- re-uniting with Christians friends with whom I had not fellowshipped for over 35 years!

** Born in Wainwright June 6, 1944

- Birth to 1950 - as a child, went to a few '2x2' meetings and conventions with my mother, who was 2x2 as a teen-ager.

** 1950 -1961, Attended Irma United Church, then evangelical churches (Avon Glen Gospel Mission and Irma Christian & Missionary Alliance) from about age 7 to 17; born-again in the Alliance church at age 12. Involved with Youth For Christ (in the Wainwright Soldiers' Centre) & a Leighton Ford Crusade as a teen-ager (singing in the big choir, in the Wainwright arena). Enjoyed inter-denominational fellowship, Bible camps, inter-church ball-games and toboggan parties, etc.

** 1961 - 1984: with the 'friends & workers' (a.k.a. 'the 2x2's') :

- 1961 - July - left the evangelicals, and went into a different christian group, commonly known as 'the 2x2's', a secret & exclusive 'quaisi-christian' sect. Had many new friends, but was cut-off from all of my previous evangelical friends.

- 1962 - September - moved to Edmonton, and attended university, and boarded with a 2x2 family, along with 4 other young people; was totally immersed in the 2x2 fellowship, and was an active part of a fellowship of about 400 people, many of them in my age bracket. Between 1964 and about 1968, there were maybe 30-40 weddings, and we all knew each other, attended gospel meetings together, and played ball together, etc.

- 1966 - married a 2x2 girl, and until 1983, raised 3 fine children. Separated in 1983, divorce finalized in spring of 1985. During these years, lived in Edmonton, Rocky Mountain House and St. Albert, Alberta; Kamloops, B.C.; and Grand Prairie (Dallas) Texas. In 1984, I sadly and regretfully left the 2x2 system, and moved to Calgary to begin a new life.

** 1986 - the present:

-1986 - August - began attending an evangelical/ charismatic/ pentecostal church in Calgary, and it transformed my life. From 1986 to the present day, I have purposefully been an 'inter-denominational Christian', enjoying fellowship with people from many different churches and denominations, and being involved with gospel music and song-writing, Christian ministry, etc, in various churches.

1997 - January - was compelled by the Holy Spirit to return to the Irma area, to re-connect with my evangelical friends, and to visit with my aged father (now 88)in a Wainwright nursing home, where he was in the advanced stages of Alzheimer's' disease.

It was five days of incredible blessing for me, and for the folks I re-connected with.

** Thursday: January 5:

- left Calgary about 2 pm, a chinook blowing, and what little snow there was, was melting fast;

- late afternoon at Wetaskiwin - getting colder, stopped at the A&W for a snack.

- evening in Viking - 8 pm, checked into a motel, 20 below outside, and storming; I phoned the only folks I knew there, from 1961 - they said 'Come over for tea!' ; visiting with the Merta family for several hours, and enjoying their hospitality again. (As a youth, there were many pleasant evenings spent in their old home on the farm, with gospel music and Bible studies, my accordion, etc)

** Friday: in the Irma area:

- Afternoon, visiting with Merle Larson, now probably in her 80's, in the same house that Alf & Merle bought from my Dad about 1964 (built by Dad, my brother and myself, along with other local friends). - And in the living room this day - praying for Merle's daughter-in-law, and also for Merle; and also - - - - using her phone to re-connect with friends in the country.

- Evening, In the country, just north of our old farm, 6 miles east of Irma, visiting with Francis Younker, his wife and family; and along comes his brother Harvey and family. [Harvey and wife had a 2-year-old boy, adopted from Calgary, from a church where I know the pastor! (this little boy certainly went to a very loving and very stable Christian home)]. Several hours of wonderful fellowship and reminiscing, played my accordion and shared some old and new music with them. And of course, they insisted that I stay overnight, and have lunch with them on Saturday. I will see them again Sunday evening, at the Avon Glen Gospel Mission church in the country, a few miles to the north and east of their place. I told them that I would enjoy testifying Sunday night in their church, if the pastor was agreeable, and with my accordion.

** Saturday afternoon:

- drove to Wainwright: & did some browsing around, exploring the old train station (now a museum), etc. Then over to the Senior's Nursing Home, where I:

- ministered to my Dad, with my accordion and song - gospel music which he loved so much, for well over 40 years. Dad didn't recognize me; BUT, when I talked to him about JESUS, he wept openly and a slight smile came to his face, and he whispered over and over: 'Jesus! Jesus! Jesus!'; and I wept openly too, as I hugged him there. It was a very precious moment. A moment that I will cherish forever.

- Later that evening: - drove out to Philip and Evelyn Larson's place, and surprised them! I visited with them in their new home on the farmstead where he grew up, about 8 or 10 miles north of Irma. (their farm is only a few miles from where my own Mom grew up.) Philip, Evelyn and I reminisced about old times, Bible camp, mutual friends of the late 1950's, etc, 'til 2am. And they had me as their guest both Saturday and Sunday nights. It was a very special time together.

** Sunday:

- Morning: Attended the Alliance Church in Irma, where I re-connected with friends, plus with relatives on mother's side; joyful bear-hug-reunion with second-cousin Irene Crabb; testified to the congregation as a 'village son come home'. And the Assistant Pastor, who took the service, was David Crabb, Irene's son. Friends in the Irma Alliance include: Jack (adult Sunday school teacher) & Irene McKay; Merle Larson (whose son Philip had been in my grade at school, and also in my Sunday school class, and young peoples group); Albert Glasgow (now an usher, was not a Christian when I was younger; his first wife, Aletha, had been my Grade 2 teacher at Irma School, as well as music teacher in school to about Grade 9 or so) & new wife; Don & Carole Creasey (Don has 2 artificial arms & 1 artificial leg, as a result of a farm machinery accident when he was about 20 years old; and his wife Carole (Matthews)(she is about 2 years older than I) is still playing the piano for church, as she and her mother were doing 35 years ago!)

- Lunch: with 3 generations of mother's relatives (Mom's first cousin Adelaide Dootson, Adelaide's daughter Irene Crabb, and Irene's son David) in the Irma Café [tons of memories here - 1. the same café where granddad Thomas Charles Sanders smoked his pipe and had tea with his friends on Sundays (while granny attended the Anglican church, which my atheistic granddad had built, because he loved her); 2. in the same café where dad would buy us kids ice cream cones, even in the winter, because 'I am not awful cold']. - My dear Aunt Adelaide gave me a set of the 'Irma books' (valued at about $60, just because she was so glad to re-connect); oh, yes, and Adelaide's grandson David, who is the now assistant pastor of the Irma Alliance Church, and he was maybe 5 years old when I was a teen-ager, and he was one of the 'kids in the country' that the church folks brought into Irma, to learn the gospel. And because of this, he was saved, and his dad and mom, and now his dad is in heaven. And I never was told by my mother, but I found out that day, that Aunt Adelaide was a Sunday School teacher herself, in the early days! Kate Younker told me this on Sunday night, at Avon Glen.

- Spent Sunday afternoon with second cousin Irene Crabb at her home on the farm, a few miles north of our old place. Shared our faith together, shared family & genealogical memories, our love for the Gaither videos, and played my accordion for her; and enjoyed a snack with her and her son David, before continuing north to the Avon Glen Gospel Mission for their evening service.

- Spent Sunday evening at the Avon Glen Gospel Mission church (affiliated with the 'Three Hills' group of churches) in the country, where my daddy was saved about 1952, under the gentle and faithful ministry of Pastor Tom Conway. (Our family of 5 had spent many, many happy times with the Conway family, also of 5, their 3 kids being of similar ages to us 3.) - Was invited to minister in this church, with testimony and accordion, with several new songs that I had written. Philip & Evelyn Larson go to this church; so do the Frances and Harvey Younker families, some of the Fords, also visited with Kate (Younker) Green, who had been my Sunday School teacher there when I was a kid, she was also my Grade 7 teacher in Irma (the year that Richard Glasgow, in my class, and also my Alliance Sunday School class, got killed by a strike of lightning.)

Monday:

- Noon meal and visiting with Don & Carole Creasey in their home in Irma;
- Then drove to Wainwright Monday afternoon to check out a few more things.

- In the evening, on my way back to Calgary, I drove over to Edmonton, and visited with my sister Lily and her husband Don for a few hours.

Tuesday am:

- Just after midnight, I left Edmonton, and drove back to Calgary, very tired, but jubilant! Rejoicing all the way home, over the things that had transpired in 5 short days, totally unplanned, but totally wonderful. A week before, the trip had not even been in my mind. Now my mind was filled with so many beautiful memories.

- I got back to Calgary about 5 a.m. Tuesday morning. I was away from Calgary for 5 days and 4 nights, and spent 3 nights with friends and only 1 night in a motel!

It was one of the most memorable trips in my entire life - more rewarding than doing real estate in Dallas & Memphis, or even the trip to Nassau with Mercury Marine while in the boat business.

It was so extra-special to visit with Christian friends that I had not seen for over 35 years. Then I was 17; now I was 52. And the fellowship was more wonderful now, 35 years later - for many reasons. Wow! and it was a real family reunion, in every sense of the word.

Epilogue: Dad's Funeral: In February 1999 - 2 years later - I was again in Wainwright, this time it was for my Daddy's funeral. And I was able to testify, to both evangelicals and 2x2's alike (they are rarely found in the same room together!), that 'my daddy is heaven - because he loves Jesus.' And I told them about my last visit with Dad, in his wheelchair, whispering over and over 'Jesus! Jesus! Jesus!'

I may soon write a bit about the funeral, etc. My younger son, Carlin, was one of the pall-bearers. That day is a complete chapter in itself.

Again, I re-connected with old friends and relatives. And again, I stayed overnight with Philip & Evelyn Larson in their home north of Irma.

Good friends are wonderful, both in times of laughter, and in times of sorrow/ memorial.