Happy Mother's Day this Sunday to all moms in our family, to whom we owe so much! The woman among us with the oldest child (I am trying to be as discreet as possible here) is Maida Shepard (son Gary); and the woman among us with the youngest child is Desiree Ortiz (son Damian). And in between are all of you whom we love and celebrate this weekend.
Fascinating Family Fact: Did you know? Speaking of mothers, 1990 was the most "productive" year ever for mothers (and fathers!) in our Shepard family, when no less than 4 children were born: Steven Paul Shepard (Mar 13, Pam's little boy), Courtney Boyd (May 14, Vicki's little girl), Lyndsey Aquiningoc (Aug 29, Kerri's little girl) and Patrick Shepard (Dec 5, Mary's little boy). What this means, of course, is that not only was 1990 a special year, but so is 2008, the year they all turn 18! (Lord, help us!) I do not know of another single year when that many births took place in our family. Do you?
A related celebration: Courtney Boyd, one of the four born in 1990, will have her 18th birthday this coming Wednesday. Remarkably enough, that day also happens to be the birthday of two other people in our family, Courtney's grandmother Thelma Boyd in Gallup, New Mexico, and Christopher Shepard in Bothell Washington, all three of whom were born on May 14 (different years, of course). Happy Birthday to Courtney, Thelma and Chris!
Yet another related celebration: Congratulations are also extended to Courtney Boyd, daughter of Darren and Vicki of Lakeside, Ca., who will graduate from High School this spring. Any other graduations this spring that we can celebrate?
Family Faces. I am including two family pictures. The first is a picture of three important mothers- grandmothers- great grandmothers of our Shepard family: Beryl (Swinney) Shepard (with husband Elmer), Pauline Russell (with husband Bill) and Maida Shepard (with husband Eugene). This picture was taken in San Diego about 1950, and evokes fond memories of the early years of an era that has passed for our Shepard clan. Those of us who were alive at the time can remember what it was like in the 1950s, 60s and into the 70s when Gram and Grandad, their 4 children and spouses, and the grandkids would regularly get together for family gatherings on July 4, New Year's Day, or whenever plans were made. They were happy times, when we all lived in fairly close proximity, cousins got to know each other, and Gram and Grandad were alive to enjoy the family they had spawned. But as our numbers grew, and as kids became adults with families of their own, and as people moved on to other places, those times we enjoyed so much faded into the past. And now they are just memories that come back to us when we see pictures like this one.
The other family picture shows the smiling face of soon-to-be 18 and soon-to-be high school graduate Courtney Boyd, with her younger brother and sister, Brandyn (14) and Kori Lynn (10), the children of Darren and Vicki Boyd of Lakeside, California. I received this picture in an email from them just last week with this message:Steve...Remember: Shepard Family Reunion, Saturday, July 19, 2008, Anacortes, Washington. We hope YOU will be there to catch up with other family members!
We are very busy here. Brandyn plays year round baseball and Kori is playing Volleyball. Courtney is working part time and staying busy with friends and school. She helps out when she can. This photo was taken this past February. Courtney will be graduating on June 5th from Santana High School. Hope you are all doing well.
Steve
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