I spent some of the holiday
weekend at Canaan Valley with part of my family. We attended
the outdoor concert of the Wheeling Symphony at the ski
area, watched the fireworks and enjoyed the cooler weather.
On Sunday morning, as usual, we were at the
Vacation Ministry worship service at Blackwater Falls State
Park. It is the established custom that everyone introduce
themselves. At my turn, I said, “Helen Morris from Calhoun
County.” The lady in front of me whispered, “I’m from
Calhoun County too!” We were whispering back and forth, but
I could only mostly see her back.
After the service, I saw her face and she
said that she was Otho and Leah Sturm’s daughter, Debbie.
She and her husband, Graham Living, a native of England,
were married at Blackwater Falls in April of this year. Her
sister, Carolyn Sturm Hatfield, is a former student, and
their sister, Joanne, is married to Eugene Gherke. All three
sisters live in the same area of Delaware.
I am proud of Debbie! She still has a
mountaineer’s heart and is gradually instilling a love of
the mountains in her new husband.
Later, we were driving around and saw
Richard Wolfe, a Calhoun graduate. He and his wife, Martha
Wilson, also a Calhoun alumni, relocated to Canaan Valley 12
years ago. We had a mini-reunion right there!
How special to find old friends in new
places.