SENECA — The World of Energy will host its third annual Festival of Trees Nov. 28 through Dec. 31.

Nearly two dozen trees will be on display, decorated by local businesses and organizations for the public to view. Tree viewing can take place Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. and Saturdays from noon until 5 p.m. at the World of Energy education center.

Visitors are asked to vote on their favorite tree; the winning tree will receive a $1,000 grant from Duke Energy to donate to their registered charity of choice. A tree lighting ceremony is planned for 5 p.m. Dec. 3, for the community to enjoy with live music by the Zion Quartet.

Also, as part of the holiday festivities, Santa and Mrs. Claus are visiting the World of Energy from 1 p.m. until 3 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 12. Children can visit with Santa and Mrs. Claus, and parents are encouraged to capture the memories with their camera. No reservations are required.

All holiday activities at the World of Energy are free and open to the public. The center is an official Toys for Tots drop-off location, so those visiting are encouraged to bring a new, unwrapped toy for the drop box.

For more information on Festival of Trees activities, call (864) 873-4600.

PICKENS — Christmas is for kids, which is why the Pickens Presbyterian Church Child Development Center is working to ensure it can continue meeting the needs of every child who walks through its doors.

The center will host a pancake breakfast with Santa as a holiday fundraiser on Saturday, Dec. 12, from 9-11 a.m. in the All Saints Hall at Pickens Presbyterian Church, located at at 311 W. Cedar Rock St.

“We’d like to invite our community to come out for a morning of good food, fellowship and of course an appearance by Old St. Nick himself,” CDC director Karen Durham said. “Proceeds from this event will go toward care items for our indigent children. Our center serves children of all walks of life, and we want to continue to ensure that every child’s needs are met while in our care.”

Tickets for the pancake breakfast are $6, and children under 4 are free. The ticket includes breakfast, and all children can have their picture taken with Santa. To-go plates will also be available. To order tickets, call (864) 878-9953 or visit the center at 338 W. Cedar Rock Street.

This is Thanksgiving week, always a busy time when we’re getting ready for the day itself. I went outside about six this morning and the frost was on the trees and grass. The sun hadn’t been up long, and the air was very crisp.

I could see my breath. And just like that, I was taken back

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in memory to Sycamore Hill and Grandmama’s big kitchen. I remember the places on the floor that creaked when you walked across them and the steam rising from big pots on the stove.

Uncle Walter’s walking stick would be hooked onto a chair back and he’d have on his old stained apron, a white shirt and tie and his felt hat.

He always cooked in his hat.

Grandmama would be holding the oven door open, basting the turkey. She’d have on her Goose Girl flour apron.

We children would be sitting at the table making crumbs out of the dry biscuits and Parker house rolls for the dressing.

We were the soldiers in Uncle Walter’s army, and he gave instructions about what to do next.

He’d have one child at the stove stirring the celery and onions in the huge old battered frying pan in a pool of melted butter.

One would be cracking eggs into the big crockery bowl they always used for mixing the dressing, or making eggnog or creaming butter and sugar together for a pound cake. A real one, with a pound of everything.

If we didn’t know how to separate eggs when we began, we certainly knew how before it was over.

We used an old-fashioned wooden-handled hand-turned mixer to beat the eggs and would take turns beating because our arms would get tired.

Uncle Walter firmly believed that if a child could walk they could work, and there were no idle hands in that kitchen. Children were put onto the Earth to fetch and carry for adults, and we were always being called into service to run and get whatever he needed.

The old kitchen was big enough to accommodate many cooks, a fortunate thing as there were many cooks and assistant cooks stirring, chopping, sauteéing and fetching ingredients.

However, there was only one person in that kitchen who was the authority on taste-testing and seasoning. Uncle Walter could be on one side of the kitchen, would dip a spoon into whatever he was preparing and direct a child to carry the spoon all the way across the kitchen to Grandmama, to taste.

“Reba, what does it need?” he’d ask.

She’d always know what was needed and how much to add. I can remember her advising him to be careful with the salt.

“You can always add if it’s needed,” she’d say, “but you can’t take it out.”

Wise words indeed. That’s a rule I follow in my own kitchen.

The old house didn’t have central heat or air. Most of the fireplaces weren’t in use, and the rooms heated relied on kerosene or gas for heat.

The long hall was unheated, and whenever the refrigerator was too full to hold another dish, Grandmama would send a child out into the back hall to put cold dishes on top of the old safe. It was possible to congeal jello in the hall, so there was no danger of food poisoning.

Although they are all gone now, I’ve learned as I grow older that the memories created with them are always with me and color the present as much as they did the past.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone.

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Endorsement of governor’s Syria stance

Dear Editor,

The Pickens County Taxpayers Association has for 20 years been involved in our principal areas of work — property rights and just taxation — and related issues. We care about the people of this county and state, and work to enhance the health, safety, welfare and education of all those who live, work and raise families here.

We are concerned about the Federal Refugee Resettlement Initiative and the increase in numbers of people in this program and the subsequent increase of cost to the Pickens County taxpayers for school, medical and welfare facilities.

In order to avoid a premature reaction to this important issue, much research and discussion was conducted by the Pickens County Taxpayers Association Board. The results of our findings, and in the light of current events, along with the lack of credible examination and vetting of refugees by federal authorities are of paramount concern.

Therefore, we as an association endorse the recent action of the Governor of South Carolina, Nikki Haley, that the U.S. State Department not resettle any Syrian refugees in South Carolina due to concerns of proper and through vetting.

Our association endorses the position of the Pickens County Council. Their action was through a budget proviso that counties can participate or not in the Refugee Resettlement Program and their decision was not to participate.

Our association will continue to work toward a safe and healthy place to live and work for our citizens.

Dan Winchester

Vice president

Pickens County Taxpayers Association

Saitta talks SDPC budget decisions

Dear Editor,

In June, the Pickens County School Board passed a budget that had more expenditures than revenue coming in for the first time in 10 years.

At the Nov. 23 meeting, the district administration proposed and the board approved spending $80,000 on a second assistant principal pay raise for the year. I voted against it for a couple of reasons. Giving the second pay raise during the year was not required or necessary now under the law or by contract. It is unwise to increase spending mid-year when the budget is already spending more than is coming in.

The extra pay raise should have waited until next year. If revenue continues to grow, the new recurring $80,000 expense would then be covered with recurring revenue — an expense-revenue balance that will keep the district out of the financial ditch in the long-run.

Later in the meeting, the board approved $50,000 in additional spending. Again, I voted against the additional deficit spending. Adding it up, the budget is now spending $500,000 more than the revenue flowing in this year.

The past few years, we always budgeted to spend less than revenue flowing in. That is, a few hundred thousand dollars of revenue was set aside for mid-year costs that cropped up or if the administration came to the board wanting to spend on this or that new item. That way, extra revenue was there to cover such mid-year expenses. If all the extra revenue wasn’t spent, at the end of the year it went into savings, so savings grew over time. Prudent financial management.

With this year’s budget, the board/administration budgeted to spend more than was coming in so the budget was in deficit right off the bat.

The administration is plugging the recurring deficit with one-time money or savings. Savings are limited and run out in time, making such deficit spending a bad habit to fall into. Also, the district should be growing savings in good economic times, because we’ll surely need the extra cash when the next recession hits and revenue falls.

Alex Saitta

School board trustee

 Pickens

Where do we go now, America?

Dear Editor,

God was very instrumental in the founding of the USA. Men and women from across the ocean came here to get away from the tyranny in the old country. They wanted to worship God freely without the dictates of the hierarchy. Many lost their lives on their journey to freedom and liberty (which is given by God, not by the government). Do we have men and women today that would risk their lives for such as this? Many have given their lives on the battle front all over the world for the USA and many other nations, for this freedom and liberty. Today we are a nation that has left the very foundation we were built on. We have gone from being Christians to a nation such as we saw in Sodom and Gomorrah in the Scriptures. God hasn’t left us — we have left God. Many are doing as in Noah’s day; each person doing that which is right in their own eyes. The Bible states that as it was in the days of Noah, so it will be in the last days.

God: Creator of heaven, Earth and mankind is being left out of everything but curse words. We can no longer pray in schools, in public places or assemblies of many kinds. I heard on the news recently of some school in our USA where the study of the Koran was in force. How must the only true God view us as we are today, versus how he created us to be? God, Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. He commanded them to subdue all things and rule over all things. He told them to multiply and replenish the Earth. Today we have five judges who have made a law that same-sex marriage is the law of the land. No multiplying can be done with two of the same sex. The Supreme Court is not to make laws but to interpret the law in some judicial cases.

God gave us his laws in the Ten Commandments and other instructions. Read Deuteronomy 28 and Leviticus 26 very closely to see the blessings and also the curses we receive depending on our obedience or disobedience to His law.
Today we have the government, the Supreme Court and even our president telling us what to do. We ought to obey God rather than man, in Joshua 2 verse 8 what to do make our way prosperous and then have good success. In Joshua 24 verse 15, God spoke through Joshua for the people to choose this day whom you will serve, God of your fathers or this Lord and God who created all things.
Today we fund Planned Parenthood in the murder of babies and selling of body parts. This is with our taxes. God cannot be pleased with the way we live. We that are Christians need to be bold and stand up for what is right in God’s eyes and not be pleasers of men. How much longer will we be able to hear God’s word preached in our churches? Even today, many churches do not proclaim “Thus saith the Lord,” but preach a good-feeling kind of religion. People do not want to hear about their sins. All nations and individuals one day must be judged by God, and I think our nation is already seeing some of God’s wrath.
My question is: how long before Jesus Christ returns for the church (his bride) and takes us to our heavenly home? Then literally “all hell will break loose on earth” in the Great Tribulation. I’m going with Jesus, how about you?

Mark Wilson

Pickens

The generations of Gwynns who lived on Gwynn’s Island were pretty self-sufficient. They farmed and depended on the sea for much of their livelihood. The only way for them to reach the mainland was by boat. The bricks forming the foundation of Hugh Gwynn’s home are still there, with the name Gwynn stamped into each brick.[cointent_lockedcontent]

When we left the island, I felt a pang, saying goodbye to these people who were our people. We drove across the water and traveled from Matthews to Urbania, a small town on the bay famous for its oysters. Matt wanted Chesapeake Bay oysters, steamed, and I, as always, was on the hunt for crab. We reached Urbania after dark but found no place with a vacancy to stay. There were just a few bed and breakfasts and one motel, but we did enjoy an amazing meal in a small restaurant downtown. Matt got his oysters, and I had shrimp and grits. It was the best shrimp and grits dish I’d eaten since the Shrimp and Grits Festival on the coast of Georgia. The little cakes of fried grits were creamy and rich inside and crispy on the outside, and the shrimp was perfectly cooked. Not to mention the sauce.

We headed back toward Gloucester after supper and stayed overnight there.

The next morning, we left early and went south, back toward Norfolk. We were headed for Cape Charles, where we lived as very small children.

The only way to get there from Norfolk is to drive through the Chesapeake Bay Tunnel. There are several sections of tunnel beneath the waters of the bay, which alternate with section of bridge. It really is an engineering marvel, covering about 28 miles of water. We knew our Daddy, who was an engineer, worked on the project many years ago. We weren’t sure we’d remember anything about Cape Charles, but once we made land we were surprised to find landscapes that felt familiar. It’s a rural peninsula with many fields of cotton, soy beans, corn and hay. There are about 3,000 people on the Cape, and they farm, fish and work at the concrete plant or the aquifer, which cultivates seed oysters for distribution.

I remember that our house was near Cherrystone Creek, where Mama took us crabbing. She put our tennis shoes on us before we waded out into the water, as the creek bed was covered with sharp oyster shells. I remember driving back to our house with a bushel basket full of crabs and watching Mama drop them into a huge pot of boiling water, then, when done, taking them out and dumping them onto the newspaper-covered table. We’d all sit there with our hammers and crack the shells open and pick out the meat. I remember the crab casserole she’d make and the melted, salted butter we’d dip the leg meat in.

We easily found Cherrystone Creek, which is beautiful, with old houses along the bank. It’s more than a mile wide in places. There were several flat-bottomed boats used for crabbing and stacks of crab traps in every yard. There were rushes and marsh in areas, and the sun lit the place like a picture. A print I’d framed years ago was almost a duplicate of the scene before me. That image had been stored in memory, and I was duplicating it without even knowing it.

Although we knew a railroad track was located near our old house, we still couldn’t find the house itself. We remembered it had a windmill in the backyard, but learned that all the windmills were gone as people now irrigated crops from a different water supply.

We drove into the town of Cape Charles. I didn’t remember the downtown, but did recognize the beach where Mama took us to swim. I have a blurry memory of a hot summer day on the beach circling the body of a giant sea turtle that had washed ashore. The turtle was larger than our dining room table, at least in my memory.

We both remembered riding the ferry across the bay to Norfolk when Mama bought our shoes. The ferry service no longer exists, but the ferry building and landing are still there. There’s a seafood shack in the building, and we ate lunch there.

Everything on the menu was caught in the bay surrounding us. Matt had fried oysters, and I had a crab cake that was pure lump meat, with no breading at all that I could see.

Our waitress, Becky, told us the elementary school Matt attended in first grade has finally been replaced. She taught there but left teaching as she could make double her salary waiting tables. She told us the summer tourist season helped sustain the economy all year. And then it was time to leave.

We strolled downtown and visited a couple of art galleries. Revisiting this place was a wonderful experience. It is little changed and felt familiar to us. When we left, I felt we’d come full circle. Although we didn’t find out everything we wanted to know, we did discover many things we didn’t know about our family. We’re hooked now and want to find out if there are family connections still alive. So that is the next part of our journey. I’ll never forget this trip with my brother, tracing the journey our ancestors took, which finally led to our very existence. Now that we know more about them, I feel as though we’ve also learned more about ourselves.

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Angry People

Dear Editor,

It never ceases to amaze me how people can get angry over minor things.

If you work with the public, you can back me up on what I’m going to say.

Someone is short-changed a nickel and they come back bellowing like a mad bull! You might as well have stuck a gun in their face and took all they had monetarily.

They get one thing wrong on their order and they take the roof off the building.

In a world where nuclear war is a real possibility, now more than ever, they’re gripped about their order! People are starving all over the world, and they get overheated because you didn’t get their order to them as fast as they thought you should.

If you have been through this — and you have if you work with the public — then here’s something for you.

When my daughter was about 6, a child said something mean to her. When she came to me crying, I calmly said, “honey, when the Good Lord created this old world, he had to make at least a few rear ends or it would have surely died of constipation. So just be thankful you’re not one.”

Think about that the next time some low-brow, hairy knuckle-dragging, sawdust-for-brains lout goes off on you.

Some people are just born with a corncob sideways where the sun doesn’t shine.

Don’t let them bother you. You are better than them.

Can I get an amen from those of you out there who have been through any of this or worse?!

Eddie Boggs

Westminster

Thanks from Rock the Fall Ball official

Dear Editor,

What a great time we had at the first Rock the Fall Ball on Friday night at Bruce Field in Pickens!

Thank you to everyone who braved the cold to see four great performances and raise money for Upstate Warrior Solutions.

Thank you to the artists who played with frozen fingers to our audience — J. Adam Broome, Matt Tucker, Benton Blount and Confederate Railroad.

So much appreciation to the City of Pickens Street and Sanitation, Landscaping, Police Department, Fire Department, Mayor David Owens, Pickens County Rescue Squad, Coca Cola of Greenville, Michael’s Restaurant, Cornerstone Christian Music, Pickens County Courier, iheart Media of Greenville, Pickens Sentinel, Studio 62, Scene on Seven and Pickens Senior Center.

Our volunteers are priceless. Thank you to every person who gave their time and hard work to help execute our event — groups from Home Depot of Easley, Pickens High School Science Club and Women of Flame and every individual volunteer. We couldn’t do our events without you!

Thank you for your service to our country, Derrick Popham, and each member of Upstate Warrior Solutions. We are proud of what you stand for and appreciate you allowing our committee to dedicate the Rock the Fall Ball to your organization.

And last, but not least, thank you to our Pickens Azalea Committee — Russ Gantt, Jeff Hogan, Glenda Stewart Lofink, Kristen Henry, Carlton Holley and Frances Wannamaker.

Susan Stansell

Pickens Azalea Festival

                                                                                      Media and Promotions

Earlier this year, the School District of Pickens County received a report from a review of the district’s accrediting agency, AdvancED. The report cited areas where the school district needed to ensure compliance.[cointent_lockedcontent]

While AdvancED stated our academics, teaching and facilities were outstanding, they noted that there were seven areas related to board governance that needed to be addressed. Those areas are follows:

• Revise or develop a policy on how agendas are set and amended

• Revise or develop a policy on how committees function

• Revise the policy on ethics and how the board deals with members who ignore the policy

• Review and revise policies on how the board functions and governs itself

• Create and implement a self-evaluation to be used by the board

• Participate in ongoing professional development

• Review all policies with the S.C. School Boards Association

Since receiving those directives, the Pickens County School Board has been working diligently to respond to each of them. Numerous policies related to how the board is managed, board ethics and board discipline have been approved and are now helping guide the board. The board also approved a new policy on how the agenda is put together and carried out for each meeting. This policy allows for more inclusion of the entire board. In addition, the board instituted a new “committee of the whole” monthly meeting that has greatly assisted in facilitating communication and better understanding of topics amongst board members and district administration. All board members participated in a Boardsman Institute, sponsored by the S.C. School Boards Association and numerous board members have participated in conferences and workshops and will continue to do so throughout the coming year. Over half of the board will become active in the National School Boards Association in the coming year, where they will learn more about trends and best practices throughout the entire nation. The board feels confident that ongoing learning and development is paramount. The board has also contracted with the S.C. School Boards Association to do a complete and comprehensive review of all policies. As policies are reviewed, recommended modifications will be presented to the board for approval.

In addition to the work that has been taking place by our board, our school district has had one of the best years on record with regard to achievement. In just one year, our district has accomplished the following:

• ACT scores, fourth highest among all S.C. school districts, scores were above national and state averages

• SAT scores, fifth highest among all S.C. school districts

• SAT scores, highest among ALL county-wide school districts

• 3 percent increase in the number of students passing AP exams (above state and national averages)

• More than 90 percent of our high school juniors earned a National Career Readiness Certificate through WorkKeys

• WorkKeys scores, eighth highest among all school districts and first among county-wide school districts

• 82 percent graduation rate, highest in school district history

• One-fifth of all district students are participating in career oriented programs through our Career and Technology Center, a new record for SDPC

Other items of note in our district:

• A long range capital needs plan was approved and implemented, thus allowing for the district to project and plan for long range expenditures, instead of knee-jerk reactions, as has been in the past

• Teacher pay rose from 48th in the state to 20th in the state due to the school board’s strong support of our teachers

• Athletic and band supplements were increased by 20 percent

• Supply budgets were funded at 100 percent for the first time in nearly a decade

• 56 of 56 leaders (100 percent) in the Pickens County school district were retained from the 2014 to the 2015 school year, a first ever in our district

• Our superintendent, Dr. Danny Merck, received a contract extension through 2019. Dr. Merck is the fiftth superintendent in our district in 10 years — a contract extension demonstrated the board’s commitment to his continued leadership and leadership consistency in our district.

While our accomplishments of the past year speak volumes to improved leadership and culture in our school system, challenges continue to be on the horizon. Some of the challenges facing the board and district this year include:

• Ongoing capital needs that continue to plague the district, as a result of many schools being neglected during the district’s building program

• How best to address schools that are consistently underperforming in our district

• How to provide the best resources for our students, while being good stewards with taxpayer funds

• A long-range facilities and programming plan for the school district

• Increased competition to hire the best teachers (the number of teachers retiring over the next five years will far outpace those who are graduating from our colleges. We have to positon ourselves to be an employer of choice, and work harder to attract the best teachers)

I feel confident that the school board’s exceptional work on addressing any concerns outlined by AdvancED will be satisfied in our upcoming review in December. I applaud our board for their work and leadership. In addition, I want to thank Dr. Merck, our senior leadership, our teachers, staff, and school administrators for the exceptional work they do each day in our schools.

Dr. Brian D. Swords is chairman of the Pickens County School Board.

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When we walked through the door into our grandmother’s house on York Street, I wouldn’t have been surprised to see Grandmother and the aunts drinking coffee in the parlor. We remembered the layout of the house, as Mama had taken us to visit several times during our childhood.[cointent_lockedcontent]

The ceilings are very high, and there’s a fireplace in almost every room. The front parlor, living room and dining room are on the right, and there are wide double wooden doors that slide back into the wall between each room. They’d slide all the doors open, creating one long open room, for parties. At Christmas, they’d have more than 100 people to dinner. Grandmama and the aunts would have a huge roast, as well as a ham and the largest turkey in existence. Everyone else brought a covered dish, and the long extended dining room table would be loaded. We remembered sitting on the stairs in the hall to eat and being all dressed up.

The law firm now housed there has restored the rooms to their original beauty so the house looks almost the same as we remembered. I remembered one story our grandmother had told us about her father, Horatio Cornick Hoggard, known to all as Bunny. She had a portrait of him in his Confederate uniform hanging over the fireplace in her bedroom. We wondered what had happened to it, and the attorney told us we should check the Norfolk Library, as there were several books about the Hoggard family there. So that was our next stop.

Some very helpful ladies at the library brought out one volume of the book about the Hoggards, and there we found Bunny Hoggard in his uniform. There was also a copy of a letter he’d written his oldest son explaining what was going on at the time the picture was taken.

A few pages over in the book, we found a photograph of our grandmother as a pretty young girl with her thick, curly hair piled on top of her head and tied up with a ribbon. The best surprise of all was the picture of our granddaddy taken in 1929. We’d never seen a picture of him, and it was thrilling. He’d been a surgeon in the public health service and was in uniform. We thought him very handsome.

But there was little information about him or his family. His name was Mathew Kemp Gwynn. We’d been told he was the one who added the e to the last name because of a problem with the mail, as he had three brothers who were also Dr. Gwynns and the mail was constantly being delivered to the wrong brother.

By then, we were exhausted and decided to call it a day. Because the next morning we were going to Gwynn’s Island, where we believed the Gwynn family started out in Virginia.

Gwynn’s Island is about 80 miles from Norfolk, and we arrived there mid-morning. There’s a long bridge connecting the island to the mainland, and we saw we were in a place where everything was centered upon the water. Upon driving onto the island, population 900, we were struck by its unspoiled beauty.

We made our first stop at the Gwynn’s Island Museum. We caught them open, and when my brother introduced himself as Matt Gwynne, the curator immediately called several people knowledgeable about the family to come to the museum. We spent a wonderful morning learning about our family and met some warm and hospitable people.

Hugh Gwynn had settled the island around 1640, and according to the information in the museum’s genealogy files, our grandfather was a direct descendant. We also found a letter written by his grandmother to one of his uncles during the Civil War describing conditions at home. She had sent shirts she’d made to all her sons and wanted to know if they fit.

No matter the century or circumstances, mothers always do their best to keep their children clothed and fed, and it was moving to know she was one of those mothers.

Once again, I must continue this story next week.

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Thank you from the Isaac’s family

Dear Editor,

The family of Coach Bill Isaacs would like to thank everyone who has responded to the tragic events of Sept. 14. The support received from the Blue Flame community and the friends and supporters from near and a far has been a tremendous blessing.

[cointent_lockedcontent]There was so much support in respect to food, visits, calls, cards, flowers, security (DNR), the use of Bruce Field by the City of Pickens, the field preparation by an unknown group of supporters and prayers. It is almost impossible to note everyone who contributed to this support, as many things were done unknown to the family. Many dropped things by the house without even leaving a name, and for that reason, Peggy, Crystal and Mike wanted to publically issue an heartfelt “thank you” for all that was done to support them during this tragic event.

This support exemplifies the reason Bill chose coaching and dedicate his life and life’s work to this profession and to the Pickens High School Blue Flame. The outpouring of support shows he made an impact on many families’ lives, which would make his life complete.

Again, thank you to everyone who has and continues to be there for support. Although this event was horrific in itself, God continues to provide and point out the reasons why Bill and Peggy chose the Pickens community.

Harvey Gantt

Bill Isaacs’ son-in-law,

on behalf of the family

Questioning hospital med charges

Dear Editor,

On July 16, I was in the emergency room at Easley Baptist Hospital for needed care for about six hours. During this time, I had chest x-rays, blood work, CT scan, EKG and other services. Total charges came to $6,317.75.

I have Medicare and also plan F of a supplemental insurance, which pays the 20 percent that Medicare doesn’t pay.

After two calls telling me I still owed $259.75 for self-administered meds, I asked for a printout of all charges. I did not know the charges were for self-administered meds until I finally got the printouts. The two calls were very insistent that I pay this $259.75 immediately.

When I received the printout, the amount I owed had been reduced to $51.95. As shown on this printout, the charges were for the self-administered meds. They were two 325 mg acetaminophen tablets at $3.88 each and two 250 mg azithromycin tablets at $126 each. After a medication adjustment, this $259.75 was reduced to $51.95.

I can purchase a bottle of 100 acetaminophen for less than $10. As to the azithromycin, which requires a prescription, I can purchase a Z-Pak containing several tablets for $60 or there about. Why should this medicine be classified as self-administered? You need a prescription to obtain it.

Even after the adjustment of $207.80, I feel I have to pay an outrageous price for the meds. A person from the hospital said that is just what they charge.

My advice: if you go to the ER or you’re admitted to the hospital, refuse to take so-called self-administered drugs. I still think we (the public) are being taken advantage of.

Max Wilson

Pickens

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My brother and I went on a journey last week. We drove to Virginia together and started exploring family history. We knew all about Mama’s side of the family, but very little about Daddy’s side. So we drove into the past and discovered the other side of our history.

We’d last lived in Virginia in early childhood, before our Daddy’s death. Little did we know how much seeing vaguely remembered places and buildings would jog memories we didn’t even know we had.

We first went to Norfolk. Mama had a copy of my christening certificate in an old photo album. It was held in St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Norfolk, so we first visited the church, searching for family graves. It’s a beautiful old building built before the Revolutionary War. The wall nearest the Chesapeake Bay has a British cannonball embedded in it, just below the roof.

I took a picture of the cannonball, the church, the interior and the tombstones in the cemetery. They’d stopped burying people there in 1840, but after a conversation with a very nice lady who conducted tours of the church, we learned that church members were later buried in Cedar Ridge Cemetery.

I took pictures of the suspended pulpit, a common style when the Church of England was in vogue, and we left for Cedar Ridge.

There, we visited the office, which has cemetery maps and card files on every person resting there. We found where our grandparents were buried, as well as several great-aunts.

This gave us some dates to work with.

We learned from the guide that there was another Episcopal church where others in the family may have worshiped. Old Donation Church is in nearby Virginia Beach, and we learned my grandmother’s family, the Hoggards, were active there.

So we visited the beautiful old church, met the rector and the church secretary, whose desk had a name plate identifying officially as the Guardian Angel.

They took us on a tour and found our father’s grave for us. Although we have no real memory of him, it was a moving experience to see his gravestone and know where he lies.

It was also fascinating to talk to the church historian and learn about the Hoggard family’s participation in church activities.

Our great-aunt Frances donated the organ, and our great-great-great-grandfather, Thumer Hoggard IV, kept the church from going under in his lifetime.

It’s thriving now.

From there, we were directed to Poplar Hall, the family home built in 1640. This was where our grandmother was born, and the house was in the family for eight generations. It was the site of the first American shipyard, which the family owned.

All the land around the house now has been developed as subdivisions, but the house itself is unchanged on the outside.

It is no longer owned by the family. I rang the doorbell, and when no one answered, we walked around the side and took some good pictures. It faces Broad Creek.

From there, we went to our grandmother’s house in town. It’s a three-story brownstone on West York Street facing The Hague and is still there, now occupied by a law firm. We were pleased to see it hadn’t been demolished and is in good condition. I knocked and received a very courteous reception. They conducted us over the house, which they’re in the process of restoring, and we were glad to see they had respect and appreciation for it.

That ended the second day of our journey, and we were both excited to have learned so much. The next day brought us even more information, and we followed the trail of clues given us by some very kind and helpful guides. There’s too much to tell in one column, so the story must be continued next week.