Member Profiles

Member Profiles

by: Earlene Lyle

Co-author of Transcriptions from the

Gardens of Memory Cemetery

Author of The Minden Cemetery

Lyda Madden Roberts

Lyda is a very special lady, someone who is wonderful company and great fun -- She graduated from Minden High School in 1957, and she and her husband, James Madden, are long time Minden residents. Lyda was recently recognized as Minden's woman of the year, I'm sure that many of you will remember Lyda's sisters, Suzanne, Elizabeth, and Anna. Their parents were Willard and Suzanne Trawick Roberts, and the family home on Lewisville Road just across from the tennis court in Academy Park. The Roberts moved to Minden around 1939 when Willard was hired to operate the Minden Lumber Yard. Their home is said to be the first home in Minden to be built on a concrete slab.

Dottie Day Adcock

MEMBER PROFILE: Here is one beautiful lady who was born in Center, TX to Alfred E. and Lucille Day on Christmas Day of 1939. She, her parents, and her sister, Carolyn Day, moved to Minden in 1944. Her father owned a hardware/appliance store and taught school, and her mother taught school, also. This young lady, Dorothy Frances Day, attended school in Minden from kindergarten through high school and was known to all of us as "Dottie". She attended La. Tech for 2-½ years, and then moved with her husband, John Adcock, to Las Cruces, New Mexico. She graduated from New Mexico State University in 1963 with a degree in Music Education and later earned a Master’s of Art in Teaching in 1974. She taught music and third grade for a total of 27 years, retiring in 1991. During this time, she and John had two sons, Kenneth and Charles, both of whom have married and presented Dottie and John with two grandchildren each. Dottie is a member of the FBC of Las Cruces, and is involved with the music program as both a soloist and accompanist since joining in 1960. She is also in her 19th year as church pianist. Dottie lost her husband, John, in 2004, but says she stays busy with her local grandchildren, genealogy, church activities, and music. Here is our Dottie

Day Adcock, as pretty as ever.

"I was graduated from MHS in 1965. I got my BS from LSU and my MA and +30 from LaTech. I've taught in Webster Parish schools 33+ years. The past 28 years I have been an itinerate, gifted teacher--12 of those with MHS as my home based school. Now I am the Gifted/Talented Coordinator And SER Analyst for Webster Parish. I've (on paper) retired and finished DROP, but I am having so much fun, I just don't want to quit working."

"My father was Red Turner who owned Turner Lumber Company. My mother is Neva Story Turner. I have three grown children, one daughter-in-law, and two grandchildren. They are all wonderful!"

"I live on Eames Street (have a four acre lot), in the northeast corner of Minden. I love working on just about every craft known to man, but HATE housework--and my house shows it! My Christmas tree stays up year round--'cause I like it! My bed is never made and my floors always need mopping, but my doors are always open for company! Every morning when I wake up, I thank the Lord for giving me another day to enjoy all the wonderful things awaiting me!"

MEMBER PROFILE:

Let's make that plural. Here is a couple who have been together for many years, and where you see one, you usually see the other. It was our pleasure (mine and Sherry's) to meet this couple personally for the first time at Ghost Walk last year. They were not unknown to me, by any means, since my mother spoke of them quite often, so I was extremely pleased to finally meet them face to face.

Dr. Carter Norman and his wife, Sue, are shown in November 2005 at the Ghost Walk. I especially loved seeing this picture of Sue since she is looking through one of my cemetery books that Carter purchased that day. Before marriage, Mrs. Carter was Sue Willie Matthews, MHS Class of 1942, and one of the school beauties. In 1940, Larry Hunter felt that Carter had enough talent to enroll him in a baseball school held in Florida. One of the instructors of that school was the great Babe Ruth. A picture of Norman with Babe Ruth can be seen by clicking on this link:

Norman Arthur Elberfeld | BaseballLibrary.com

Carter and Sue, we are SO happy to have you in our group! And, I am especially happy to have folks like you in my life

MEMBER SPOTLIGHT: Tonight I want to shine the spotlight on one of our most faithful members who attends nearly every get-together that we have -- Robert "Bob" Stephens. Robert W. Stephens was born to G. Otis Stephens and his wife, Ella Beck Stephens. Bob's sister, Myrtis, was married to one of Minden's most dedicated citizens - Percy Fallin. Bob graduated from Minden High School in 1955 has entertained many of us with some of his magic tricks. He also has some very interesting hobbies, one of which is building models of old vehicles from wood. Bob is married to Hilda Jean Thompson Stockstill who he met at a singles club in Slidell, La. in 1973. This couple has added a lot of fun to our get-togethers. They now live in Carriere, MS, a small town near the Mississippi Gulf Coast. Here is a picture of Bob and Airman Love outside their barracks.

Please note the bullet holes in the building which were made by Japanese planes on 7 December 1942!

Bob, during a performance in

October 2005 at his 50th

Class Reunion.

Bob Stephens

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Talk about a nice guy! a sweet guy! one you just want to hug every time you see him! This is Neil Baker, one of my 1956 classmates who just has NOT changed throughout the years. Neil played snare drum in the Minden band and, after graduation, played with The Tunes. Neil and his wife, Ruth, attended the 2004 Ghost Walk and returned last year for a reunion of The Tunes during the 1955 Class Reunion. Neil is very active in his church and has provided many articles and pictures for the MindenMemories web site. Neil is the son of Willis E. and Marie W. Baker, the nephew of C. T. Baker, Jr. (engineer on the L&A Railroad). His grandparents were Tom and Ella Weaver of Texarkana.) It's such a joy to have Neil in our group.

NEIL BAKER

MEMBER PROFILE: Today's profile spotlight rests on a 1957 MHS graduate who has given SO much of herself and her talents to the town of Minden. Too often, persons who are always ready to offer a helping hand become taken for granted, and we'd like to publicly recognize this lady and thank her for giving so much of her time and talents to Minden, its civic organizations, and many of its citizens. Today, we recognize one of our own -- Charlotte Smith Martin -- for her work with Minden's nursing homes, the Arbor, the 4-H clubs, Minden Historical Society, the UDC, the Webster Homemakers, St. Jude's, and possibly many others. Even though she has been president of some of these organizations, she usually serves as the main "worker" on a project. Many have said if you want something done, tell Charlotte. Currently, as a member and either president or past president of the Evergreen Homemakers' club, she is leading the group in cleaning up, researching the names, replacing headstones, etc. in the old Evergreen Cemetery which is one of the older parish cemeteries. Whatever she does, it's with a smile on her face, even though her husband has had major health problems and she is the major caretaker of her mother who is in her nineties. Today, our hats are off to Charlotte Smith Martin. For everything you've done, Charlotte, and for giving of your time and talents so unselfishly, Charlotte Smith Martin

Carolyn Sale McDaniel: Selecting a person to spotlight can be tough when we have so many members from whom to choose. Tonight, I spotted this smiling face among my pictures of past events and knew immediately that she was a perfect choice. This lady has been so very faithful in attending all of our dinners and get-togethers. She has been among the 80 or so who attend our dinners, and she has been among the very few who met us a small cemetery early one morning where Lem Grigsby and Marilyn Miller told us some of the history of those buried in the cemetery. No matter how early or how late, no matter how many or how few, Carolyn Sale McDaniel is there. Carolyn, a 1954 MHS grad, is one of our members who is fortunate enough to live in the best hometown in the world --- Minden!

Harvey Stewart: Today's profile features Harvey Stewart, a 1956 MHS classmate who moved to Shreveport immediately after graduation and attended Business College. Harvey says, "After working for Pel-State Oil for a couple of years, so called friend got me a blind date. A short while later on October 17, 1958, we married and five months later after I received my draft notice, we spent two years at Ft. Lewis in the state of Washington." After discharge, Harvey and Helen moved back to Shreveport where Harvey worked for Life Underwriters Ins. Co. and a short time at Piggly Wigley Warehouse before being hired by Querbes & Bourquin Insurance Agency where he retired after 32-1/2 yrs. Says Harvey he now has a daughter, a son and 5 grandchildren. In 1969 the family moved from Shreveport to Panola, Texas. He and Helen have always enjoyed traveling and, after retirement, are doing more of that, he added, "Neither of us ever cared much for blind dates, but his one has been going on for 47+ years, so it must be okay!!

Shirley Boyer Hill: Our member profile spotlight today is focused on one of my 1956 MHS classmates, Shirley Boyer Hill. I'm so proud to recognize one of our Minden 'girls' for her many accomplishments in today's business world. She had owned a restaurant and two clothing stores in East Texas and Louisiana before deciding to go back to school at age 40 for her nursing degree. Shirley says that this decision came in the late 1970s after she was fired from a job as buyer for a trailer manufacturer because the company did not want a woman in that position. Afterward, she began working for Continental Insurance Co., eventually becoming a branch manager for its case management division.

In 1990, Shirley and her husband moved to San Antonio, TX, where she continued working for Continental Insurance until the early 1990's when that office was closed. In 1996, Shirley opened her own company, CasePro, with 9 employees to provide case management services for the claims industry, focusing primarily on workers' compensation cases. In 2001, however, she began seeking opportunities in federal contracting for medical services. CasePro now has over 300 employees working in 17 states, and Shirley's staff includes 30-40 physicians and over 150 registered nurses. CasePro, Inc. was named 2005 Small Business of the Year by the Small Business Administration through the San Antonio Business Opportunity Council.

Here is our own Shirley Boyer CEO of CasePro

Here's a lady everyone should know. Do you recognize her? No? Well, she HAS been around Minden for a few years. Professionally, she is the Clerk of Court at City Hall in Minden. I remember her as a cute, vivacious upper

classman in MHS. She hasn't lost that wonderful sense of humor, either! She is married to Joe Luck, and both have been a great help to the Minden Cemetery Association by taking part in the Ghost Walk the past two years.

Joan Wiley Luck, THEN and NOW

Ann Mays Harlan: No stranger to most of you is one of our most active members, Ann Mays Harlan, an MHS graduate of 1958. I'm sure many of you will remember Ann as the daughter of John L. and Elizabeth Jamieson Mays who lived near Victory Park. Ann has been wonderful to take photographs at our gatherings and submit them for our enjoyment. We've also depended upon her to help with making arrangements for some of our dinners over the years and appreciate her doing so. For many years, Ann lived in Corpus Christi; however, after an absence of 43 years, she recently bought a home and moved back to Minden to be near her remaining family. Like me, Ann loves everything about her hometown and the people living in it. She is already quite active in the community, and many of you saw her as a tour guide at the recent Ghost Walk held at The Minden Cemetery.

Ann Mays Harlan

Many of you have said you enjoyed reading about old friends and finding out more about what they've been doing since you last saw them, and particularly how they look after 40-50 years. (We know that ALL of you aren't as old as SOME of us --- just don't rub it in!).

Nola Stonecipher Ellington: Nola, born on 7 January (we don't mention years) to V. D. and Eunice Slack Stonecipher, is a 1964 graduate of Minden High School. For some of us earlier grads, she was Vern Stonecipher's "little sister". Nola said that she, Vern, and their parents "lived in the house just down the hill and across the driveway from the old building", which I've interpreted as being down the hill from the old high school building. She married Bobby Ellington 38 years ago and is STILL married to that same man! They live just north of Alexandria, LA. Nola has 3 children and 6 grandchildren and has her own little enterprise breeding and selling dogs - Maltese, Malti-poos, and Malti-tzus. Nola is very active in her church and is an accomplished pianist.

Here's a picture so interesting that I really must share it with all of you. I have never met this lady personally, but I know she must have her hands full since she's married to one of our 1954 MHS grads: Richard Grigsby. Decked out in her 'red hat' finery, here is Elizabeth Grigsby, currently a tour guide at the Germantown Colony.

Says Sherry: "Had it not been for Betty, Lem and Richard, I think I would have been a very lonely person back in 1962. We must have played thousands of games of canasta! We were so broke we had no money to go anywhere. They had just moved to Minden from Buffalo, NY and had bought the Jimmy Dale Souter home on the corner of Goodwill and Marshall Streets. One day, Elizabeth gave Mrs. W. C. Floyd a perm. It was really frizzy, but Mrs. Floyd was a good sport. She just got it cut real short and we all laughed about it. Lem was going to college and I had just moved back to Minden."

Today marks the first of our member spotlights and it is only fitting that we pay first tribute to the senior member of our group, someone who has been a member of this group since its inception, Miss Ramona Wigley. Ramona has attended as many of our activities as possible, and I know many of you saw her at the MHS open house held prior to the demolition of our old high school building this year. Ramona, daughter of Albert and Irene Wigley and sister of Dan and Sam Wigley, is a 1944 graduate of Minden High School who returned to MHS as a teacher. She is retired now and living in Shreveport. Here is a great picture of Ramona sharing a laugh with Kathleen Hortman Bryan:

Ramona Wigley with Kathleen Hortman Bryan