Journal Gazette from Mattoon, Illinois • Page 19

the the (ILL.) JOURNAL GAZETTE LIFESTYLES. MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 2002 C3 ENGAGEMENT Amber Latch and Doug Bridges MATTOON- -Terry and Peg Latch of Stewardson announce the engagement of their daughter, Amber, of Mattoon to Doug Bridges, also of Mattoon. His parents are James and Wanda Bridges of Bourbonnais. The bride elect is a 1999 graduate of Neoga High School and 2002 graduate of Lake Land College, with a degree in arts association. She is employed at the Charleston Transitional Facility.

Her fiance, a 1997 graduate of Mattoon High School, graduated from LLC in 2000 with a degree in law enforcement. He is employed as a technician at the Charleston Osco Pharmacy. An April 6 wedding planned. Open house planned for Greenup woman's 90th Holsapple (husband Jerry) of Greenup. One daughter, Lavona Gilbert; one son, Jon T.

Gray; and one stepchild, Vera Kibler; are deceased. She has 13 grandchildren, 21 great grandchildren, three great great -grandchildren, 13 stepgrandchildren, 32 stepgreatgrandchildren, and one stepgreat-great-grandchild. Mrs. Clark enjoys family dinners and visits from friends and family. She resides at the Cumberland Nursing Center, 300 N.

Marietta Greenup. GREENUP An open house is planned from 2 to 4 p.m. Saturday for the 90th birthday of Bessie Gray Clark of Greenup. The event will be at Christ the King Parish Center, 110 E. Lincoln Greenup.

Born Jan. 29, 1912, in Montrose to Wesley and Mary Kingery, she married Ted Gray in 1927 in Terre Haute, Ind. He died in 1970. She then married Hugh Clark in 1975. He died in 1988.

Her children are Charles Gray of Greenup, Mary Lou Haney (husband Richard) of Mattoon, Wanda Dirks of Clark Effingham and stepchildren Don Clark (wife Ellen) of Montrose, Charles Clark (wife Clara) of Greenup, Max Clark (wife Betty) of Beecher City and Maxine Holsapple (husband Jerry) of Greenup. One daughter, Lavona NEWS NOTES Taxpayers association to meet The Coles County Taxpayers Association will meet at 7 p.m. Thursday at Grimes Motor, Charleston. A speaker will address the topic, "What to do if you believe you are overassessed." International tea set Wednesday An international tea with the theme "Spotlight on Nepal" will be from 2 to 4 p.m. Wednesdav in the Charleston-Mattoon Room of the Martin Luther King Jr.

University Union, Eastern Illinois University. The program will be presented by Krishna Desar and Anu Pradhan, international students, and others. The event is sponsored by International Programs. Refreshments will be provided. The public is invited to attend.

Registration required for activity Children ages 4 to 10 are invited to celebrate 'Twas the Night Before Groundhog Day from 6 to 8 p.m. Feb. 1 at the Douglas-Hart Nature Center. They can participate in nature games and crafts, then munch on a "groundhog gourmet" buffet during the program. Register by Jan.

30 1 by calling the nature center at 235-4644. Red Cross board meeting announced The next board meeting of the East Central Illinois Chapter of the American Red Cross will be held at 6 p.m. Tuesday at the chapter office, 825 18th Charleston. The general public is invited. Enter through the west-facing front door.

Anyone who has ever been interested in volunteering with the Red Cross is encouraged to contact the office. Volunteer opportunities are available for blood drives, disaster services, general programming, instructing and public speaking. Free training is provided to all volunteers. For more information or to sign up to participate, contact Anita Sego, executive director, at 345-5166. CADV meets every Tuesday, Wednesday The Coalition Against Domestic Violence support group meets from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.

each Tuesday in the CADV shelter. CADV also meets from 4:30 to 6 p.m. every Wednesday in the First United Methodist Church in Mattoon. Meetings are free and confidential. For more information or to speak with an advocate, call 348- 5931 or (888) 345-3990.

GED night school offered Opportunities are available in the evenings for interested people to earn a General Educational Development certificate. In Mattoon the schooling will be from 6 to 8:30 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays at the Mattoon Area Adult Education Center, 1617 Lake Land Mattoon. For Charleston-area residents the schooling will be from 6 to 8:30 p.m. Mondays and Wednesdays at the Human Services Building, 825 18th Charleston.

For more information, call 235-0361 or (800) 210-5541. Prairie Twirlers to host dance The Newton Prairie Twirlers Square Dance Club will host a dance from 7:30 to 10 p.m. Saturday. It will be held at the Sunrise Youth and Community Center, located on Illinois Route 130 south, with entrance off Clayton Avenue. Rick Meinert will be the caller.

Everyone is welcome. YOUR FULL-SERVICE Homemade pizza on menu when editor comes calling now unday, seemed ended, a January long which but 13, has enjoyable day. We woke up with a layer of snow on the ground this morning with the temperature at 26 degrees. Made a nice winter scene. We've had a mild winter thus far.

We've had both of our indoor stoves going at times this winter, but sometimes it would get too warm inside and we will have to turn one off. I enjoy cooking and baking in our new Ashland cookstove. Ben would probably think this stove is ideal. Has a much more reliable temperature gauge and heats up water good and quickly. The Ashland cookstove is in a corner of our dining room area.

In our living room, we have the smaller Hitzer stove, which also throws out a lot of heat. This one is not used for cooking, just for heating the house. I prefer to heat with coal. Those coming for Sunday noon dinner today were son Albert, wife Sarah Irene, and family, plus my daughter Lovina, her husband Joe and family, and daughter Emma, Jacob, and family. For dinner we had barbecued ribs, homemade meatloaf, mashed potatoes, gravy, corn, potato salad, cottage cheese, fruit salad, plus desserts.

It was a good, hearty meal together. The grandchildren enjoyed being outdoors today and playing in the snow. They Penny left behind and EAR Tommy, ABBY: grapefruit loved My juice. son, orange A serious baseball player and avid outdoorsman, he was a health-conscious 17-year-old. Early in January 1999, a good friend gave me two cans of grapefruit juice for Tommy.

Two weeks later, there was still one left. In May of 2001, I read my first "pennies from heaven" story in your column. I wasn't having a good day, but decided to do some cleaning anyway. I started with our refrigerator. There, sitting on a shelf, was the last can of Tommy's juice.

For two years, friends and family members had urged me to throw it out. Nobody understood why I kept it. "Just don't touch it," I'd say. You see, my only son, my precious Tommy, was killed Jan. 20, 1999, in a tragic car accident on his way to school.

I couldn't throw out his last can of juice it was part of his life. The pain I suffered when he died seemed to strengthen the bond he and I had shared. But I needed a message from him to let me know he was OK. I knew someday the message would come, because I believe in my children. I knew he would find a way to reach me from the grave.

My fear was how long I could hang on without knowing he was OK. As these thoughts raced through my mind, I went back to cleaning. I picked up the rusty can of juice, and to my surprise, underneath was a green, moldy penny on the saucer. It took me months to speak NEW ARRIVALS Kira Wolf David and Lynne Wolf of Mattoon are the parents of a daughter, Kira Rayette, born at 2:49 a.m. Dec.

30, 2001, at Sarah Bush Lincoln Health Center. Kira weighed 7 pounds, 12 ounces and was 20 inches long. Her grandparents are Pill and Kitty Fisher of Mattoon and Howard and Jeannette Wolf of Wheeler. The infant's great-grandfather is Edgar Rising of Odin. She has one sister, Tiffany, 9.

Delaney Sweeney Michael and Shawna Sweeney are the parents of a daughter, Delaney Nichelle, born at 9:15 a.m. Dec. 30, 2001, at Sarah Bush Lincoln Health Center. Delaney weighed 7 pounds, 12 ounces and was 19 inches long. Her grandparents are Howard and Norma Jean Drake of Charleston and Jack THE AMISH COOK made a small snowman and set it on a trampoline that we have outdoors.

The snow, however, began to melt by evening. In the afternoon the men and I boys had a good time playing a board game called Aggravation. Having a later dinner, everyone was ready to return to their homes towards evening. Before they all left, though, son Amos, wife Nancy Jean and family drove in with their horse and buggy for the evening meal. They got in on leftovers from dinner, which was more than plenty.

So glad to see family come. Makes time go faster, even if the day is more tiring. Amos, Nancy and their nine children slept over on New Year's Eve this year, along with Joe's and I Jacob's families. Some readers wrote in asking where everyone sleeps. I offered the grandchildren the upstairs rooms, but they just wanted to sleep down here with everyone.

So they got their buggy robes and blankets out of the buggies and everyone spread out on comforts mom DEAR ABBY of that day. When I finally told my husband and daughter, I feared they would not believe me. It took them a while, but there were more signs to come. In July 2001, determined to have some fun, we went away for our 22nd anniversary. We took our daughter and new grandbaby with us.

Walking through the doorway of our hotel, my husband looked down. There were two pennies one facing him and one facing me. This past summer, I went with my daughter and the children of some friends to the beach. On our way home, we stopped to ride the go-carts a family tradition. My daughter and I both found pennies inside our go-carts.

Abby, the denial is gone. The pain and struggle are not, but it's a little easier now. Tommy and I have built a different kind of relationship, still unique and strong. Wanting to feel your son again cannot be put into words. Only a mother knows that need.

The penny stories need to continue for people like me. I now accept all the strange coincidences in my life know- and Sharon Sweeney of Ashmore. The infant's great grandparents are Denver and Audrey Probst of Fillmore and Betty Lou Drake and Charles R. Grimes, both of Charleston. She has two brothers, Drake, and Dakota "Koty," 5.

Eleanor Diepholz Shane and. Tierre Diepholz of Mattoon are the parents of a daughter, Eleanor Gwen, born at 12:53 p.m. Dec. 31, 2001, at Sarah Bush Lincoln Health Center. Gwen weighed 8 pounds, 11 ounces and was 21 inches long.

Her grandparents are Mike and Christi Diepholz of Mattoon and Mark and Lana Davis of Assumption. The infant's great grandparents are Delbert and Freda Diepholz of Mattoon, Kathryn Davis of Moweaqua, Mary Alice Huffman of Blue Mound and Robert Weber of San Diego, Calif. NEWSPAPER the floor in the living room and dining room. There was plenty of space for everyone, and cozy to have all the family here. Well, I had best bring this pen to a halt, or I could happen to be writing in my sleep.

Ha! This is now Wednesday morning, and I should make some more tracks to finish this letter by the kerosene lamp on our living room table. It looks cloudy out there, and the temperature is at 30. degrees. The ground looks bare and the trees are without their leaves. Had snow flurries yesterday.

It is now noon and daughter Liz and her two little girls, Rosa and Suzanne, are here to spend the day. Her two oldest children will come here this afternoon after school. Verena and Susan are here for the day also. Verena fixed a homemade pizza for dinner, as my editor of this column dropped in for a visit. Daughter Susan was doing some sewing.

In addition to the pizza, we had soup and a cheese ball out on the table. We often enjoy onions to eat, but not so strong. I've learned if you soak sliced onions in apple cider vinegar for a half hour or even just 15 minutes before the meal, the onions have a good taste. They are less strong and sweeter. Here is the good pizza recipe we had for lunch: after son's death ing Tommy is letting me know he's close.

The penny in the fridge broke the ice for me. It started a new beginning. Thank you. ROCKY FRAZIER, DOVER, DEL. DEAR ROCKY: I used to think a penny was a denomination of money.

I now know wit's also an article of faith. DEAR ABBY: My dear friend, "Jean," is having trouble with her old lover, "Toby." She broke up with him a month ago. Ever since, Toby has been following her and last night threatened to kill her. Abby, Jean comes to me for help, but I don't know what to do. She is afraid to go to the police because she thinks it will make Toby even angrier.

What should I do? A FRIEND OF A FRIEND IN NEED DEAR FRIEND: The police should be notified ASAP. It is against the law stalk people and threaten to kill them. Your friend needs your emotional support. Take her to the police station and help her to file a complaint. You may be saving her life.

Dear Abby is written by Pauline Phillips and her daughter Jeanne Phillips and is distributed by Universal Press Syndicate. Pizza 1 pkg. dry yeast 1 cup warm water I tsp. sugar 11 tsps. salt 1 74 cup salad oil 3 cups flour 1 quart canned hamburger 2 cups homemade pizza sauce 1 can cream of mushroom soup 1 pound cheese, grated Dissolve yeast in warm water; add sugar, salt, and oil; mix thoroughly.

Add half the flour and beat until no lumps. Gradually add remaining flour; knead dough for 5 minutes. Spread dough on two greased cookie sheets. Leave edges a little thicker than the middle. Let rise 15 minutes.

Add the hamburger, sauce and mushroom soup evenly on the two sheets. Sprinkle grated cheese on top. Bake at 450 for 20-30 minutes or until edges are brown. Some might prefer less hamburger and more cheese. For Elizabeth's "Recipe of the Week" go to www.theamishcook.com.

Readers may write The Amish Cook. Oasis Newsfeatures, P.O. BOX 2144 Middletown, Ohio, 45042. Due to volume of mail, personal replies are not always possible. Elizabeth Coblentz is a member of the Old Order Amish.

She is distributed by Oasis Newsfeatures. Mr. and Mrs. Howard Crum Mattoon couple to mark 60th MATTOON Mr. and Mrs.

Howard Wayne Crum of Mattoon will observe their 60th wedding anniversary on Friday. Crum and Helen Louise Fugate were married Jan. 25. 1942, in Old Monroe, Mo. They are the parents of one daughter, Diana Scott of Mattoon.

The couple have two grandchildren and three great -grandchildren. Crum is retired from the railroad. Mrs. Crum operated the ABC Kiddie Shop for 18 years. Courtesy is Contagious What is different about these pictures? After breast surgery.

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