The Office Cat
December 7, 1941, remembered
Today is Pearl Harbor Day - the Sunday of December 7,

1941, when the Japanese made a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor in the Hawaiian Islands and plunged the United States into World War II. Many of us oldies remember exactly what we were doing when we heard to news and it's indelibly written into our minds and memory. I was nine years old. I remember that Mama and Daddy had a big floor-standing RCA radio and record player (78s) and we listened all day to the horrible news of what had happened. President Franklin D. Roosevelt came on the radio to speak to the American people and try to reassure them that all would be well. . . . Needless to say, the United States has come a long way since that day.

December 7 also commemorates another day of disaster in the United States. In 1946 the Winecoff Hotel caught fire in the wee morning hours and took the lives of 119 people - the largest number of people ever to perish in a fire in United States history. Thirty of those who died were Georgia teenagers attending a Youth Assembly of the Hi-Y and Tri-Hi-Y Clubs of Georgia. I remember that disaster, too.

Washington Square Café will be opening this week in the old Miller's (Bistro) building next to The Purple Palette. Owners are Ed and Jackie Cook and they will be serving family style home cooking meals

It's good to see all the activity in Downtown Washington. Friday night there was not a parking space anywhere around The Square or on the side streets. There was a special event at The Jockey Club and a wedding rehearsal dinner at the Fitzpatrick Hotel. Delta Kappa Gamma, a teachers' professional fraternity, had its fall regional meeting at the Fitzpatrick Saturday with five counties represented, including the Wilkes County Chapter of Al- pha Theta.

The Lewis Family from Lincolnton taped its annual Christmas Show in conjunction with Channel 6, Augusta, last week, bringing lots of people to town. . . . Sunday afternoon, Henry and Shay Harris and The Christmas Shop hosted their annual benefit for the McCormick County (S.C.) Humane Society and Savannah Lakes had its annual "Stroll" in the Downtown area. There was not a parking place anywhere Downtown and there were ladies with shopping bags strolling from one store to another while husbands (or friends) waited on the sidewalk, grabbing a bench when they could. . . . Wanda Dingler, owner of the Mayflower Coffee Shop building, provided use of that building for refreshments for the visitors.

Have you seen the new front porch that has been added to the

Woman's Club building at the corner of Court Street and North Alexander Avenue? The porch goes all the way across the front, has banisters, and is level with the front door. White wicker furniture has been added, too. It looks great.

The senior members group at the First Baptist Church, under the leadership of John Webster and his committee, have chosen a name so that they will not be just "the senior members." The name they chose is Silver Streaks and they have been busy on trips and other activities. . . Some of the members of the Volunteer Sunday School Class are on a cruise to the Bahamas this week.

After 44 years, Dr. Carlton Hearn is retiring from his practice of dentistry. One young man approaching 40 was lamenting Sunday night the fact that Dr. Hearn is the only dentist he has ever had and he didn't want to give him up. Dr. Hearn is turning his practice over to Dr. Eric Pagan, who has been practicing dentistry in Washington- Wilkes since 1995. Dr. Pagan was a classmate and friend of Dolly Hearn when they were students at the Medical College of Georgia. We hate to give Dr. Hearn up, but wish him well in his retirement.

Marshall Sherrer is about to be another retiree in the county. He is retiring this year after serving 44 years as a Wilkes County Commissioner. There will be a reception honoring him on December 13 at the Courthouse. We wish him well, too.

Kim Sales' son-in-law, Gennadiy Grushovenko, was sworn in as a United States Citizen in Atlanta recently. He is from the Ukraine and has been in the United States for about seven years. His wife is Kim's daughter Signe and they live in LaGrange. They will be visiting Kim and Les (Sales) this weekend.

Lawrence Hyde says he doesn't want to bore anybody talking about his beautiful huntboard, but that he is so proud of his Wilkes County pecan wood huntboard, made by a Wilkes Countian (Bill Sleighter), that he has to tell about the latest addition to his Wilkes County piece of furniture. He spent hours and hours on e-bay and finally found solid brass drawer pulls with head images of who else - George Washington himself.

The week of December 17-22 we will be printing The News-Reporters for both December 21 and 28 so that our staff can take some for Christmas. Please call me with anything you know about anybody by December 20 so that I will have something for this column.

Christmas At Callaway Plantation is on for the weekend with lots of folks already busy decorating for the occasion. . . . Joe Barnett is gathering the ingredients for his Shrimp and Grits at the Court Street Livery Friday and Saturday. Fine crafts in all media will be for sale at the Livery. . . .The Washington Historical Museum has an impressive display of the Daniel Bibb Russian Icon Collection; and the Robert Toombs House His

toric Site will be celebrating 75 years of Christmas Melodies all day Saturday. . . . Relay for Life will be sponsoring a Soup and Salad Luncheon at the Woman's Club Saturday to benefit the 2007 Relay for Life for cancer research. . . . Five houses will be on the Candlelight Tour Friday night; and seven homes on the Town and Country Day Tour Saturday. . . . Buy a ticket and join the weekend fun.

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