Reconnecting with family and friends in Tulsa

It’s always good when I get a chance to return to my hometown of Tulsa, Oklahoma.

It’s amazing how much that place has changed since I left to return to college at the University of Missouri-Columbia in August 1992.

That was the case earlier this month when Debbie and I made the 500-plus mile trek to the Sooner state to attend a cousin reunion in Tulsa.

The idea of holding a reunion was mentioned by a cousin at the funeral of my Aunt Alice Deese of Fayetteville, Arkansas, and formerly of nearby Prairie Grove, Arkansas., in January 2024.

My cousin mentioned that we have to quit meeting like this.

Sometime around Christmas 2024, I reached out to my cousin Ronnie, who lives near Fayetteville, Arkansas, and is the son of my Aunt Alice, about hosting a reunion.

My mom’s maiden name is Horton.

My cousin Ronnie put out the word to all the cousins earlier this year about holding a reunion and the response was better than expected.

We found a restaurant to meet at in Tulsa and set the reunion for Saturday, June 7.

It was a great event, and we all had a chance to reconnect.

My cousin Dana, who is from February to September older than me and lives in Houston, Texas, made the trek to Tulsa to attend. I haven’t seen Dana since the 1980s. Dana’s brother, cousin Ray was there, bringing his sense of humor and always cracking jokes.

We also invited a few cousins from my grandmother’s side of the family, and three of the four Jackson girls stopped at the reunion.

We left Iowa June 5 and drove from Montezuma to Tulsa.

We spent June 6 touring the McFarlin mansion, which I wrote about in last week’s column, visiting a longtime friend and driving by my boyhood home.

That evening, we joined friends, John and Sandy, at Texas Roadhouse for good food and catching up. We last saw John and Sandy in March 2016 during a trip to Branson.

John, who was born in Iowa and grew up in Riverside, California, played a big role in my life. In the early 1980s, John had moved to Tulsa for a fresh start in life.

We met at a newspaper delivery stop in Tulsa and have been friends for more than 40 years. We worked together for the Newspaper Printing Corporation as district managers. Our job was to make sure the Tulsa newspapers were delivered on time.

We had a weight loss bet in February 1983. The person who lost the most weight in two months would receive $50. I won with 39 pounds lost to John’s 26.

He didn’t have the money, later giving me his camera, a Konica FP-1. That led to me going back to community college and then MU where I earned a BS degree in Agricultural Journalism (photojournalism) at the age of 38 in 1997.

We were able to see my brother, Tom, and enjoyed visiting, telling jokes and eating out on Sunday evening.

And Debbie and I made a stop at the cemetery in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, to visit the graves of my parents and family members.

We also visited a longtime friend of mine, Rob and his wife, Diane, at their new home in south Tulsa. They also have a cabin on Spring Creek about 50 miles east of Tulsa near Locust Grove, Oklahoma.

We left Tulsa Monday, June 9 and made a stop at Rob and Diane’s cabin, and then on to Fayetteville, Arkansas. to visit with my Aunt Lynette, who is in a nursing home there. And we visited my cousin Ronnie’s insurance office in the Fayetteville suburb of Farmington, Arkansas.

After a night in Springdale, we headed north and northeast through Neosho, Monett, Springfield and Lebanon, Missouri, where we visited an antique mall and the Shepard of the Hills Outlet Mall.

We also connected with Eric, a college friend of mine at MU. He is a photography and art teacher at Lebanon High School. Eric is always gracious to meet with Debbie and me when we are in town.

We enjoy the Lake of the Ozarks area, but staying there during the summer months is next to impossible. We opted instead to stay the night in Columbia, Missouri that evening.

On Wednesday, June 11, we drove about 40 miles east of Columbia on I-70 to Williamsburg, Missouri., to visit the Crane Country Store. I used to make the trek there on occasion when in college, as the store features a deli with fresh-made deli sandwiches, cold drinks and an array of Carhartt wear and other clothing, hunting and household items.

We didn’t eat there, but on the way back west, we stopped at Artichoke Annie’s Antique Mall in Millersburg, Missouri, before heading north.

I bought some postcards, a cigar box and a Pepsi glass, and Debbie found a framed Wizard of Oz coloring book.

We had planned to eat at Dairy Queen, but ended up at Pizza Hut in Macon, Missouri. The food was awesome, especially the salad. A stop at Culver’s in Ottumwa for ice cream was in order before arriving home that evening.

I’m so thankful for the opportunity to celebrate life with Debbie and catch up with family and friends, especially in light of having colon surgery in March and various other unwanted health issues in recent weeks and months.

We hope to make the trek back to Tulsa in the near future.

We hope you are taking time this summer to enjoy life and reconnect with family and friends.

Have a great week, and always remember that “Good Things are Happening” every day.