About Town

By Ida and Doris Lessenden

July 16, 2004

Bob and Renee Woods were honored by their children and grandchildren and hundreds of friends who were entertained at the community building in Eads Saturday. Their three daughters, Sherri, Leanna, and Marci, and husbands and families had been cooking most of the week to host a bountiful buffet meal and delicious cakes with homemade mints and beverages. Their granddaughter, Wendy, had designed a beautiful photo power point show of the Woods who were celebrating their 50^th Wedding Anniversary along with photos of their grandchildren, great grandchildren and friends. Bob was an educator, administrator, and coach at the Eads Schools for years and Renee worked many years in the Hospital District offices.

This will be a huge weekend in Eads for two Colorado State Girls Softball Tournaments will be happening. Local girls playing on the 10 and under team of All Stars are Kailey Lane, Leisha Peck, Nicole Smith of Eads and Kassia Kent of Kit Carson. On another Eads field will be the State All-Star 12 and under Team. Local girls on this team are Jordan Barnett, Lisa Miller, and Matea Baxter.

Thirteen 4-H members and three sponsors from Houston County in Minnesota have been staying in homes the last week here in Kiowa, Cheyenne, Prowers, Baca, and Bent Counties.. The Jessica James and Shalyn Laird’s family hosted teenagers and I hosted an adult sponsor. Dawn and Louis James and Terry and Arêta Laird have been traveling lots of miles to take the Minnesota group to see sites around the state.

There was a larger than usual crowd at the "coffee hour" last Thursday morning to honor Dan Garner on his 86^th birthday. His wife, Evelyn served marble cake, doughnut holes and her famous cinnamon rolls. What a good time we had.

Larry and Cheryl Wyatt’s children, Sean and Ryan Wyatt and Jimmy and Amanda (Wyatt) Brown hosted a lovely party to honor the Wyatt’s on their 35^th anniversary Sunday at Our Place. Many church friends and neighbors came to greet and bless them.

Kailey Lane, Eads sixth grader, graduated recently from the Barbizon School of Modeling in Denver at the Marriott Hotel. Kailey’s modeling group’s stage set was on the Barbie Doll theme. Her family took her two times a month for lessons during the year. We enjoyed looking at all the professional photos of Kailey. She is a pretty young lady.

The Monti Crawford-Tobi Berry wedding Saturday afternoon was a huge gala affair with many family and friends coming from long distances for the ceremony at the Eads United Methodist Church. The six bridesmaids dressed in pink beside the six groomsmen in black tuxedos were a striking sight to see as well as the children, ushers, and other participants. This was quite a reunion of sports friends, cattlemen and women and collegiate friends.

Jake and Barb Diel have been delighted to have their granddaughter, Abriana, visit them the past week.

Congratulations to Neil Ray and Melanie Rodriguez who were married in a garden wedding in west-Eads Saturday. The young couple is students at Ft. Hays State University in Fort Hayes. We wish them much happiness.

Doug and Viola (Wissel) Chandler of Fort Lupton were down for the weekend. They were really working on her family’s yard. Local citizens do appreciate people who cut their weeds and their lawns.

How nice to see Don and Darlene Jones here from Illinois visiting he mother, Lillie Fox. We often say what a "wonder woman" Lillie is. She knows how to enjoy life and so loves to go to the social and school events about town.

Last weekend local girls competed in the 16 and under State Soft Ball Tournament at La Junta. The Eads girls chosen for this All-Star team were Jennie Richards, Braylynn Peck, Alyssa Hadley, Karissa Sicklebower, Bethany Kerfoot, and Destiny Saffer.

Four-H members are busy working on completing projects for the 4-H fair which is only three weeks away. Ten Eads High School FFA members flew this week to attend the Leadership Forum in Washington, D.C.

Geleslie and Shannon King took several youth to the west side of the state near Cedaridge to attend Church Youth Camp. Those attending were Adrieann and Cory Adamson, Steve Arth, Joe Andrew Bush, Shawn Kraft, Jamee Kliesen, and Rachel Brown.

Gloria Peck was a Baseball Commissioner last week in Florence for the All-State under 12 Baseball Tournament. She also served in this job for the Eads tournament directed by Mike Ullman. When I asked, "What is the job of a Commissioner?", she told me that it is to check all the record books, ages of players, keep proper records, see that they play according to the Babe Ruth rules as well as other duties.

Last weekend the Eads boys who were on the 13 year old High Plains All Star team played Yuma here in Eads. Three Eads boys, Cardon Brandt, Hayden Uhland, and Adam Watts were on the team of nine All Stars. Meanwhile, Jake Fox, Austin Adamson, Garrett Smith, Matt Rittgers, and Remington Brandt were playing in Yuma at the 11-12 year old All Star High Plains tournament.

How good to have a phone call from our dear friend, Betty Shotton. Mark, Shelley and little Mikala and Aubrey Joe have been here from Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, visiting at her home south of Galatea. Their Aunt Connie Shotton has shown them a good time at the area swimming pool and doing fun things together.

Towns and cities are beginning to have their fairs and city celebrations around Southeastern Colorado. I can recommend the Cheyenne Wells Tumbleweed Festival that is this weekend.

Whit and Mary Eikner were really happy to find their puppy that had been missing about six days. Thanks to the people who helped them search. Their daughter, Katie was home a few days from her job at the mountain resort above Gunnison.

My brother, Virgil and niece, Glenda, brought over about seven rolls of photos for Mother and I to see. She had taken photos on their four-family vacation in the mountains near South Fork and branding over at Arlington. How beautiful to see the prairies looking so green!