February Celebrations, February 27, 2019

Think how really precious
is the time you have to spend with your family.
Every minute should be enjoyed and savored.
~Earl Nightingale

My brother Darrell Shepard with wife Mary

and grandchildren Finley and Kellan

Birthday Wishes to Darrell! Happy Birthday today to my brother Darrell Shepard whose milestone birthday is today. Darrell and his wife Mary live in Monroe, Washington in the Seattle area. They live not far from their three children and their five grandchildren who are an important part of their lives. Darrell was born in 1954 in San Diego and, like his five siblings, was raised there and attended Kearny High School. He met his wife Mary at Abilene Christian University in Abilene, Texas. They eventually settled in Western Washington where they have lived for over 25 years. 

This first picture, taken last year in Seattle, shows Darrell and Mary with two of their grandchildren, their son Chris's daughter Finley and their daughter Rachel's son Kellen. Congratulations and best wishes to Darrell on his birthday!

60 years ago today was an important time in the life of our family. It was on this day in 1959, when Darrell turned 5 years old, that my parents Gene and Maida Shepard moved into the very first home they ever owned. I was just 10 years old, but I remember well what an important and happy time it was for my parents and us four kids. We finally had a home that "fit" our family comfortably instead of 6 of us trying to fit into a two bedroom apartment as we did when Darrell was first born and we lived on Ulric Street in San Diego. 

My brother Darrell on the steps of our old home

on Armstrong Street in San Diego, 1970

This second picture shows my brother Darrell at 16 years old, with guitar, on the front steps of our old home on Armstrong Street in San Diego.

Mom and Dad had four children at the time of our move to Kearny Mesa, with the last two, Barbara and Russ, arriving in the following three years. I remember the excitement build as we watched that new home on Armstrong Street being constructed in the new and growing community of Kearny Mesa in what was then the northern part of the city. The city has expanded northward so much in the last 6 decades that the northern part of the city is now much farther up the freeway. 

That home on Armstrong Street still holds many important memories for all of us who lived there. It served our family well for almost 20 years until Mom and Dad sold it in 1978. Shortly thereafter they moved to Anacortes, Washington, and bought a home where Mom still lives today. Though it has been 60 years since we moved into the house on Armstrong Street, the importance of that special event in the life of our family remains.

My cousins Hershell and Jimmy Gower, 1962

Happy 50th Wedding Anniversary! Last Thursday on February 21 my cousin Jimmie Hendrix Gower and his wife Cheryl Hazard Gower celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary! They were married in San Diego February 21, 1969. Best wishes and happy anniversary to both of them. Jim and Cheryl live in Fort Mojave, Arizona along the Colorado River.

This final picture is a real gem that I stumbled upon by accident just a few days ago. It is from 1962 and shows my two Gower cousins Hershell and Jimmy Gower when they graduated from Mission Bay High School in San Diego.

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Steve Shepard