wellborn my hometown

Wellborn Neighborhood Watch enjoyed learning about Habitat For Humanity housing being built in Columbia County. George and Sheila Burnham are volunteers with a story to tell and an invitation to become involved. www.hfhlakecity.org

Joe Raines and Emily Robarts are pictured here with their Aunt N'omi (Naomi Mallory Dennard). It was her 104th birthday on March 21, 2009. Carl and Virginia Kindberg, Emily and G.W. Robarts, Joe and Etta Raines are her family who sat at the head table with her. Grand niece and nephew Walker and Grayson shared in the wonderful birthday party at Advent Christian Village. March 22, 2009,

Earl (Boochy) Bullock has his picture taken alongside his first grade (Wellborn School) teacher. The occasion was Naomi Mallory Dennard's 104th birthday party at Advent Christian Village. Naomi was born in Wellborn in 1905. Wellborn Whisper was honored to publish stories she wrote of her life here when our hometown had stores, doctors, a bank and a neighborhood school where she taught. She married a Wellborn boy and spent many years in Cairo Georgia but when it came time to choose a place for her final years, she came back to Suwannee County.

The glass door on the Methodist annex building @ 12004 CR137 refects the sunlit Wellborn United Methodist Church sanctuary which is across the street. The message seems to be that the church is in this helping hand WWJD outreach ministry during this downward slide in the economy. Frugality is "in". Thrift is a good word !
Paula Arnold stands on the front porch beside the DONATION STATION sign.

Hello,
My name is Paula Arnold . I want you all to know about a new use of space at the Methodist Church office across the street from the Methodist sanctuary . It is called the DONATION STATION. There is something for everyone: Men's clothes and jackets, women's clothes and jackets, children's clothes and jackets, toys, gift items, and all sizes and types of shoes. We have pocketbooks.
Plan is to be open Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday mornings 9-12. Please come and see this new project.
We have no prices on anything. You find what you can use and then you just make a donation. It can be "in kind" or any size monetary donation .
Please visit the DONATION STATION and then spread the word.

Kimberly and Anthony Hall were seen enjoying WI-FI capability at the Wellborn WHISTLESTOP cafe/deli on Saturday morning March 21. WI-FI -ing gives downtown Wellborn and uptown ambiance. :-)
These newcomers just moved to our hometown from Orange Park. Good Choice! Welcome !
Anthony is starting his own mechanic business. For the time being Kim continues work in Orange Park.

The first Saturday Blueberry Pancake breakfast added attraction for March was a Yard Sale. Many vendors responded to the nominal $7 fee and spread out their "stuff".
These wonderful kids were seen at the Methodist Church Library Book Sale. They are D.J. and his mom, Donna and Dad Joe and their friend Brittany. D.J. spent his own quarter each for his well chosen books and his expression said he was anticipating happy hours enjoying them. The enthusiasm he and his friend Brittany showed at the book table was enough to warm this grandmother's heart. Brittany has her first horse, for which she had yearned. I know that because she and her daddy, Crandell Bales, are regulars for the breakfasts. Brittany went on to the other vendor tables with DJ's family. Crandell Bales came separately. He discovered a book entitled "An Album of Horses" with lovely photographs. Brittany had missed it. They returned together later only to find the horse-y book in another customers hands. They just stood aside and waited and hoped. God answered. The lady put it back on the table. Brittany went home happy with her new "An Album of Horses" book. I bet she and her horse might "read" it together.
Bobbi and Jerry Fenderson (WHISPER HORSE'N ROUND columnist) were at the breakfast and the Yard Sale with three couples visiting from New Hampshire. After a few days in our hometown they are off to enjoy a bare boat charter (catamaran) from Marsh Harbor. They will sail on the aquamarine waters of the Bahamas island chain. I made some aquamarine sailing memories with Jack (maybe 40 years ago.) Cherished ones and so I love sharing about the Fenderson&friends and appreciating God's gifts of Life and Health and Natural Beauty.

A weary Beanie Brooks & helpers served up many breakfasts between 7 and 10 A.M. She was grateful to have a $700 take reported from Kelcey at the ticket table. Jack Allred is the grill cleaner-upper guy.

LIFE IN MY WELLBORN MY HOMETOWN is like the song "A Many Splendored Thing"

These are the lucky ones who were able to break away from Friday afternoon commitments to go see the new prison, sometimes described as being located in Wellborn. I think Houston is more accurate.
Front row; Pat Bezaire, Ovie Long,Ruth Ford, Betty Barnes, Jane Campbell
Back row: Jim Bezaire, Jim Slaughter, Jackie Slaughter, Kathie Snowden, Wendell Snowden, Don Ellingson and Nancy Ellingson
Hiding from the camera's eye: Charles Osgood and Bruce Campbell. Photographer was Jinny Wilson.
Sheriff Tony Cameron was instrumental in setting this tour up for the Wellborn Neighborhood Watch with Publicity/Program Chair Jane Campbell. Our sheriff had done the tour several times himself. After introducing the group to Warden Jim Witt, Tony Cameron kept an appointment in the parking lot to conduct other Sheriff business.

The Ellingsons were mourning the death of a newborn goat kid with whom they had struggled for 12 hours. Nancy apologized for not sharing the birth announcement as she had promised. She added that when she went to bed in defeat she realized that she not only did not phone the news to WHISPER but she also did not comb her hair or brush her teeth that day.
Betty Barnes asked me "What looks different on my face". "Your eyes match", I observed. "The procedure to remove the bump on my eyelid was so easy, I slept thru it" she said with a smile
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There was a tangible unease in the group as we went behind bars and through locked places and viewed prison cells. It was masked with jokes about keys and fingerprints.
Wendell Snowden thought he would rather have a room for two than a dorm of 80 men to live amongst.
Ovie Long's property is adjacent to the prison. Ovie wanted to know who could fish in their pond, but added that her favorite fishing hole was on her own property and that she was aware of the activity next door and wanted to become a recognized friend who appreciates their protection.

Warden Jim Witt (center) welcomed a group of fifteen interested citizens of Wellborn to particpate in an hour long tour of the new Suwannee County Prison which is already housing 57 work camp inmates and will evenutally become a facility to house 3300 male inmates in a self contained and self sufficient community.
In the photo Warden Jim Witt stands between his Assistant Warden, Johnny Reid, and Major Don Crawford. Major Crawford has accumulated 20 years working in the prison system and he says of Warden Jim Witt., "You are lucky to have him. He is good man, good at his job, and genuinely cares about people". All three men have attachments to Suwannee County. Jim Witt (warden) was born in Mayo. He came to this particular state of the art facility with 6 years direct experience in the prison system. Major Crawford was born in Starke but raised in Lake City, has been working full time at our prison for a year now. Johnny Reid assured the group that local job seekers are favored as staff.
These three men shared their conviction that every possible measure is taken to make it possible for them to be good neighbors to us. Every kind of security is in place: There are razor wire topped fences, triple deep in some places, with motion detectors, electric fence. alarms, armed security checks. door locks controlled from a central tower, checks and double checks and checks on the double checks for every detail. 9 generators can be operational so that all these electricly controlled things will always have power. A two mile radius zone of notfication to homeowners is established and may be enlarged to notify if there were an escape which seems highly unlikely. There will be mock escape drills so if you see patrol cars and men with guns and dogs, it could well be a practice drill.