Reunions: McCORMICK FAMILY, TAYLOR FAMILY, GRAF FAMILY

McCORMICK FAMILY

The McCormick family reunion will be held at noon Sunday in the Family Buffet meeting room.

­???

TAYLOR FAMILY

The biannual reunion of the Nora and Patrick Taylor descendents was held Saturday at 511 E. Madison Ave.

Eleven first cousins were together for the first time in at least 25 years. They looked at family photos and were entertained by Fiddlin? Granny.

Those attending were 89-year-old Elizabeth Bradley of Cedar Rapids, the youngest daughter of Nora and Patrick Taylor; Judy and Keith Schreiber of Marion; Marilyn Miller of Vinton; Virginia Kurtz of Lisbon; Denise Zahrad, Nik and Blake of Mount Vernon; Frank and Mary Ancell of Muscatine; Jeanne King and Amanda of Gillespie, Ill,; Allen and Becky Taylor of Kirksville, Mo.; Earl Taylor Jr., Marin and Donna Taylor of Eldon; Betty Roberts of Bloomfield; Margie Beggs of Cantril; Joy Yoho of Birmingham; Jeffrey Stanley and Kathy Davidson of Fairfield. Hosts were Stanley and Phyllis Lauglin and Joanne Ancell.

???

GRAF FAMILY

The 61st Graf family reunion was held the weekend of July 23-24 in Mount Pleasant and Lockridge, respectively.

July 23 activities in Mount Pleasant included scheduled times of hobby sharing and bingo with prizes at the Van Vorhies Haus, owned by family members Lea and Jerry Bradley and Kay and Larry Milks. A supper gathering was at Jerry?s Pizza, followed by the ?Toby and Susie Show? at the fairgrounds.

July 24 events began with a 10:30 a.m. worship service at the senior center in Lockridge, followed by a potluck dinner and business meeting with 48 in attendance. Awards were given to various family members including those who traveled farthest (California), the oldest family members present (90 and 88 years), and the youngest (age 6). Reunion events also included an open talent time, family announcements and reminiscing about past reunions. It was noted that the first Graf family reunion was organized in July of 1950 by the late Lewis Everett Graf and his wife Viola of Fairfield. The traditional conclusion to the annual reunion was homemade ice cream served with flat wooden spoons, compliments of Roberta Mattson.

Every 10th year, a large reunion celebration is planned, and the most recent one was held in July 2010.Special Saturday activities included a tour of Victory No. 8 one-room schoolhouse, a Graf family geneology presentation by Paul Reeder, social time at the Van Vorhies house, supper at Jerry?s Pizza and the Toby and Susie Show at the fairgrounds, all in Mount Pleasant. Special Sunday events at the Lockridge Community Room, formerly the Lockridge Elementary School, began with a worship service attended by 75 family members. A potluck dinner followed, as well as a business meeting and program highlighting the four Graf family branches complete with acting and video. The afternoon concluded with a group picture taken by Brian Schildroth and the traditional homemade ice cream made by Roberta Mattson.

Descendents of John and Louisa Graf of Germany wore T-shirts to represent their children and the family branches of Charles Graf ? green; Henry Graf ? red; Lewis Graf ? blue; and Mary Graf Achenbach ? yellow.

In all, 108 family members attended the special 60th Graf family events. States represented included Arizona, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Texas, Virginia and Washington.

The 62nd reunion will be held the third weekend in July 2012, with activities planned by newly elected officers: Doug Francik, president; Kay Milks, vice president; Kathryn Hove, secretary; and Jane Graf, treasurer.

­???