Thank You

Teresa and I Saturday morning,  just before leaving Tampa for the reunion!

Now that the Kissimmee Youth Group Reunion has come and gone, I wanted to just take a moment to say THANK YOU to a few of the people who made it such a great experience for so many old friends.  In no particular order, here we go!

• Thank you, Kelly Jeck Trace, for arranging for us to have the beautiful Osprey Pavilion for our picnic on Saturday. Being that close to the playground was a true blessing for all of the parents. Also thank you for lining up the Broadway Pizza Bar for Saturday night, and for (along with Dwight Oakes) helping to get so much of "our" old music into worship on Sunday morning.  We could not have had this event without you.
• Thank you, Jill Painter Watson, Cindy Martin and Jerry Hanbery for being so encouraging and supportive over the months of planning this event.  Your never failing enthusiasm kept the spirit of the reunion alive and kicking even when we had no idea if anyone else was coming.  The same is true for Todd Willis, even though he couldn't actually make it in for the weekend. You are all loved and appreciated.
• Thank you, Marilyn Jones, for helping with publicity and promotion, for being so supportive, and for chauffeuring me back and forth to Kissimmee- twice!  And to Will Jones for hanging in there with for a very long day on Saturday, during which he made almost everyone in attendance feel old!  I am blessed with a wonderful family!
• Thank you, Jocelyn Sessions Ward, for being the big surprise for me!  I am so sorry it took a family illness to bring you to Florida, but so glad you were able to be a part of the reunion.  It would not have been the same without you!
• Thank you, Lauren Cacciatore, Matthew Teoli and Lisa Kraus Spires for sharing your babies with us, and to so many others for bringing their kids to the picnic.  We are a family, and it felt like it.
• Thank you, Courtney Moon, for taking your lunch break on Friday to try and buy a Chicken Head to bring to the reunion just to make us all laugh!  Who new they are impossible to find in Gainesville?  But the effort was greatly appreciated!
• Thank you, Alumni of the 1994-2000 FUMC-K Student Ministries, for being there this weekend.  The genuine joy on your faces as you connected and re-connected made it all worthwhile.  Hearing you tell stories and relive great moments we shared together brought a huge smile to my face.  And hearing so many of you talk about the trips we took and how they impacted you, as well as how looking back you realize most youth groups never get to experience, made the weekend for me.  We were not normal in so many ways. And we still aren't!
• And finally, thank you to Teresa Reep Tysinger- for so many things.  For pushing the idea of a reunion in the beginning.  For kicking my butt and MAKING me put something together, and for not making me do it alone. For putting together our group Facebook page, which will remain up as a place for us to stay connected.  For coming early and spending a few days with her old youth pastor, making him feel young and special again.  In other words, thank you Teresa for just being who you always have been- a wonderful friend to myself and so many others.

Be sure to offer your word of thanks to all of these special people.  And now that the reunion is history - another incredible memory added to a long list-  only one question remains. When do we do we do it again?  I am open to suggestions...

Because of Jesus,