69th Koontz reunion

Submitted by Loretta Massey Earnhardt

The descendants of the John Thornton and Sarah Young Koontz family met Sunday, Aug. 21 for their 69th Koontz reunion at Trading Ford Baptist Church on Long Ferry Road. More than 90 family members attended.

The Koontz family lived on Long Ferry Road. Their children were Clara Koontz Massey, Donne Koontz Iddings, Allen Thornton Koontz, John Henry Koontz, Ira G. Koontz and Lizzie Koontz Williams. The Koontz children had 26 grandchildren. The only surviving grandchild is Edwin Koontz of tht Allen Thornton Koontz family.

Lorretta Massey Earnhardt, granddaughter of Clara Koontz Massey, gave the welcome and a brief history of past reunions. Copies of the first Koontz reunion in 1947 were distributed. Edwin Koontz was the first secretary.

Glenn Kreps, descendant of John Henry Koontz, gave the blessing before the covered dish lunch, followed by an evening of fellowship, family stories and the taking of family photographs.

A table covered in a family lace tablecloth displayed scrapbooks of the Koontz family reunion, newspaper articles and old photos. A collage of family photos was made for family members. A poem titled “The Fallen Limb from the Family Tree” was given in memory of the ones who have died since the last reunion. A red rose was placed on the table in memory of Tony Queen, Ira Koontz family, and Ruth Massey of the Clara Koontz family.

Births since last year’s reunion were Ziva Yates, great-great granddaughter of Clara Koontz Massey and twins Avery and Reece Iddings of Donnie Koontz Iddings.

Marriages were John and Ashley Yates, Kia Foster and Troy Creamer, both in the Clara Koontz family; Abbey Stoessel and Ryan Loerch of the Donnie Koontz family.

The family had six college graduates this past year: Garrett Scott Shue and Caroline Beavver, both of the Donnie Koontz Iddings family; Johnathon Boles, John Henry Koontz family; Kia Creamer, Kenan Foster, Faith Foster, all of the Clara Koontz Massey family.

The oldest descendant present was Charlotte Koontz McIntyre of Albemarle.

Gold coins were given to the youngest descendants present: Harper James and Jaylee Leazer of the Ira Koontz famiuly; Paisleigh Sharpe, Ziva Yates, Mia Yates and Cody Blackman of the Clara Koontz family.

Children registered for a door prize; Lane Powers of the Ira Koontz family was the winner.

The host family for this reunion was Clara Koontz Massey and Frank Massey. Their children were Leona Massey Snider, Herman Koontz Massey, Elon Franklin Massey and Carl Graham Massey.

Family members and guests attended from Salsibury, Boone, Belmont, Hickory, Spencer, Albemarle, China Grove, Matthews and Smithfield.

Isenhour Family Reunion

KANNAPOLIS — When: Sunday, Sept. 18 from 1 p.m. until. Held at First Wesleyan Church, 301 Bethpage Road. Bring your favorite dish to share. Don’t forget your pictures.

Livengood Peeler Wood Auxiliary

Livengood-Peeler-Wood Auxiliary met Aug. 23 at the Granite Quarry Legion building for a dinner meeting. Memberships were turned in and a fun evening of Bingo was enjoyed by the 13 members and two guests.

Holistic Moms Network Chapter kick-off

From 9 a.m. to noon on Saturday, Sept. 3, the Holistic Moms Network is launching a new Chapter in Salisbury and will hold a kickoff event at the Farmers Market. Come meet the chapter leaders, enter drawings for holistic products, and learn more about the organization and plans for the future, including workshops, Mom’s Night Outs, and more. For details, contact Mary Sewell at hmnsalisbury@gmail.com or 980-643-8466.

Bernheim to speak on Raoul Wallenberg at Trinity Oaks

Salisbury native Rachel Oestreicher Bernheim will speak at 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 31 at Trinity Oaks about one of the most important and heroic figures of World War II: Raoul Wallenberg. Bernheim, chair and CEO of the Raoul Wallenberg Committee of the United States, is the author of the monograph “Raoul Wallenberg: A Hero for Our Time,” Wallenberg was a Swedish diplomat whose extraordinary and selfless actions saved tens of thousands of Jewish people near the end of World War II.

Joe Hall Breakfast

CLEVELAND — The Joe Hall Breakfast is Saturday, Sept. 3, from 7-10 a.m. at the Cleveland Lions Den, Cemetery St. The event funds two scholarships of $1,000 each for West Rowan High School students. Breakfast includes scrambled eggs, grits, bacon, sausage, country ham, home-made biscuits, uice, coffee, and tea.  For more information, call  704-278-0974.

Members attend State CWU meeting

By Betty Jo Hardy, CWU Communications

The Salisbury Rowan Unit of Church Women United was well represented with nine women attending the State Assembly and Leader’s Council on Aug. 6 at Peace United Church of Christ in Greensboro. Worship and Holy Communion was led by Rev. Dr. Jennifer Copeland, executive director of the NC Council of Churches.

A memorial service to commemorate members who have died in the past year was done. Special music was provided by Emily Sprague on wind pipes and Sharon Smiley, flautist.

Those in attendance viewed a video compiled of historical clips from the 75 years of CWU existence. All were  provided party hats and horns to carry out the 75th birthday theme. After lunch officers attended training classes for their respective offices.

Attending from Salisbury were Doris Brown, Dorothy Gill-Smith, Jean Kennedy, Phyllis Thomside, Rena Morgan, Vickie Kotlarz, Brenda Venning, Manie Richardson, Betty Jo Hardy.