Ruth Family Reunion in Pleasant Hill, Tennessee

WINTER. Bill started off the year in a great way by getting a “hole-in-one” on 1/1/11 while golfing with grandson, Sawyer, in Cleburne, TX.  Our volunteer assignment in Texas kept us busy with computer projects Mondays-Fridays but most weekends we had time to explore, travel and see grandkids.  During Brynne’s  March school break we took her to San Antonio.  At other times we went to Sawyer’s FFA goat show, cheered for Luke playing soccer and attended Brynne’s and Luke’s  violin concert at school. Sometimes we made ‘airport’ runs for Slumber Falls’ guests and once in a while we helped in the camp kitchen in feeding retreat groups. An unusual Texas treat was having Susy Garcia, our AFS student from 1983-4, and her sons, Vittorio Augusto (11) and Gian Antonio (7), visit for a week from Nicaragua.

SPRING.  Thanks to our son-in-law, we had tickets at Ranger stadium to watch our beloved Red Sox play baseball in Texas. When we returned to our home in April, it was like an explosion of things to do as we had lived only 6 weeks in our home before we departed for Texas after Christmas.  Easter was upon us (Mary sings in choir), the yard and gardens were needing attention, Habitat for Humanity needed Bill, and we drove to NC to spend time with David’s family.  Ashley (7) has stayed with us a few days at a time in April, June and August during school breaks.  On Memorial Day we hosted a picnic for 30 neighbors at our home which went very well thanks to ‘perfect’ picnic weather, borrowed tables and chairs and lots of good food provided by guests.

SUMMER.  ‘Living’ at Uplands Retirement Village is exactly what we do!  Our friends and neighbors are active, creative, and caring people who are also 55 and older, and they manage to practice ‘building community’ every day.  This year we participated in a Community Garden and, for the first time since living in Hebron (CT), we planted and harvested tomatoes, squash, green beans and more.  When administrators at Uplands asked us to ‘volunteer’ for them (as we do for other non-profits) we gladly agreed to volunteer for 3 months to clean up computer data and expand their technical communication systems.

FALL.  Since our summer volunteering for Uplands, Mary has been involved as the URV ‘volunteer’ Volunteer Coordinator in areas of curb appeal, visitor reception, e-news and web photos. In Nashville we went to an Elon tailgate party and then to see Elon play football at Vanderbilt. We continue having a good relationship with Blowing Rock Conference Center (volunteered 2004-5) by attending a fall conference and are now serving on their Board of Directors.  Elon’s Homecoming was a special treat this year—our 45^th class reunion and Mary’s sorority reunion. Mary continues to play her alto sax in the local Ensemble and the Cumberland County Community Band. Bill serves on a church committee and this year ‘computerized’ all names, hosts, and places for a ‘Mix ‘em Up’ dinner and one night in October had 150 people out socializing with new friends!

‘Seasoned’ grandparents we are now with 5 grandchildren ages 16, 12, 10, 8, and 2 and we enjoy having special relationships with each one.

Thanksgiving 2011 was a ‘season’ all its own and one we’ll not soon forget!  Our children, Cindi from TX and David from NC, decided to have a family reunion at our home in TN.  It was a big effort to get everyone here and it was the first time some of the cousins met Drew (2).  Each family was here 4 nights so we all had good times playing card games, golf, tennis, and ping pong as well as going to the Cumberland County Playhouse, the local Pioneer Hall Museum, Mary’s community band rehearsal and to ‘flex & stretch’ class.  Everyone pitched in and we had a delicious turkey dinner with 11 of us around our table(s).  Best of all, the cousins got to play together for a few days and their parents had opportunities to visit and reconnect.

Winter 2012 will find us volunteering at Slumber Falls Camp and Retreat Center in New Braunfels, TX, from Mid-January to Mid-March.  This is the first time we’ve repeated a Partners In Service volunteer assignment but the director asked us to return and ‘pick up where we left off’ and there will be no time lost in training this time. The Slumber Falls location is very appealing because we enjoy being near (200 miles!) Cindi’s family so we can attend school and sports functions of Sawyer, Brynne and Luke.

Christmas Day we’ll be involved with church choir and church van driving and eating dinner with friends and neighbors.  Our plans are to be in Charlotte NC with David’s family on the 27^th for a mini-Christmas and bring Ashley back with us to TN for a few days of school vacation.

Pleasant Hill Community Church, where we are active members, is completing a $2 million addition/upgrade and it’s a joy to be part of this progressive, active church. Since the dedication will be Jan 6-7-8, we’ve decided to leave for Texas soon after, have a ‘late’ mini-Christmas with Cindi’s family, and continue on to the San Antonio area to do our volunteering.

Our guest room is being used often and we like it that way.  We are an easy stop-over off of Interstate 40 and are welcoming visitors regularly.  Just let us know when you can visit!

TEXAS. After spending 3 months volunteering at Slumber Falls Camp and Retreat Center, we returned ‘home’ to Uplands in Tennessee. The Texas assignment was a good one and the ‘bonus’ was being near Cindi and family. We spent a lot of time with the three grandchildren and their many activities.

UPLANDS. It’s good to be ‘home’. We’ve been working on both yard and interior as well as getting more active in this caring community. The walking trails are good and a lively exercise class three times a week is fun. Mary sings in the church choir, plays alto sax in a local ensemble as well as the Cumberland County Community band and helps out at ‘The Grab’. Bill continues to be part of the local Habitat Chapter, is now a trained docent at the Pioneer Hall Museum in Pleasant Hill, and at church serves on a committee and sometimes drives the van for those unable to otherwise get to church.

NORTH CAROLINA. Now that we’re back in TN we’re looking forward to seeing more of David and family even though they are a six hour drive away. We did have Ashley (age 7) come stay with us for a few days during her school spring break and then David came up to help us out for a few days with some yard work and played golf with his dad.

VOLUNTEERING. For the first time in 9 years, we don’t have another ‘away from home’ volunteer assignment lined up. We’re not giving up this avocation entirely but are concentrating on volunteer opportunities locally and maybe 2-3 month volunteer assignment will come up sometime in the future. Actually, it looks like we’ll soon be volunteering with Uplands Village administrative staff by doing some computer work similar to what we’ve done at other volunteer assignments.

TORNADO. We were spared the terrible April tornados that went through the South including parts of Tennessee. However, on April 11th Cindi had a tornado visit her home in Texas. All the family (and the animals) are okay but there was damage to parts of their house and barn.

TRAVEL. We’re heading to Branson, MO in May for a few days to see granddaughter Brynne play violin with a school group. In July we’ll be involved with the Outdoor Ministry exhibit at our national church gathering in Tampa. After the event, we plan to stay a few days to see Bill’s sister, Aunt and cousin in Florida.

COME VISIT. We like having house guests and look forward to welcoming you to our home sometime. Let us know when you can be here.

WRITE SOON. We look forward to hearing from you.

Bill and Mary at Slumber Falls

Our last update was sent in late November soon after we moved into our newly refurbished home in Tennessee. We then kept very busy getting settled while also enjoying holiday festivities and events at Uplands Village.

On December 28 we began driving to Texas and are so glad to have neighbors, Bob and Elaine, checking on our TN home. Our overnight stop and delightful visit was with Caby and Betty in MS, fellow volunteers from our Heifer Ranch experience in 2005-06.

Eating lobsters, a Christmas Eve family tradition, was enjoyed this year on New Year’s Eve with Cindi and Mike and family. Sawyer (15), Brynne (11) and Luke (9) got involved with the preparation and then the feast.

Slumber Falls Camp & Retreat Center is an ideal ‘summer camp for kids’. The 20 acre facility borders the Guadalupe River and in the 1930’s was a tourist attraction with cabins for vacationers. In 1958 it became a church camp. You can check us out at www.slumberfalls.org. The ‘falls’ are where the Guadalupe River and Plum Creek meet in New Braunfels, TX. This area is known for ‘Toobing & Rafting’ down the river and also attracts many to its popular “Schlitterbaum” water park. We’ve discovered a local museum all about this area’s German immigration in the mid-1800’s. The nearby town of Gruene is an historic area and, among other interesting things, has the oldest ‘saloon’ in Texas. And we have lots more to explore before March 31!

Our volunteer work at Slumber Falls has Bill creating an Access database for their Retreat business and Mary is ‘friend-raising’ their constituents and designing an annual appeal process. We live at the camp in a small house used for staff during summers. Usually we work regular office hours M-F, 9-5. But one night a group of 30 college students (Texas State) were having a retreat and the camp cook took ill suddenly. At the last minute we were in the kitchen helping other staff members put together a lasagna dinner, serving the meals and washing the dishes. We know we were in the right place at the right time! And then last Saturday we ‘did’ a Camp Fair in Austin for SFC. Our opportunities to serve remain varied!

Grandchildren are adding a great dimension to our TX assignment. We’re about 3 hours away and are seeing them some weekends as they ride motor-cross, jump rope, play basketball, hit golf balls, show animals and play board games with us.

Community involvement enriches our local experience especially when our volunteer assignment is rather isolated. We’re attending contemporary worship at Friedens UCC in Geronimo TX about 10 miles away and participating in a Wed. night study group.

Susy Garcia and her sons, Vittorio and Gian, are coming to visit us soon from Nicaragua! Susy, an AFS student from Ecuador, lived with us in 1983-4 in Connecticut. This will be the boys’ first USA visit.

Football story from Mary’s recent interview: http://www.wickedlocal.com/wellesley/news/x925302268/A-Wellesley-High-uniform-returns-home

Mary and Bill Ruth, Refired 2/3/11

In November we moved into a small ranch style home (474 Meadows Drive). The renovations (Mary is the project manager and Bill is the CFO) we had done are really nice and we like the way it has all turned out. The property has several flower gardens so Spring will be interesting and beautiful.

David, Christy, Ashley (6) & Drew (22 months) came here from Charlotte NC for Thanksgiving and we all had a great time. Mary took all the family (while Granpa watched Drew) to the local Cumberland County Playhouse which is about 15 minutes from our house. No golf this time because it was just too cold.

We are still volunteering and are scheduled to be at Slumber Falls Camp and Conference Center in New Braunfels, Texas, from January through March. It’s approximately 200 miles from Cindi and Mike and family so we are looking forward to spending time with Sawyer, 15, who has a driver’s permit, Brynne, 11, who will be playing violin in May at Branson, Missouri, and Luke, 9, who plays football and rides motor cross bikes.

In October we returned to NC for Elon’s Homecoming and had a relaxing time with other alumni and then in November we were in Charlotte for Drew’s baptism. Mary is helping to plan a college sorority reunion for 2011 and is also working on her high school reunion for 2012.

Each of us is becoming active in both the Uplands and Cumberland County communities. Mary is singing in our church choir and playing her alto sax in the Community Band. Bill is involved in the local Habitat for Humanity chapter.

As you can see, we’re feeling that we’ve made the right move. Interstate 40 is about 10 miles from us, so if you’re coming this way do stop in for a visit. We would love to welcome you and show you this part of the country.

Write soon! We look forward to hearing from you.

Because of the house sale, we completed only 4 months (instead of 6) at our last volunteer assignment at Franklinton Center in eastern NC. We left feeling good about the work that we accomplished. Hopefully, the staff will make good use of the improved and updated database.

While deciding on our housing options (house or condo) we are renting a two bedroom apartment at Uplands Village. There are several places available and plan to explore the options carefully before making a final selection.

David, Christy, Ashley and Drew are now a bit further away (was 100 and now 300 miles) but we’ll continue to visit frequently. It’s about a 5 ½ hr drive from Pleasant Hill to Charlotte. They are all planning on a trip to Disneyworld on the 14th of August and are using one of our timeshare weeks. Mary is flying down to Orlando on the 17th to help watch Drew. At 18 months, he’s a ball of fire. They will all drive back and Bill will meet them in Charlotte. Their family is celebrating a healthy year for Ashley who is very fond of anything to do with princesses; Magic Kingdom here they come!

Cindi, Mike, Sawyer, Brynne and Luke are now a little closer (was 1200 and now 800 miles). In mid July we flew to Texas to see everyone for a week. They are all involved as usual. Sawyer and Luke (and Mike) are still into motorcross racing and both boys play football. We took Brynne for a trip to San Antonio to see the Alamo as well as other sites. Their small ranch now has 2 horses: Zip and Rebel; we watched Sawyer and Luke ride them around the property. Brynne competed in the National Jump Rope Contest in Galveston. There were hundreds of competitors from around the country and she placed 3rd in two events against a large field.

Many have asked us if we still plan on volunteering now that we’ve moved. Actually, while in Texas we met with the director of a camp and conference center in New Braunfels, Texas, and are committed to volunteering there Jan-Mar of 2011. It’s ‘only’ about 200 miles from Cindi and family.

For your information, our new permanent address:
PO Box 295
Pleasant Hill, TN 38578-9998
We have the same email address: williamruth@hotmail.com and
the same cell phone number, (336) 684-2381.
We’ve secured a local land line phone number: (931) 277- 5231.

We still plan some trips to NC to see family and friends, finish up some dental work and attend Elon University Homecoming.

Let us hear from you. Until next time.

We’ve been at our new volunteer assignment for 2 weeks; it is a busy time to learn the area, the people, the culture and the organization.  We are at Franklinton Center at Bricks in Whitakers NC from March to Sept 2010.  Our duties involve data clean up and master database creation, facilities assessment, communication and outreach.  Our housing this time is in their retreat facility built 2 years ago; we have adjoining motel rooms—4 beds and 2 bathrooms!  When groups are there, we have meals in the dining hall. At other times we use a kitchen located down the hall. Our cell phones work here and we have wireless internet.  There is also satellite TV so Bill isn’t missing sports this time.

Our Nov-Mar furlough time at home in Whitsett NC gave us plenty of time to visit folks, pursue some hobbies, get medical and dental checkups taken care of, attend some Elon events and participate in church activities.  We also spent some time preparing to sell our town home.  When it sells we are moving to Uplands Retirement Village in TN.  We’ve several friends there and have visited often in the past several years.  The big draw to us is its community feeling (not just a place to live but a way of living) and there are a good number of retired ministers and missionaries who reside there.

Since this current assignment is only 2 hours from our home, we’re there for Easter weekend and will have 6 year old granddaughter Ashley with us overnight 2 nights.  Mary is excited about coloring Easter eggs with her.  We’ll be coming home at least monthly for a day or two for dental follow ups and other special events. 

We are feeling good and staying healthy.  Generally speaking, it’s a financial blessing to now be on Medicare. But dental work remains expensive and continues for both of us. Mary’s upper implant seems to be doing good and she’s doing great with on-line weight watchers to lose that same 20 pounds that’s been taken off before.  Our current location at Franklinton Center has a walking track which we are using daily.

Cindi  stays busy with her family (Mike, Sawyer (14), Brynne (10) and Luke (8)  and all related activities in Grandview TX.  We’ll be flying out there to visit before too long.  We expect to see David and Christy (Charlotte NC) and family over the Easter weekend; that Drew is one fast moving guy at 14 months!

Franklinton Center at Bricks is located only 5 miles from exit 150 on Route 95 near Rocky Mount NC.   The facility is used for church retreats and family reunions and often there is an extra motel room available.  If you are traveling in that area, do stop and visit us.  We’d love to welcome you.

Happy Easter to all.

Love from

Mary and Bill