Dr. Bill Molpus' grandson, Austin Logan, gave him a book entitled, "1,000 Places to See Before You Die", and Bill is working on it. He recently spent three weeks in Tororo Uganda on a medical missionary trip. While in Uganda, an Ugandan guide drove him to Sipi Falls, one of the places listed in the book. Sipi Falls is the setting for many magnificent waterfalls of different levels. Legend has it that in the 19th century an American visited the sight and remarked, "This reminds me of the Mississippi River," hence the name Sipi Falls.
This was Bill's fifth ministry to Africa, four to Mongolia, and this his first to Tororo located in Eastern Africa. As a note of geographical interest, Tororo is located on Lake Victoria which flows north into what is recognized as the beginning of the Nile River and continues its flow into Egypt, emptying into the Mediterranean Sea. Bill's nurse, Margie Wiseman's brother and his wife established the Trinity Community Aid Network which sponsors the mission and provides food, and medical supplies, as well subsidizing school tuition for the African youth. Their team is composed of eight Americans and eight Ugandans. They are housed by Benedictine nuns in the guest quarters at a Catholic Convent. "We each have a private room and a private bathroom facility with no water nor electricity. We take our buckets to the cistern daily for water to bathe in and flush our bathroom facility. There is plenty of water as it rains every afternoon at 5:30.
"While our yellow fever vaccination is part of our passport, we take malaria medicine every day and sleep under mosquito netting. Our light is by candle and flashlights. We pay no attention to the lizards and frogs on the floor of our rooms but put sandbags under the doors to keep the rats out. The gate to the convent is locked at night and guarded by 'machine-toting-guards.'"
The day begins for Bill at 4:30 when he takes the earplugs out of his ears and hears the nuns singing, accompanied by a foot-pedal organ and jungle drums. The singing continues until 7 a.m. when mass begins. The medical team is transported by van "deep into the bushes" where the clinic is set up in different places each day, usually in a school building or church. Bill estimates that they saw close to 2,000 patients during the three-week span. And about poverty? "Until you've been there, you have no idea what poverty is. These people don't have nuthin'." Thank God for the Dr. Molpuses of the world who respond to God's commission, "As you have done it unto the least of one of these, you have done it unto Me."
Now seems the perfect time to inject the importance of your participation in the 2008 Operation Christmas Child Shoebox project now in progress. You are asked to fill a shoebox (yours or one to pick up at the First Presbyterian Church) for a boy or girl marked between the ages of 2-4, 5-9 or 10-14. Your box may include school supplies, clothes, toys, hygiene items, hair accessories, jewelry, etc. and you are asked to contribute $7 for each box to help with shipping expenses. "Operation Christmas Child is a great way for you to help bring joy and the Good News of Jesus Christ to children all over the world in need of hope."
Collection Week Hours at the First Presbyterian Church which is serving as the Shoebox Collection Center for Neshoba County are as follows:
Monday, Nov. 17 - 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Tuesday, Nov. 18 - 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Wednesday, Nov. 19 - 12 noon to 8 p.m.; Thursday, Nov. 20 - 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Friday, Nov. 21 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Saturday, Nov. 22 - 12 noon to 5 p.m.; Sunday, Nov. 23 - 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; and Monday, Nov. 24 - 8 to 10 a.m.
Now join me as we follow a caravan of trailers transporting 16 horses and four mules to the Big South Fork Recreation Area near Jamestown, Tenn. for four days of trail rides through the Cumberland Mountains. While Rex Rounsaville, Bud Dees, Chip Dees, Josh Deweese, Butch Hodgins, Jerome Boatner, Wade White, William White, Cassidy Byars, Shane Allen, Kenny Price and Steve Coleman rode horses, Chad Lovern, James Bennett, Tim Savell and Randy Deweese on "Old Jane" chose mules for their 20-mile daily rides through the 25,000 acres of state-owned land.
Their day began with breakfast provided by the personnel at Big South Fork which caters to a large equine business. After each rider packs his lunch, they are off by 9 a.m. and by 4 or 5 in the afternoon, trail chief chef, Randy Deweese, assisted by fellow riders from Columbia, have supper started while others stoke the campfire. "We make our grocery list and give it to Jane (Dees Crosswhite) at Williams Brothers who packs our mobile larder. We eat like kings! We had hamburgers one night, chicken and baked beans the next, then steak and green beans and potatoes, and on the last night, we finish up the leftovers." Randy's recipe for baked beans and green beans is as guarded as the Bush Brothers recipes. "I don't even know what I put in them," Randy laughed.
While Wade and William were "rookies" this year, some of these riders have been anticipating this trip for four to six years. "It's just good clean relaxing fun," Randy told me, as he shifted in his chair to relieve the pressure after 80 miles in the saddle!
Charlene Seale was surprised with a birthday celebration on Oct. 20. Those in attendance were John and Betsy Mann, Mike and Rob Seale, Bob and Debbie Lee, Mallary and Hagan Taylor, Jimmy Ray, Sandra, Jessica and Carley Jones and Jo Anne Rounsaville from Philadelphia. Also present were Bruce, Jenni, Madi and Brady Lee from Louisville and Nathan Cumberland from Newton. During the celebration phone calls from Dacre Garrett of Garland, Texas and Kathleen Brantley added to the excitement of the night!
Sara Hutchison enjoyed the visit of Bill and Kathy Caldwell from Denver last weekend. They toured the Reservation and had dinner at Miko's.
Daniel Puckett and Gina Wall met at Mardi Gras, got engaged at Memphis in May and announced their engagement at the Neshoba County Fair 2008. Now you can't get any better than that! Daniel, the son of Amanda and Joe Puckett, and Gina, the daughter of Jim and Diane Wall of Collinsville, will be married on May 23, 2009, at Central United Methodist Church in Meridian.
The engagement party was held on Saturday, July 12, in Cabin 341 on the Fairgrounds and was hosted by Daniel's family and friends B.J. Morrow, Cody Morrow, Melissa and Billy McClellan, Pam and Tommy McCool, Nikki Tullos and Liz Johnson.
Enjoying the buffet dinner with the celebrated couple and their hosts were Gina's parents and Daniel's sister, Alaina Puckett, and Macy Martin. Also Terry and Carolyn Palmer, Jimmy, Norma, Courtney, Caitlin and Carly Puckett; Shawn and Lori White, all of Louisville; Hal and Judy Rudolph, Crystal and Trey, Katherine Branning of Philadelphia; Andra and Jerry Mooney of Kosciusko; Neil and Sherry Brooks, Nicole G. Waltney; Benjamin and Rachel Brooks, all of Hattiesburg; Benny and Nema Baylis of Meridian; Dale and Tammy Evans and family of Philadelphia; David, Amy and Rachel White of Jackson; Gregg and Cherri Griffin and Joe and Angie Tullos of Philadelphia.
Daniel and Gina led out the first dance of the evening as the band, Will and Linda, played "Crazy Love" by Van Morrison, and as is typical at our "nothing like it in the world Fair," the young couple danced into the wee hours of the morning.
Daniel is a 2003 PHS graduate and currently enrolled at MSU-Meridian majoring in business administration. He is employed with AT&T. Gina graduated from Ole Miss this past summer with a degree in psychology and is employed with Manpower in Meridian.
Since graduating from Philadelphia High School in 1950 as an All-State and All-Conference stand-out athlete, A.J. Kilpatrick has received many awards and honors in his 38-year career as a basketball and football coach. After his induction to the National Junior College Athletic Association Football Hall of Fame, where following graduation in 1952, he served as athletic coordinator and head football coach. Although he enjoyed a long, successful coaching career, A.J. says his greater pride "is in seeing how the young men and women who I coached become successful in whatever field they chose to follow." He regards as his "biggest accomplishment" that legendary head coach John Vaught signed him to a football scholarship at Ole Miss following his graduation from PHS. After playing his freshmen year at Ole Miss, he and Versie Lee Cumberland were married during the summer of 1951, and since Coach Vaught did not allow married players on his teams, A.J. transferred to East Central. A.J. and "the love of his life" now live in Grenada. Note: Thanks to Virginia Kilpatrick, A.J.'s sister-in-law, for sharing this news with us from EC's "The Warrior."
Robert and Mary John Turnage, along with Robert's brother, Bennie Turnage, and his wife, Jo, of Water Valley recently spent a week in their favorite spot in the mountains located in Blue Ridge, Ga. near the Tennessee line. On the only day that the weather was gloomy, they drove the 50-mile scenic Cherohala Drive which begins in Telico Plains, Tenn. and ends in Robinsonville, N.C. "When we reached the top of the mountainous drive, the sun was shining beautifully!" Mary John told me. While there they visited with Robert and Bennie's sister, Ethelyne Linge who lives in Elligay, Ga. As luck would have it, "we founds lots of interesting antique shops and pottery places. We always pay a visit to Mark the Potter, one of our favorites."
Sam and June Nowell attended the baptism of their granddaughter, Keelan Avigail Boston, daughter of Dr. Christopher and Meredith Boston, last weekend at Our Lady of the Gulf Catholic Church in Bay Saint Louis. They were accompanied by Ty Nowell who is his niece's godfather. Keelan was christened by Father Christopher, the same priest who married her mother and daddy.
Keelan was joined in the special service by her two first cousins, Liam Willey, who was born in June, and Ella Sumrall who was born in August. Keelan was born Sept. 15. A reception was held in the home of Mark and Barbara Boston in Kiln following the very special ceremony. After the reception, Sam and Ty left for a fishing trip to South Louisiana where they were joined by Greg and Joe Nowell for a few days of family fishing.
As reported by Ray Fleming:
Members of East Philadelphia Baptist Church attending the Phil Waldrep Senior Adult Celebrators Conference Oct. 27-30 in Gatlinburg, Tenn. were Bro. Mike Smithey, Max Chisolm, G.W. and Christine Herrington, Randy and Jackie Hearn, Joe and Charlotte Beeland, Richard and Linda Brewer, H.G. and Mary Jo Cooper, Lorene Hutchinson, Ray Fleming, Mandy Hailey, Vicki Williamson, Lilly Partridge, Bobbie Anthony and Charlotte Beeland's sister, Fran Selby, her husband Camm, and their daughter, Jill from Chillicothe, Ohio.
Featured speakers of the conference were Dr. David Jeremiah, senior pastor of Shadow Mountain Community Church in San Diego, Calif.; George Beverly Shea, singer for the Billy Graham Crusades since 1943 (he will be 100 years old next February); Will Graham, grandson of Billy Graham; Dennis Swanberg, America's Minister of Encouragement; comedian Mark Lowry; and Charles Billingsley, worship leader for Thomas Road Baptist Church in Lynchburg, Va.
There were cars and buses from many states bringing over 5,000 people to the conference to enjoy the wonderful sermons, singing and entertainment. Our driver, Randy Hearn, took us on daily tours of the beautiful mountainous countryside with its gorgeous display of autumn leaves. This was a great trip. We will look forward to going back next year.
Romily Enochs reporting from the stadium at Ole Miss:
On Saturday, Nov. 1, the Ole Miss Rebels played Auburn University. The final score was Ole Miss 17 and Auburn 7.
The Philadelphia Grove Tent had the following Rebels in attendance: Bud, Mandy and Caroline Dees; Sam Deweese and Morgan Taylor; Romily and Marianne Enochs; Dr. Joe Jordan and Margaret Jordan; Ellen Kilgore, Steven and Marjorie Kilgore; Alicia Li: Jessica Long; Clark Luke; Adam and Casey Mars; Katy McClenahan; Don, Richard and Samuel McKay; Gene Tolbert; Tom, Molly, Dustin and Beckford Turner; Patrice Turner from Jackson; and Dr. Steve Wooten from Oxford.
Visitors to the tent were: Candler and Bert Foster from Dallas, Texas; Wes and Suzannah Wood from Nashville, Tenn.; Henley Price from Hazelhurst; Landon Gilmer; Jed McCoy; Chris Posey; Kyle Stribling; Cyrus Ben; Sam Allen; Ty Culpepper; Taylor Greenlee; Jim Hicks; Ben Turner from Little Rock, Ark.; Sydney St. Martin from Minnesota; Benton Perkins from Fairfax, Va.; Brian Vandevender; and Wade and Leigh Allyn White.
