A serendipitous Friday March 21 , 2025

    Come back to this blog as I hope to give it some shine with today just something of an outline

    Some days hold unexpected charm and today was one of them. This year has had more drama than I could have imagined on January One, but today was some relief. Perfect weather and well rested I pulled the trigger and made the trip  to a quartly class of 71 Reunion in Gaffney. Charles Edwards was at the table at the door, a Furman classmate in addition to GHS, but I talk to him often and sat with Barry Denton . Lewis Hiuskey and Donnie Clary Table. Next table up was Joe Hartzog, Bobby Littlejohn and Mike Hammett. Hammett and I may have been only folks in the room who voted Biden.

   Emily McCraw was there for a routine exchange about girls basketball. I made a motion nxt gathering be held at the cracker barrel at one pm but that failed due to prior arrangements.  I said something else but it failed as well.

       I barely had a chance to eat half my spaghetti  before class mates started leaving. They were there for a good forty minutes after I got there. but told one of the waiters a good joke he liked. He was an international from Algeria who got a masters at Limestone College and decided tohang around Gaffney for a while. Then talked to a woman whose Uncle married Phyllis Arial, a great friend of the actree Andie McDowell.

     Went about a quarter mile out to Bethany Baptist where my Dad was pastor from 62 to 78 and sat in parking lot and reminisced. Then decided to go down the Union HWY which was further than I remembers. Went out to Midway BBQ to get some of their famous hash to go. Got three house weiners as well for dollar 28. Furman's George Singleton the writer has made MID way with a mention in his collection Asides.

      Traffic as bad on 85 and it was further up the Buffalo hwy to Roebuck than I thought and the lights were interminable and I caught every one of them.

     85 at Pelham road was atrocious even at three in the afternoon but finally got to chick fil a in Powedersville where I told some hs exchange students from Europe and Brazil who had settled in Winston Salem my unsoliocited life story. They were kind to indulge me. Hit the high points of margins of the film adaptation of Ron Rash's One Foot in Eden and Brett Morgen's six minute standing ovation at Cannes.

    When I pick this up will name the 71 starting line up for the Gaffney Indian baseball team as remembered by their legendary raconteur Barry Denton.

     Denton who was  big bat played centerfield. He said Mike Johnson was beside him in left. Ronnie Smiley was the shortstop. He got strong look from Kansas City after graduation. Danny Parker was the pitcher and could paint the plate. But for a knee injury as football QB our Freshman year, most are convinced he coulda been starting pitcher for Clemson.

     Now it looks like Drew Medley at COC is taking up the Gaffney legend as a reliever. He was a great receiver for the state champion football team couple years ago as they upset Dutch Fork.

    Denton said Lee Smith was the catcher and Donnie Ray Littlejohn a year before Donnie Ray had a big bat and With Ulysses Dawkins legends of the 60s transitional years of integration.

     Webb Pierce and Robb Sartor were outstanding Denton's jr year 69 70.

 I am not aware of records for these teams as they played spring and the High School year book was sparse on information as same for track and tennis team.

     I hope to get more information from Denton and others. Dewitt Price legend has it was among top five to ever play High school baseball at Gaffney