Dear Florence Exchangites,
Here is your bulletin for February 28, 2012. Hope to see you in the Roosevelt Room for our great program!
February 28, 2012
Have you checked our website out? http://www.exchangeflorence.org
Important Dates to Remember: March 6, Youth-In-Government Day; April 28, Food Run
***Please note: we will be in the Roosevelt Room, in the hotel complex
PROGRAM ASSIGNMENTS
March 6 Youth-In-Government Day March 13 Adin Batson
March 21 Bill Batson March 28 Bucky Beaver
April 3 James Bobo April 10 Tim Wakefield
This Week’s Program
Jack Wood will introduce someone who probably doesn’t need an introduction, Billy Ray Warren, Curriculum Director for Florence City Schools & instigator of the Renaissance Faire in the Shoals, who is pretty much a Renaissance man hisself!
Last Week’s Program
Jim Wells brought us a most interesting program on the history of UNA from Robert Steen, current interim HR director at the City of Florence, who is serving his “second combat tour” there. Mr. Steen, whose history project has been divided into 3 books, concentrated on the earliest times of LaGrange College, the forerunner of UNA. Constituted on Lawrence Hill (now just south of Highway 157) by wealthy planters who settled in the Leighton area in 1826 from Wake County, North Carolina, LaGrange opened its doors on Jan. 9, 1830, and was believed named after Lafayette’s estate. With its 70 students, it was established as a Methodist-sponsored liberal arts school, as opposed to a religious school, and predated the University of Alabama, as UA started classes the following year, 1831. The first president, Mr. Robert Payne, stayed with the college until 1846, when he became a Methodist bishop. The school struggled financially, and Dr. Rivers, its president starting in 1854, moved the college--lock, stock & barrel (including its library) to Florence in 1855. Wesleyan Hall was built for the new site in 1856, costing a whopping $30,000 at the time, and it still stands on the UNA campus, although the renovations have cost far more than the original building. To find out more about this fascinating early history of UNA, you will need to get a copy of Mr. Steen’s book, currently in manuscript, which he hopes to publish this Fall. Great program!
Club News
Bradley Murphree is our newest member. He was recently our speaker, as the new BSA District Exec. Welcome to Bradley!
Frank Eastland, our next to newest member, showed off his beautiful carvings on the substantial walking sticks (as opposed to slight canes) he brought for Show & Tell. Made of white cedar, one had symbols representing the twelve tribes of Israel, one had the Zodiac signs, and one had a long tree root running its entire length, which will have Mr. E’s life represented by family & friends among the tree roots, when completed. Mr. Mason Ingram was disclosed as another skilled whittler in our Club. Gorgeous work here, Mr. E!
We had no guests (even some of us members couldn’t find our meeting place), no birthdays, no anniversaries, and no one made the news! Gracious, we’d better get busy here.
Get your money in for the pecans asap! Only <a half case of white pecans remain, said Vance.
Dr. Joe Flippen announced that there will be a dedication for the newly installed Freedom Shrine after the second week in March at Shoals Christian School. TBA. He said they were excited to have the great American document display there.
We have a new committee, the Downtown Flag Display Committee (or something like that)--Joe Patterson, Chair, with Jim McLean, George Chambers, Norm Ross & David Warren, I think. They will be deciding which of the 26 potential days flags will be displayed downtown. There is also a standing committee for the Deibert Park Field of Flags.
Today’s Guest Bringer—Bill Bowen
Guest Assignments
March 6 Youth-In-Government Day
March 13 Bill Cadenhead
March 21 George Chambers
March 28 Steve Chenault
April 3 Charlie Cochran
April 10 Bill Coussons
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Sandra Sockwell, Ph.D., SPHR
(256) 710-8197 cell