The Hawkins Reunion (Part Two): The Food and Fun

The food!

At the Hawkins Reunion last Sunday not only did we reunite with a lot of cousins, but we enjoyed a scrumptious dinner prepare by cousin Jerry Scruggs with the help of cousin Shelva Jean and the D's. (Donna, Debbie, and Deedee).

The food ready to eat.

The main dish was grilled turkey.  Jerry sliced, marinated, and grilled 49 pounds of turkey breasts.  Delicious.  I must get Jerry's marinade recipe.

Jerry's grilled turkey breasts.

Side dishes included:  sweet potato casseroles (Jerry's two and Shelva's one).

Sweet potato casseroles.

Slaw, green beans and macaroni.

Green beans.

Jerry's yeast rolls made in advance, frozen and reheated.  So yummy!

Jerry's rolls ready to heat.

Sliced tomatoes, Shelva's pear relish---must get this recipe too. 

Sliced tomatoes.

Shelva Jean's pear relish.

And of course, dessert, Jerry's peach cobbler.

Peach cobbler.

Enjoying the dinner.

After lunch Bingo was enjoyed by young and old. 

One of my winning bingo cards.

My prize.

 But no, we weren't through.  Finally, the pièce de résistance---old fashioned homemade ice cream. There were five freezers (the hand-cranked type) of ice cream---each a different flavor. This really took me back to my childhood. 

I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream!

Old-fashioned home made ice cream.

Oh I do hope we will be on the invitation list for next year's 25th Hawkins Reunion. I'm already looking forward to it.  

Fun in Cleveland County with Cousins

Cousin Elizabeth enjoying PJ's lovely pond in Cleveland County.

Recently two of my cousins, Robin and Elizabeth,  and I visited my sister, Martha,  and several Cleveland County cousins to find out more about our genealogy.  We were interested in particular in the Hawkins line of our family history.  My paternal grandmother, Dora Eliza, was a Hawkins who married James Lane Greene, my grandfather.

My grandmother, Dora Eliza, and her father JB Hawkins on the right, and my grandfather, James Lane Greene on the back right. 

My Cleveland County cousins: l to r Jimmy, Donna, Shelva, and Jerry.

We visited for a few hours with Jimmy, Shelva, and Donna filling in gaps about our ancestors and learning about the military history of our grandfathers and great grandfathers.  The three of them were unable to go with us for lunch, but cousin Jerry did accompany us to Lattimore where we had lunch at The Depot. 

My delicious livermush with cheese sandwich at the Depot.  YUM!!

Not only did I have my favorite, a livermush sandwich with cheese and mayo on toasted whole wheat bread, but while there I met the son of my former high school basketball coach, Pop Simmons. (Pop coached our team to the County Championship my senior year.) His son reminded me so much of Pop. 

Curt Simmons, son of my high school basketball Coach Pop Simmons.

After lunch we drove down to Cowpens, just across the border into South Carolina where Jerry guided us on a tour of the National Park there honoring the Revolutionary War battle of Cowpens.

Robin and Elizabeth on the back porch of the Scruggs cabin at Cowpens, SC.

Window of Scruggs Cabin.

Robin, Elizabeth and I enjoyed a visit with my friend PJ (we've been friends since first grade), particularly a walk down to her lovely pond.  She has a collection of memorable antiques, and one that brought back memories for me, her first piano.  PJ is an accomplished pianist, and I enjoyed seeing the piano that I remember a group of girls standing around singing songs from the Golden Book of Favorite Songs while PJ played the piano.  I think we must have been early teenagers then.

PJ's first piano.

Our song book--early 50s.

It really is a lot of fun to connect with family and friends and to find out more about family history.  I'm planning on attending the Hawkins Reunion in September where I expect to reconnect with many more of my Hawkins cousins. 

Cousins, Near and Far

My first cousin once removed, Robin Stice from Virginia and first cousin twice removed, Elizabeth Stice from West Palm Beach, my sister Martha Cabaniss from Bostic, and I from Raleigh visited our second cousins, Jimmy, Shelva and Jerry and second cousin once removed, Donna, in Cleveland County recently. Donna is the family genealogist (I hope I have these relationships described accurately) and Jimmy and Jerry know a lot about the military history of our family on the Hawkins side.

My Cleveland County Cousins (l. to r.: Jimmy Hawkins, Donna Wilson, Shelva Wilson, Jerry Scruggs.)

Hawkins Family Photo (Photo courtesy of Jerry Scruggs.)

Jerry had a family photo of the James B. Hawkins family.  JB was my great grandfather, my grandmother's father. In the photo above, my great grandfather is the gentleman with the white beard, James B. Hawkins.  The woman beside him holding the baby is my Grandmother Greene, Dora Hawkins Greene, JB's daughter. She is holding my Aunt Edith.  Dora's husband, my Grandfather Greene, is the handsome man with the black mustache in the middle of the back row.  My Grandfather Greene had a white mustache when I was a child, and once as a teenager I asked my grandmother if the mustache didn't "tickle" with a kiss. She replied "The blackberries are sweeter when you have to go through the briars to get them." *

This has just whetted my appetite for learning more about our family history.  I have enough hobbies though without taking on genealogy.  Well, I can at least dabble in it.  And I can rely on my Cleveland County cousins as a source for a wealth of information. 

*I've been married for 24 years to a man with a mustache and a beard---my grandmother was right.