September 1998

Note: Click on any photo to see a larger version

Kristin has just started her senior year at Iowa State University in Ames. She is majoring in Early Childhood Education. This past summer she remained in Ames to take a summer class, work (as a "server" at Red Lobster) and be nearer to Dale Hoppe... the love of her life. Kristin, Dale and Courtney Lyon stopped in Decatur for a quick visit, on their way back from Rockford IL. Kristin sang at a sorority sister's wedding. Courtney is another sorority sister in addition to being one of Kristin's current roomies.

Ryan had a very busy summer. He bought a Laser sailboat for $400 from a fellow member of the Commodore Decatur Yacht Club. It's small enough that he can set it up himself, and it's fast enough to be a challenge for him. He took a trip to Costa Rica with his Spanish teacher and fellow students. Then in August he spent two weeks in Japan at Decatur's "Sister City".. Tokorazawa. There were four students from Decatur that made the trip. They spent a week each with two Japanese families. We plan to host a German student for three weeks in October as part of the same Sister Cities program. I have promised to help Ryan with a web page or two when he finds time to help me organize it. Ryan still hasn't been accepted to any colleges. But, he hasn't applied to any either. His "short list" includes Arizona State, Iowa State, Illinois, Purdue and Rose-Hulman. He's considering an engineering undergraduate degree followed by law school. He'll make an excellent patent lawyer for someone.

This photo (and the one of me below) was taken in July at the wedding of one of Kristin's high school classmates. We don't get the opportunity to "dress up" too often, so we try to make them real photo opportunities. Heather has been working full-time since July 1 as the president of Junior Achievement of Decatur. She reports to a Board of Directors and now has two part-time employees to assist her. In the olden days, Junior Achievement was only a high school program. Students would form a company to manufacture and market a product. JA programs have now been expanded to include kindergarten through high school. The classes are taught by "consultants" who are volunteers from local businesses and organization. One of the negatives of working full-time is that Heather doesn't have the kind of time she'd like to spend in her gardens. They remain her respite from a busy day at the office.

This photo of me (Terry) was taken in July at the wedding we attended. Another photo opportunity... I wear a uniform during my workday at ADM Bio-Products. No one wants a picture of me wearing that! Heather and I spent much of the summer alone for the first time since Kristin was born in 1977. We think that it's something that we can really get used to. Next year Ryan will be away at college... so we'll be alone for longer periods of time. We ate dinners out (who cooks at home anymore?), saw some movies and took several trips. We traveled to North Carolina the end of May to attend the wedding of Melissa Short and Bowman Smith. My first job after college was with DuPont in Kinston, NC. Sammy and Carol Short (Melissa's parents) lived in the apartment next door. We became good friends and had a great time getting reacquainted with them at Melissa & Bowman's wedding. After the wedding Heather and I drove to Charleston, South Carolina to enjoy the architecture and history. I flew to Colorado Springs with Heather in early August while Ryan was in Japan. We relaxed in Manitou Springs, Colorado at "Frontier's Rest" Bed and Breakfast. What a fun town and a fun place to stay. Two thumbs up! After seeing Garden of the Gods, Pike's Peak and the Flying W Wranglers... I returned to Decatur while Heather remained to attend a week of training for Junior Achievement (their international headquarters are in Colorado Springs). Now that summer's over it's almost time to put the golf clubs away and get the rakes out. Soon the leaves will begin to fall and we'll be busy every weekend with that. I'm not looking forward to that.