Nancy Trout, wife of Dr. Bill Trout recently passed.
________________________________________________________
The slide show above is from photos taken by Holt Messerly.Mr. Dana Williams, 43 of Amherst, Virginia, passed away on Monday, November 14, 2011. Mr. Williams was a dedicated crew member of the batteau "Virginia Faye". Mr. Williams suffered a heart attack Monday morning while at work and was called home by our Lord Monday night. He has been crew member of the Virginia Faye since 2002. He has logged hundreds of miles on the James River. He leaves behind two sons who are also active in the Batteau Festival, Jonathon and Tomas, a daughter, Brittany, and a faithful dog, Diezel.
Mr. Dana Williams (Left)
Rest - In - Peace
[Dog on left is Dana's Dog "Diezel", Dana's Son Jonathon on right]
Letter from Ralph Smith:
I hope it provides some comfort to the friends and family of Dana Williams to know that the batteau community joins others close to him in mourning his loss. I just looked again at the pictures Holt posted on Batteau.org and can't help but notice how much Dana enjoyed the company of the members of the Virginia Faye, the batteau festival community in general, and his time on the James River. His passing at such a young age serves as a reminder to all of us to fully enjoy life now because the future is uncertain.Dana leaves behind minor children who will have a lot to contend with given the loss of their father. There is a need for financial support for the children and to that end a fund has been created. If you are able, I ask you to consider making a contribution to this fund. Checks should be made payable to Deana L. McPherson "Friends of Dana Williams" and can be taken to any Wells Fargo location or mailed to Wells Fargo, 3408 Candlers Mountain Road, Lynchburg, VA 24502.
Sincerely,
Ralph
Please keep Dana’s family and friends in your thoughts and prayers.Click here or photo above to see photo album.
___________________________________________________________________
It's a GIRL!!!
The Batteau Maple Run announces the birth of their newest member:
Micah Grace Pekar, born September 16, 2011 – 7 lbs, 5 oz.
Proud parents: Rebekah and Mike Pekar
_____________________________________________
Monday January 10th, 2011. Update:
Email received from Buddy High regarding the Tasty Critters.Aubrey Lister, a good friend and one of the leaders of the Tasty Critters which helped so many years @ the Maiden's Landing site for the James River Batteau Festival, passed away on Friday night 1/07/11 after a battle with bone cancer. His love of the festival and the boy scouts will be greatly missed. His memorial service will be at Rosewood-Kellum Funeral Home located @ 601 N Witchduck Rd, Virginia Beach, Va. on Wednesday 1/12/11 @ 7PM.
_________________________________________________Batteau Family News Updates
Updated November 28th: Betsy Healey, Captain of "The Lady's Slipper".
As you know Betsy had a stroke recently, but today Gail Timberlake wrote and said: "She is recovering at a remarkable rate - Walking w/o a cane and just doing great."
Cards will be appreciated:
Betsy Healey, 29 Church Street Cartersville, VA 23027.
______________________________________.
Holt Messerly got a new Puppy a couple of weeks ago. His name is "Jake". He is an English Setter (Field Dog Stud Book Registration...ie. hunting dog, not show dog!) and is full of energy, chewing up everything and learning his commands well. The photo above was taken on board the batteau Spirit of New London at the New London Fall Festival Oct. 2nd. Jake paws at his water and looks forward to meeting all the other batteau dogs out there.
____________________________________
Krissy Stearrett, daughter of Mary Stearrett, both participants of the Brunswick Belle was diagnosed with Non Hodgkin's Lymphoma. She is undergoing many rounds of treatment in the hopes of a full recovery. Krissy is the niece of Jean & Buddy High. Please remember Krissy and her family as they endure the long road ahead of them. All your thought and prayers are appreciated, should you wish to send a card Mary's address is below as Krissy stays with her between hospital stays
Krissy Stearrett
% Mary Stearrett
7095 Bell Road
Dilliwyn, Va 23936______________________________________________________
.
SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT:
CHAIRMAN BUDDY HIGH IS PROUD TO ANNOUNCE THAT HIS DAUGHTER
EMILY HOGGE HAS GIVEN BIRTH TO A NEW BABY BOY!
William Franklin Hogge - Born April 30th, 2010
8 lbs, 11 oz. , 21" long.
Congratulations to his parents John & Emily Hogge!
Buddy said the boy will go on the batteau this year!
_____________________________________________
Bob Wells – RIP
Maple Run crew member, Robert N. (Bob) Wells III, 56, died Wednesday December 23, 2009 at his home in Madison Heights, VA, after a lengthy illness.
Bob helped build and was a crew member of the batteau Morisanna back in the early 1990’s. From the early days of the Batteau Festival, Bob always supported the festival each year. In the last six to eight years Bob has been on the Maple Run at least on Saturday as we left Lynchburg. Bob was good friends with Dewey Wood and Roger Huffman and will be missed by the Maple Run crew and others who knew him with the JRBF.___________________________________________
Congratulations to:
Rebekah
of the Batteau Maple Run.
Rebekah in her wedding dress on board the Batteau Maple Run
at Thrashers Lake in Amherst County, Va.On July 25th, 2009, at Mill Creek Lake, Amherst Co., VA. Rebekah Cox married Michael (Mike) Pekar. They both are teachers at Amherst Co. High School. Pictures of Rebekah on the Maple Run were taken at Thrasher's Creek in Amherst County. Rebekah has been a vital member of the Maple Run Crew for the last several years.
Click here or photo above to see more photos of
Rebekah in her dress on board the batteau._______________________________________________
Congratulations to:
Michael High
Member of the Batteau "Brunswick Belle"
Michael is now a graduate of the Drill Sergeant School at Fort Jackson, SC.
From left to Right: Emily Hogge, Jean High, Michael High, Buddy High
Michael is 29 years old and is an original crew member of the Batteau Brunswick Belle.
He has been proudly serving his country the past several years and has therefore not been able to participate in the festival. Michael graduated in the top 20% of his class. He has now begun his new assignment as a Drill Sergeant (E-6) at Fort Knox, Kentucky. Hopefully he will soon be able to join us on the river he loves so much.
________________________________________________
Cara Crider High & Michael High
Michael is the son of Jean and Buddy High of the Batteau Brunswick Belle.
Michael has returned from Iraq and has married Cara on 12/21/2008 who is a long time friend who he met when he was stationed in Fort Lewis, Washington. She will be joining him at his new station of Ft Knox, Kentucky where he will be a drill sergeant. We will enjoy having them closer to home.
.jpg)
Emily High & John Hogge from the Batteau Brunswick Belle
submitted by Jean and Buddy High
Please join us in the celebrating the marriage of two of our children in December 2008. Emily and John were married on 12/13/2008 the day after Emily finished her studies for her Masters in Special Education. Buddy finally decided John had worked hard enough to earn the hand of Emily and that he would settle for a Hogge.
___________________________________________________________