We get asked that question A LOT from e-mail and caller i.d. recipients. (Please don't spam us! We're harmless, really!) Well, as I tell those people who don't know Bill very well, Alfred Ball is Bill's name - a unique family name that was passed on to him. His great - grandfather was Alfred William Ball and he had 9 children. Bill comes from Alfred William and Ann Ball's son Vernon - he was A.V.'s dad. OK, if this is too complicated, as most geneology can be, I'll just say that this past weekend was spent with our closest family on the Ball side - yep - all 255 (or more) of them! We attended the 57th and last "Big Ball Family Reunion". This gathering has been held on the first Saturday of August for the past 57 years, but, due to the increase in family members and the LARGE numbers of family members that do not know 3/4 of the people in attendance at said reunion, it was unanimously decided that the Big Ball Reunion will be disbanded after 2008.
The end of an era: the end of excellent food, the end of a scrumptious table of desserts, the end of foot races for each age, the end of snow cones made by young cousins, the end of lamb chops cooked by the guys who raised the meat, the end of barbecued corn on the cob, the end of homemade grape sherbet (mmmmm), and the end of taking over the Lewisville Park and accompanying bathrooms needed for so many people.
So we come to the end - all 9 original Ball brothers and sisters are deceased, but they've left a great legacy as evidenced by the sheer numbers of children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren and great-great grandchildren who carry on their name.
Bill's grandma and grandpa Ruey and Vernon Ball
Bill's dad as a boy - how cute is that!?!
The young A.V. Ball family - L to R: Annette, Julie, Jeff, and little Billy! David hadn't arrived yet! Oh, yeah, LaRae and A.V. are in the back.
The football stud of the entire Ball Family! (Careful of your back, neck, and achilles tendon...)
Payton cruisin' to the finish line!
L - Lindsay in a dead heat!
Kourt and Lyss neck and neck
Kris - trying to avoid the old guy who fell, almost tripped her, and separated his shoulder...that's why you don't see any pictures of Billy racing - no time for injuries!
Can I take your order?
We love to work for free!
We love to work for free!
Awww... Bill and Kris at sunset -
(OK, so maybe it's not a beach sunset, but an alfalfa field, next to a stinky cow farm will have to do on this trip!)
(OK, so maybe it's not a beach sunset, but an alfalfa field, next to a stinky cow farm will have to do on this trip!)
1 comments:
Oh...that's kind of sad. But, I know what you're saying when you only know 3/4 of the people who are your relatives! The annual Woodward reunion on my mom's side stopped when they realized no one at the reunion even had the last name Woodward anymore....time to move on :) I like your sunset...I think a sunset over farm country is beautiful!!!
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