Dear Susan, Kelly and Families, I am so sorry not to have been able to make the trip back to Spindale when I heard the news of your father's passing. He and your mother were two of the major influences in my life along with A. B. Bumgarner and Malone Thomason. I consider myself to have been blessed to have their love and concern for me and my sisters and brother throughout our years at Central and Spencer Baptist Church. My older sisters Joan and Brenda, my brother Danny, and my younger sister Gwen were all helped along by your parents, but they were a special blessing to me. Your mother was my mentor and made sure I got to go on to college by convincing the Spindale Women's Club that I should be their candidate for the scholarship they sponsored. Your dad was my Biology I and II teacher and my adviser for National Honor Society. I was the President in my Senior year and he and I discussed my feelings of disappointment that we had been able to do so little as a group that year. He was a real comfort to me when he pointed out that he had never had a senior class where so many members worked to help their families get by as our class had. He had a special and compassionate way of letting us see what was possible and strive to achieve it without letting us beat ourselves up over things we could not control. I will never forget either of them. Blessings to you all as you grieve their passing and celebrate the lives they lived. With love and gratitude. Jill Davis Gregory Class of 1973