary in the annals of South Carolina high school sports history. We became members of a high school football team that went unscored on during the regular season.
What is interesting is that when we see a teammate for the first time in a long time we shake hands, grab shoulders, or hug. There exists the same unique bond that war veterans, best childhood friends, or old college friends share. I am not sure I can find words which adequately explain the delight.
Several former teammates, Chuck Sturkie, Ray Robinson, Billy Ammons, Blair Holden, coach Clyde Jones and I traveled to Charlotte to say goodby to James Williams. James is our third teammate to be stricken with cancer. We have already lost Bruce Rush and Lin Watkins.
Bruce and Lin were both really tough starting defense lineman who were largely responsible for no one scoring on us. When we did those 'man on man' drills against each other in practice there was no fun facing either of them. You will never find a good football team that does not have several hard nosed guys as they were.
James was a skilled athlete as in one of those athletes who could compete successfully in any track event. He signed with Clemson but his grades were not high enough. James and I were both ends and once there was a college coach who needed to sign an end so he called Coach Lynch and asked Red to send some film of me. Red sent the film and the coach called back quickly and said Beckham was not what we need, but tell us about Williams.
As stated James was a great talent, but he would never win any sportsmanship contest. His profanities could turn the sky blue. We played Eau Claire in a tremendously hyped and emotional regular season game. At the end of the game we intercepted a pass which allowed us to run out the clock. Some of the Eau Claire lineman were crying and telling us to run one more play. James put his thumb on his nose and wiggled his extended fingers at them.
James was such a good athlete that after the starting cornerback Sammy Small got hurt they moved James to the defensive backfield as a cornerback. In the 12th game of the year, we played Stall for the lower state championship and Stall had one of those big 220lb fullbacks, who was a good player. Some Stall scat back ran for a long touchdown against us for the only score we gave up all year.
Stall lined up to run for the two point conversion and I heard this voice coming from below me. "Run that big #^#* over here, send that fat a.. fullback this way." I looked down and James was in a 4 point stance as a defensive lineman. All I could think of was I hope they don't throw a pass over here.
My favorite James story happened in the second game of the year against Sumter. Early in the game Sumter scored on a pass play were James was the defensive back, but the play was called back because of a penalty. The receiver said something to James and me and James quickly reminded the gentleman of his canine ancestry. They later had another touchdown called back on the same pass play and in the exchange of pleasantries James reminded the receiver of his illegitimate birth. James and I agreed that we were not going to send this mouthy receiver a Christmas card.
In the old days the teaching of defensive back technique was not very complicated. Basically the coach taught the defensive back to extend his arms straight up in the air and arrive at the same time that the ball did. Late in the game Sumter was throwing to try to score. A Blair Holden punt had backed them up close to their goal line.
Their receiver ran a curl route and James extended his arms and completely ran over the kid before the ball got there. The referee called pass interference on James. James looked at me and asked what he did wrong. I looked down at the receiver who was now slowly picking himself off the ground and replied, "Nothing, you are dong what the coaches told you."
Sumter ran the same play. This time James trampled the receiver like a runaway elephant. The flag came in again for pass interference. James again asked what he was doing wrong. I looked down at the mouthy receiver who was now trying to get his nose out of his earhole and replied. "Everything looks ok to me."
Sumter ran the same play again. Same result. James tramples the receiver and the official throws the flag. James has this look of confusion and this receiver is having a near death experience. Red takes James out and the Sumter coach changes the route because his star receiver is now on the sidelines being treated for footprint abrasions which now run the length of his body.
We all have lost friends and family. As we grow older we learn to appreciate our journey. These three teammates made the journey more enjoyable and enriching, and made better people out of each of us.
Thank you for your attention.

City Clerk Retiring! ::

I came across this in this week's Camden Chronicle-Independent about my cousin, Betty, retiring after 28 years as Camden's city clerk:

t took two tries for Camden Mayor James Anderson to get Betty Slade to take the job as city clerk at Camden City Hall.

The first time was in 1980. Slade wasn't ready. She had already worked at a variety of jobs around the county and was focusing a bit more on raising her children. During the next two years, her husband, Larry, ended up getting a job that took him to West Virginia.

"He rode back and forth and I thought we were going to move," Slade said. "That job didn't work out and our house in Lugoff hadn't sold. Around the same time that Larry told me he was coming back, Mayor Anderson called me again. The Lord works in mysterious ways."

And that was how, on July 28, 1982, Betty Slade became Camden City Clerk. Slade will leave that position on April 1 and then use a large chunk of accrued administrative leave to finish out 28 years of service through the end of July.

"Who knew I would be here for 28 years? I certainly had no clue," said Slade.

I think there's more to the article, but it is not available on-line. Here's what Betty looked like when we were kids and she was in pigtails!



I wonder if there will be a retirement party!

A Fisheye Lomo Photograph ::

I haven't shot anything with the Lomo lately. The cold, rainy and gray days of winter have taken their toll on me, but I'm looking forward to spring!

A Note From Buster ::

About the upcoming reunion:

Jerry Sheheen came by this p.m. and picked up the '65 class e-mail and resident addresses that I have- so the ball is rolling toward organization. He and Jimmy Ring are the honchos and would luv to have everyone's input- especially those from out of town.
If you have some classmates e-mails that are not on this list, please forward to Jerry or Jimmy. If no response from you, then Johnny Jaynes will sing at your next family gathering. B

Bobby McFerrin ::

Clearly explains the pentatonic scale without words:



Found at Ted.com.

Buster Is Looking For More Remembrances ::

I think this is probably more of a guy type of thing though:

I'm looking for 'moonshine' stories which have a local lean.
Your ol' granddaddy may have had a select stash---- you might have had an uncle who would take a big gulp and chase it with the back of his hand-----you might have run across a still while you were once playing in the woods-- your uncles may have passed the bottle at a family gathering-mine did.
Jim Thornton, the father of Jimmy Thornton, told the story that when he was a youngster back in the 20's there was a blacksmith in Camden, who made 'shine in his downtown business and he would let the kids blow the bellast [sp.]
Hope you can help and if you are in contact w/ any other classmates or Camden friends, I would appreciate their stories.
Also, I had a good visit w/ Billy Sheorn this past Fri. and Billy Ammons and Ray Robinson and I are to go have lunch w/ James Williams soon. B.

Hey Girl, Don't Bother Me ::

The Tams from 1964:

Another Camden Event ::

This from Johnny Deal:

February 8, 2010

Dear members of Camden High Alumni Association:

Tickets are on sale for the 2nd Annual Nashville Songwriter’s Night in our Performing Arts Center on Friday, March 5th. The performers will be our own Patrick Davis, Jason Michael Carroll, Whitney Duncan and a TBA special guest. The tickets can be purchased online at www.patrickdavismusic.com. Camden High should have some “hard-copy” tickets by next week in the Media Center. The doors open at 6 pm with the concert at 7 pm.

The general admission tickets are $15.00 and the VIP tickets are $30.00. The VIP tickets include a “Meet and Greet” with the artists before the concert and special seating in the Performing Arts Center. The Meet and Greet will be in the Media Center and there will be refreshments served.

The Nashville Songwriter’s Night is held as a fundraiser for the Roger Davis Memorial Scholarships which are awarded to CHS students. These scholarships can be renewed for four years as long as the recipients continue to meet the criteria. This is the second year for the scholarship program and it is possible, that by the fourth year, up to $20,000 will be needed annually to award new scholarships and renew the scholarships to previous winners.

----ALSO that same weekend----

The Academic Booster Club at Camden High is sponsoring a golf tournament fund raiser:

Saturday, March 6, 2010 Time: 9:00am - 2:00pm

Location: White Pines Golf Club

Description Captain's Choice - 9:00 am Shotgun Start

Four Man Team - Entry Fee: $200.00

Lunch, snacks and drinks provided.

Contacts: Kim Gill 803-713-1409 or Lynn Glisson glissonl@bellsouth.net





Best Old High School Anywhere!

Buster Is Working On A New Article ::

And passes it on asking for comments:

This is the very rough draft of an article soon to be submitted. If you have any comments or suggestions I would appreciate your input.

We all continue to learn as we progress through the stages of life. Friends, neighbors, family members, and buddies each leave benchmarks and stepping stones. I was recently looking at a list of what someone deemed newsworthy people who passed away in 2009 and I thought about some of your recently deceased neighbors who left positive or lasting impressions on many local citizens.
One of the first individuals who had a 'stage' name was Brian 'Big Daddy' Hicks who was a local rock and roll deejay. A truly affable individual he fashioned his 'Big Daddy' name like Cousin Brucie and other rock and roll spinners.
Brian was a good guy, loved to laugh, and had their rare talent of making you feel important. He also has the distinction of making 7 hole in one's. What makes this feat unique is that he made 4 left-handed and 3 right handed. His weekly poker buddies pay him tribute by having his seat vacant with his picture taped to the chair.
The sound of her high heels walking down the hall would cause students and teachers to sit up a little straighter. Mrs. Tina Duvall was the jr. high principal and as former student Jimmy Ring said, you would try not to walk by her but if you did you were silent and invisible. As Johnny Jaynes commented, her occasional scowl would melt you, but her administration of the board of education was much feared.
In the old jr. high building she would cut on the intercom in order to moniter how the teacher was instructing and managing the class. Once when I was in the 7th grade I was in a Spanish class with a group of smart 8th graders. It was purely a clerical error on someone's part that I was in this class. However one day we were blindfolding students and letting them strike at a pinata and we were apparently enjoying the festivities a little too loudly because the intercom clicked on and this commanding voice said, "Mrs so and so, please control your class." It may have been the whitest I ever saw an adult's face become.
Jim "Boo' Haynes was the first 'character' I ever knew. He could regale you with some wild tales. He was about six or seven years older than I and to listen to him you would think he had toured the world. At age 25 he decided to join Bob Lynch and play college football at Georgia Military College. He was dismissed from the team during the season when on a rainy game night he put a raincoat over his football uniform. The raincoat annoyed the coach but he also got caught smoking a cigarrette in the third quarter.
He performed an act that I thought was very admirable. He was the bus driver for which mostly delivered kids to the Edgewood subdivision. There were a few kids on the bus who lived further from the school and were usually the last ones left off. One of the girls was a rather homely, slow and poor girl who was unmercilessly teased for her looks and status. She listened to the insults with a quiet dignity and never fought back. She suffered these playground insults for a couple of years.
One day Boo took the bus directly to her house for the first stop. After she left the bus he pulled away a short distance and stopped the bus, then he stood up and said there would be no more teasing of this young lady, looked directly at the older boys, and said if any riders did not like his edict they were welcome to step off the bus for a challenge of fisticuffs. There were no takers.
In the mid fifties there was a new term popularized called juvenile delinquency. Teen age problems became a new social phenomena. The mobility of families and the absence of fathers due to the war, rock and roll, more leisure time, money, and cars for teenagers were some or a combination of reasons that kids were getting in to trouble. The local high schools were points of disruption.
In the late 50's the Camden School Board hired a no-nonsense principal named Francis Snelgrove and this new sheriff quickly restored order. Mr. Snelgrove was very professional and quickly established order. In the following years he eventually became the county superintendent of schools. As the superintendent he never played politics. Once when a certain school board member wanted a certain individual for an administrative position Mr. Snelgrove proposed 17 people for this position before he ran out of options.
One interesting story of being sent to Mr. Snelgrove's office happened one spring afternoon. The basketball coach signed out several of us from study hall and we would go play basketball every day during the last period of the day. Sometimes we walked and some times we rode if someone had a car.
This paticular day we were just going to ride over to the gym when Charlie Wilson said why don't we go to the four ball golf tournament. We all agreed to the change, but as we started to a leave a coach caught us and sent us to Mr. Snelgrove's office. On the way to the office we collabarated on our story.
Mr. Shelgrove walked in the room and looked around and asked Charles Ives what was our story. Charles spun such a tale I thought we were on our way to Alcatraz.
Thank you for your attention.

Here's Buster's e-mail address:
beckhamfam(at)hotmail.com

I think that we grew up around an enviable cast of notable characters.

So far as teachers go I have several memories which have stuck with me throughout the years. One is from Mr. Rawson Hipp who tried to teach me some geometry. I remember him telling the story of how his back became injured during WWII while he served in the U.S. Navy. As I recall the story, he was steering a landing craft toward a beach landing when he got knocked off the back of the boat and a nerve in his back was pinched beyond repair requiring him to walk, rather unsteadily, with a cane for the rest of his life. Mr. Hipp had a great sense of humor extending even to his injury and I remember him telling the tale on himself of having to use the toilet at home late one night and he didn't want to turn on the light and wake Mrs. Hipp so he was walking down the hallway leaning on the wall in order to steady himself. Unfortunately someone had left a closet door open and, as he put it, "I kept leaning until I fell right into the closet". Well, I don't know if those were his exact words, but they're close. I never did do well in geometry though!

I believe it was in the 11th grade that I had English with Mr. Toms and the class was right after lunch. Mr. Toms always locked the class during lunch and when someone in the class decided that English should not be on the agenda for the day a pencil point would be broken off in the doors keyhole. Mr. Toms would try for about 5 minutes to unlock the door, without success, and then send everyone to the library. This seemed to be at least a weekly occurance.

Who was it who could sleep with his eyes open in Mrs. Schreiber's French class?

In this digital age which encourages self publishing I think we should do a compilation book of memories from as many former classmates as would like to participate. It wouldn't cost anything other than the cost to buy the book if the contributor chose to do so and we would be preserving these memories for all time.

Is anyone interested?

Lyndell Is Searching ::

Lyndell wants to connect online with Sandra Geddings (Laney). Here are her e-mail addresses if anyone can help:

daydrmrmee(at)aol.com

lyndellivey(at)yahoo.com

Any help would be appreciated!

Too Much Sadness For One Day! :

This was also in this mornings "The State".

LUGOFF — A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated for Linwood Watkins, 62, of Lugoff at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Catholic Church Monday, January 11, 2010, at 11:00 a.m. with burial to follow in Forest Lawn Memorial Park. Rev. Francis Travis will officiate. The family will have a Christian Vigil Sunday, January 10, 2010, at 6:30 p.m. with a visitation to follow at Kornegay Funeral Home, Camden Chapel.

Mr. Watkins, husband of Barbara Fellers Watkins, died Thursday, January 7, 2010. Born in Richmond, VA, he was the son of the late Linwood E. Watkins Sr. and Dorothy Josephine Davis Watkins. He was a 1965 graduate of Camden High School and a 1985 graduate of the University of South Carolina with a B.S. in business administration. He had retired from DuPont. He was a member of the 1964 Camden High School football Champions. He enjoyed drag racing, boat racing, hunting, fishing, golf, coaching girl’s slow pitch and fast pitch softball and dancing with Bobbie. Mr. Watkins was a member of Our Lady of Perpetual Help Catholic Church.

Mr. Watkins, is survived by his wife of 36 years; daughters, Samantha Watkins Crider (Justin) of Saint Matthews and Vivian Belden Watkins of Lugoff; grandson, Christopher Palmer Titus; sisters, Kay Strubeck of Dallas, TX, and Gail Crawford of Greenville; and brother, Edward Watkins of Lawrenceville, GA.

On-line condolences may be sent to the Watkins family by visiting www.kornegayfuneral.com.

Kornegay Funeral Home, Camden Chapel, is in charge of arrangements.

Sad News This Friday Morning! ::

CAMDEN — Sarah “Sally” Mustard DuVal Campbell died January 7, 2010. She was the wife of Jay Dudley Campbell of Camden. Born in 1947, she was the daughter of the late Mary Boykin Mustard DuVal and Moylan “Mo” Lansdale DuVal and grew up in the Boykin community and Camden, South Carolina.

Sally graduated from Camden High School. She earned an associates degree in architecture at Midlands Tech in 1969, thereafter working for many years for the LBC&W architectural firm and Wilbur Smith & Associates. She returned to school, earning a B.A. degree in elementary education at the University of South Carolina followed by a master’s degree in computers in education from Lesley University. She taught at E.L. Wright and Summit Parkway Middle Schools in Columbia, South Carolina. Following Sally and Jay’s move to Rock Hill, she taught at Rawlinson Road Middle School in York County.

Sally’s teaching career was cut short by kidney disease. She was given a new kidney by her dear friend, Jayne Reid. This gift gave Sally many additional years of quality time, enabling her to enjoy her friends and family and they her. In 2008, Sally was diagnosed with an advanced cancer and complete failure of her kidney, making it necessary for her to go on dialysis. Her sisters will forever be grateful to her husband without whom home dialysis would not have been possible. Together Sally and Jay remained strong, encouraging each other throughout many months of dialysis and chemotherapy. They both embraced the time given them with enthusiasm. Their wonderful spirit was contagious, spreading to family and friends alike who also gave of their time assisting in dialysis and transport to doctor visits.

As a teenager Sally became quite a competitive sailor, both on the state and national level. Her father was a founding member of Wateree Sailing Club and most warm days found her sailing at Wateree Lake. Later in life, while living in Rock Hill, Sally took art courses at Winthrop, resulting in some lovely and treasured gifts to her family and others close to her. She took an active and enthusiastic interest in her husband Jay’s hobby, flying gliders at Bermuda High Soaring School near Kershaw, South Carolina. Together, they participated in soaring contests throughout the United States. While living in Columbia, she was a founding member of the Yorkshire Neighborhood Association.

In addition to her husband, Sally is survived by her children, Regen Campbell Parks and her husband, Randy, Matthew Howard Campbell and his wife, Sherri, and Jeffrey Bryan Campbell; grandchildren, Hazel Marie Campbell, Clayton Michael Parks and Tucker Cooper Campbell. Also surviving are her sisters, Mary B. DuVal Myers (Mrs. Usher N. Jr.), Katharine L. DuVal Beard (Mrs. Henry E. III), and Moylan L. DuVal Nettles (Mrs. William F. III). She will be missed by her nieces and nephew, Molly Bridges, Kathryn Myers, Caroline Connare, Sarah Myers, Elizabeth Crotty, Brennen Nettles and William F. Nettles IV.

A memorial service will be held at Grace Episcopal Church in Camden on Sunday, January 10 at four o’clock, conducted by the Rev. Alice Haynes, a longtime friend of both Sally and Jay, and the Grace Church rector, the Rev. Douglas Holmes. Interment will be private. The family will receive friends and family at the Campbell home following the service.

Though a lover of flowers, Sally would prefer donations to the American Cancer Society , the American Kidney Society, the American Red Cross, or actual donations of blood to the Red Cross.

On-line condolences may be sent to the Campbell family by visiting www.kornegayfuneral.com.

Kornegay Funeral Home, Camden Chapel, is in charge of arrangements.