5:52 AM 4/30/2009
Yesterday and last night Jamie and I spent several hours with dear friends, Gary and Betty Brock after I returned from Nashville. Betty had breast cancer several years ago and it returned with a vengeance. Hospice has been called in and she is beginning to slip toward eternity. She is a faithful Christian and has been such a great example of faith and confidence in God during this entire struggle. Her attitude and assurance in what she has believed and obeyed give her a beautiful look even as death continues to overtake her. She now is in so much pain that she spends most of her time sleeping with the medicines to control her pain.Her husband, Gary, has been an unlikely friend of mine. He has been a restaurant owner, who has overcome alcohol problems and when we first met was loud and many times colorful with his language and not really very interested in spiritual things. Not exactly who most people would pick as a friend for a preacher but it has become a very close friendship. He and I have had many of hours of Bible study and prayer and been through many difficult problems together. It is very difficult to help him through this situation with Betty but I am really touched by his love for Betty.I'll see them again this morning and would encourage you to pray for these folks as they face a hard time in their lives. Please remember these folks in your prayers through out the coming days.On a great note, little Abby Harris who had so much trouble last week was out over the weekend and apparently the viral infection at the base of her brain is improving and her vision is returning to normal. What a great reminder of God's love and encouragement for us!
It's More Fun in The Philippines
Love our time doing Mission Work in the Philippines
Thursday, April 30, 2009
An Evening of Excellence
7:58 AM 4/29/2009
AN EVENING OF EXCELLENCE
Last night I attended the Inaugural Don Meyer Evening of Excellence at Lipscomb and it was outstanding. Driving over I had a long visit with my former roommate, and a smooth first baseman, Mark Carter who lives in Huntsville. As we visited it really got me pumped for the evening.When I got to Music City, I met Mom and Dad at my aunt and cousin's house Nashville at 1230 and had a wonderful visit with them. My aunt, Kankie, is in her upper 80's but an amazing lady. It is great to hear her talk about taking care of the the 'old' ladies and men at church or from the neighborhood--many of whom are younger than her! It is always wonderful to get to have some time with my parents. As we get older it is more pleasant and precious than ever. At 530 we arrived at Lipscomb and there was a dinner in the Ezell Center for former baseball players. I sat with Bob Parsons, Steve Fletcher and Clark Williams. Bob was a Gold Glove second baseman and Steve was the MVP of the 1977 College World Series. We had a great time laughing about college days and marveling about the improvements to the facilities at Lipscomb. Also at our table was Clark Williams who was the trainer at DLC from 1969-1973. He is retired and lives in Red Bank in Chattanooga now. Steve Burton was at the table beside us and it is funny to see him showing off pictures of his granddaughters....It's funny, how time slips away!After dinner and a power point presentation of Lipscomb baseball history, Jeff Forehand, the Lipscomb head coach made a presentation on this year's team and encouraged those of us from the past.....to support the present and future baseball program at Lipscomb.Then we walked across campus to the Allen Arena and over 1200 people were on one side of the facility to hear Coach Meyer speak. If you don't know his story, he was basketball coach at Lipscomb for 21 years and won the NAIA National Championship in 1986 before her left and went to Northern State in South Dakota. On September 5, 2008 he was involved in a horrific wreck as he was going with his players to a retreat before the season started. He was critically injured and lost his left leg from the knee down . As the trauma team was attending to him and trying to save his life, they discovered he had cancer that was inoperable. Fortunately the cancer has been slow growing and they discovered it early. He came back to coach again at Northern last fall and in January achieved his 903 win, passing Bob Knight for the most wins in NCAA men's basketball history. He has an almost insane dry wit but a great perspective on life. And he did not just acquire it when he lost his leg--he is a great person and a great motivator. He sat on a stool and spoke for about 45 minutes about life and the important things in it. Outstanding. For some reason, old habits die hard, and while Coach was talking, I had a notebook out taking notes. To those who know Coach Meyer you'll understand!After the program was over, Fletch, Parsons and I stood out around and visited for about an hour in the lobby. We got to see Phil Stinson, All American shortstop and now a CPA in Nashville, Marshall and Jacqueline Shumate, a great catcher and their girls, and several other players from our era. (That sounds old but I guess to a lot of folks that 35 years ago was a long time ago!)Also saw and visited with Mike Roller, who I coached with at Georgia Christian in the early 1980's. He is an administrator at David Lipscomb High School and a great guy. He was a big influence on me as we coached together and has remained a friend.It was really an enjoyable day and evening.On a different note, during the day I heard that the 37 year old brother in law of Rhonda Wheeler had taken a turn for the worse and began hemorrhaging in his brain. They had to do emergency surgery in Birmingham and he faces some serious challenges today and in the next few weeks. Please keep Steven and Michelle in your prayers. They have 2 small children ages 5 and 2.Mildred Carson, one of my special ladies at Trenton, is being transferred to Vanderbilt today to try and stop some internal bleeding, so I may stay in Nashville long enough to see her at Vandy before heading home to be there by Bible Study tonight.It was a great day to see a lot of old friends and be with family and just reminded me once again that it really is "A Wonderful Life"!
AN EVENING OF EXCELLENCE
Last night I attended the Inaugural Don Meyer Evening of Excellence at Lipscomb and it was outstanding. Driving over I had a long visit with my former roommate, and a smooth first baseman, Mark Carter who lives in Huntsville. As we visited it really got me pumped for the evening.When I got to Music City, I met Mom and Dad at my aunt and cousin's house Nashville at 1230 and had a wonderful visit with them. My aunt, Kankie, is in her upper 80's but an amazing lady. It is great to hear her talk about taking care of the the 'old' ladies and men at church or from the neighborhood--many of whom are younger than her! It is always wonderful to get to have some time with my parents. As we get older it is more pleasant and precious than ever. At 530 we arrived at Lipscomb and there was a dinner in the Ezell Center for former baseball players. I sat with Bob Parsons, Steve Fletcher and Clark Williams. Bob was a Gold Glove second baseman and Steve was the MVP of the 1977 College World Series. We had a great time laughing about college days and marveling about the improvements to the facilities at Lipscomb. Also at our table was Clark Williams who was the trainer at DLC from 1969-1973. He is retired and lives in Red Bank in Chattanooga now. Steve Burton was at the table beside us and it is funny to see him showing off pictures of his granddaughters....It's funny, how time slips away!After dinner and a power point presentation of Lipscomb baseball history, Jeff Forehand, the Lipscomb head coach made a presentation on this year's team and encouraged those of us from the past.....to support the present and future baseball program at Lipscomb.Then we walked across campus to the Allen Arena and over 1200 people were on one side of the facility to hear Coach Meyer speak. If you don't know his story, he was basketball coach at Lipscomb for 21 years and won the NAIA National Championship in 1986 before her left and went to Northern State in South Dakota. On September 5, 2008 he was involved in a horrific wreck as he was going with his players to a retreat before the season started. He was critically injured and lost his left leg from the knee down . As the trauma team was attending to him and trying to save his life, they discovered he had cancer that was inoperable. Fortunately the cancer has been slow growing and they discovered it early. He came back to coach again at Northern last fall and in January achieved his 903 win, passing Bob Knight for the most wins in NCAA men's basketball history. He has an almost insane dry wit but a great perspective on life. And he did not just acquire it when he lost his leg--he is a great person and a great motivator. He sat on a stool and spoke for about 45 minutes about life and the important things in it. Outstanding. For some reason, old habits die hard, and while Coach was talking, I had a notebook out taking notes. To those who know Coach Meyer you'll understand!After the program was over, Fletch, Parsons and I stood out around and visited for about an hour in the lobby. We got to see Phil Stinson, All American shortstop and now a CPA in Nashville, Marshall and Jacqueline Shumate, a great catcher and their girls, and several other players from our era. (That sounds old but I guess to a lot of folks that 35 years ago was a long time ago!)Also saw and visited with Mike Roller, who I coached with at Georgia Christian in the early 1980's. He is an administrator at David Lipscomb High School and a great guy. He was a big influence on me as we coached together and has remained a friend.It was really an enjoyable day and evening.On a different note, during the day I heard that the 37 year old brother in law of Rhonda Wheeler had taken a turn for the worse and began hemorrhaging in his brain. They had to do emergency surgery in Birmingham and he faces some serious challenges today and in the next few weeks. Please keep Steven and Michelle in your prayers. They have 2 small children ages 5 and 2.Mildred Carson, one of my special ladies at Trenton, is being transferred to Vanderbilt today to try and stop some internal bleeding, so I may stay in Nashville long enough to see her at Vandy before heading home to be there by Bible Study tonight.It was a great day to see a lot of old friends and be with family and just reminded me once again that it really is "A Wonderful Life"!
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Don has a blog?
This is a little more than I thought I would be involved with.....I remember when I thought having a mechanical pencil was an advanced way of communicating but it de-personalized life a bit as it eliminated talking with people in line at the pencil sharpener in Miss Rector's room in the 3rd grade. Now I have a blog.
Life has developed faster than I thought it would and I'm more involved in it than I ever thought. I'm going to make a conscientious effort to blog on a regular basis though I'm not really sure what is of interest to any one but they tell me it will help me......so here goes!
Life has developed faster than I thought it would and I'm more involved in it than I ever thought. I'm going to make a conscientious effort to blog on a regular basis though I'm not really sure what is of interest to any one but they tell me it will help me......so here goes!
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