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Mary Frazier Long

Bela and Delores Kenessey

Together Fifty Plus Years

February 19, 2020

Bela and Delores Kenessey married three times – the first time in 1964 was by a Justice of the Peace in South Carolina because their church was not available. The second time was in June in their North Carolina church. The third ceremony for Delores and Bela was in the Lawrenceville First Baptist Church many years after the first two ceremonies. All three marriage ceremonies were special tho this couple who have been together for so many years.

The Comedic Historian – Mary Frazier Long

February 15, 2019

If Jerry Clower, American stand-up Comedian, could be nicknamed “The Mouth of Mississippi” then Mary Frazier Long can be known as “The Comedic Historian!” Most Comics will tell you that it’s difficult to make people laugh — but to get folks laughing and teach history! Mary can be described as a mixture of, Larry the Cable Guy, Lily Tomlin, Ron White, Carol Burnette just to name a few.

Back Row: Annabell Johnson, Edith Green, Ms. Swindell, Elaine Briscoe, Marguerite Dunson, Joyce Reed, Alida Still, Sandy Little, Bobbie Turnage, Allene Craig, _______. Fourth Row: Minnie Bell, Nancy Campbell, Vera Timms, ____________, Wanda Birchfield, ____, ____, ___, Mary Pickens. Third Row: ___,___, Harriette Coffey, Maxie Lord, Irene Sikes, Mary Ezzard, Jimmie Mae Sosebee, Ms. Coleman, Ms. Dearman. Second Row: ____, Linda Smith, Martha Sewell, ____, Geraldine Cooper, Jane Hainline, ____, Carol Morgan. Seated Elizabeth Lovin, Neal Timms, Sheila Andru

The Gwinnett Roadrunner – On The Run November 2013

November 18, 2013
The Lawrenceville Elementary School Faculty in 1969/70. Not all in the photo were identified. Can you help identify any names? 

Back Row: Annabell Johnson, Edith Green, Ms. Swindell, Elaine Briscoe, Marguerite Dunson, Joyce Reed, Alida Still, Sandy Little, Bobbie Turnage, Allene Craig, _______. Fourth Row: Minnie Bell, Nancy Campbell, Vera Timms, ____________, Wanda Birchfield, ____, ____, ___, Mary Pickens. Third Row: ___,___, Harriette Coffey, Maxie Lord, Irene Sikes, Mary Ezzard, Jimmie Mae Sosebee, Ms. Coleman, Ms. Dearman. Second Row: ____, Linda Smith, Martha Sewell, ____, Geraldine Cooper, Jane Hainline, ____, Carol Morgan. Seated Elizabeth Lovin, Neal Timms, Sheila Andru
 
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(Click the photos to enlarge and read captions)
Veterans Day is November 11. The Military Museum in the Historic Courthouse is a great tribute to our military history. Gene Bivings and Elwood Hart are two of the men who have volunteered at the museum.
November was the month when Pilgrims had a festival to express their gratitude for their first harvests in the hard new land. Election Day in the US falls on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November. Thanksgiving Day is celebrated on the fourth Thursday of the month and Christmas is not far behind.
Hannukah begins at sunset on November 27, 2013.

THINKERS

• “A fanatic is one who can’t change his mind and won’t change the subject.” Winston Churchill

• “When you become senile, you won’t know it.” Bill Cosby

• “When childhood dies its corpses are called adults.” Brian Aldiss

• “Above all teach a boy to tell the truth. Truth telling I have found is the key to responsible citizenship. The thousands of criminals I have seen in 40 years of law enforcement have had one thing in common. Every single one was a liar.” J. Edgar Hoover in the article “What I Would Tell a Son.”

• “Tax reform means ‘Don’t tax you, don’t tax me, tax that fellow behind the tree.” Russell B. Long, US Senator

• “Why should people go out and pay money to see bad films when they can stay at home and see bad television for nothing?” Samuel Goldwyn

• A difference of taste in jokes is a great strain on the affections.

Mary Long _ 190NEWS FROM THE PAST

• On November 6, 1732 the first 35 families embarked with James Edward Oglethorpe at Gravesend, England aboard the ship Anne bound for Georgia by way of South Carolina

• The Lawrenceville News November 5, 1897, “James Langley who resides on Hurricane Shoals Road about 4 miles from Lawrenceville was united in marriage to Miss Zilla McDaniel who lives near here.”

• The Gwinnett Herald was established in 1871 and The Lawrenceville News was established in 1893; the papers were consolidated on January 1, 1898 and became The News-Herald.

• The Gwinnett Journal November 12, 1910, “The automobile is here to stay. They are getting cheaper and will continue to do so and soon most everybody will have on

• The News-Herald November 18, 1915, “The girls of the Lawrenceville High School have organized a good basketball team and it is sure to be a success.”

• The Gwinnett Journal November 2, 1937, Mr. and Mrs. Clarence Oakes announce the birth of a daughter on Sunday.

 
CURRENT EVENTS
• Stuart Downs joined Eastside Medical Center as Chief Nursing Officer on August 26, 2013. Stuart has a BSN from Southeastern Louisiana University, Master of Science in Administration from Central Michigan University, Master of Science in Nursing from Vanderbilt University and a Doctor of Nursing Practice from Vanderbilt University.

• The Lawrenceville City Election will be held Tuesday, November 5 at the Lawrenceville City Hall on South Clayton Street. Candidates for Lawrenceville City Council: Renita Hamilton, Rory Johnson, Keith Roche, Larry Troutman.

• The first day of the 2014 school year will be August 6, 2014; the last day of the 2014/15 school year will be May 20, 2015. Plan your vacations… LAWRENCEVILLE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL GOLDEN CELEBRATION
The public school system of Lawrenceville was created by an act of the General Assembly in 1893 and a new building was erected with classes beginning in 1895. The first school was at the corner of Oak and Perry Streets in Lawrenceville and it housed grades one through seven. The schools began moving off the hill in 1957 when Central Gwinnett opened. In 1962 some grammar school grades were moved to the newly constructed building on Gwinnett Drive which was then called Fair Street.

Lawrenceville Elementary School will celebrate 50 years of existence on Sunday November 17, 2013 when parents, educators and friends of the school gather in the school cafeteria to celebrate this significant milestone. Lawrenceville Elementary School was built in stages with the first wing opening at 122 Gwinnett Drive in Lawrenceville in December 1962 and it was called Lawrenceville Primary until 1964 when the sixth grade was added.

When the first wing of the school opened in 1962 there were 12 classrooms housing grades one and two; there was no lunchroom at the school and students were bused back to the hill for lunch. In 1963 and 64 students from Lawrenceville Elementary went to Central Gwinnett for lunch.

The second wing of the school was added in 1965 and a third wing was added in 1971. In 1993 there were significant additions to the school.
The first principal was J.N. Timms who led the school for eighteen years.

Other principals were Larry Smith, Virginia Moore, Freddie H. Williams, Jane Robertson, Dorothy Hines; the present principal is Lisa Johnson.

The school had 730 students and 93 staff members in October 2013. Karen Davidson, Receptionist/Secretary at Lawrenceville Elementary School; Karen has worked at the school for 16 years.

MEMORIES OF LAWRENCEVILLE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL BY TEACHERS

Gloria James• MEMORIES FROM GLORIA JAMES, LAWRENCEVILLE ELEMENTARY FOCUS TEACHER Lawrenceville native Gloria Gunter James was a student at Lawrenceville Elementary and Central Gwinnett; her father was a graduate of Lawrenceville High School. Gloria graduated from the University of Georgia; she taught at Lawrenceville Elementary School from January 1989 until 2006. Gloria was the Focus Teacher and she remembers that the school celebrated Heritage Days in 1993 with lots of activities planned in cooperation with students and parents. In 1996 the school had an Olympic Celebration with activities at Central Gwinnett and special T shirts to mark the event. Another activity that impressed Gloria was the 100 books celebration planned by a first grade teacher. The 100 books celebration gave recognition to first graders who read 100 books. Gloria remembers that Lawrenceville Elementary was a School of Excellence in the late 1990’s.

Gloria’s three children attended Lawrenceville Elementary and Central Gwinnett High, becoming third generation family members to attend Lawrenceville public schools.


FOURTH GRADE TEACHER JOYCE REED’S MEMORIES

Joyce Reed _ 190Lawrenceville native, Joyce Jones Reed, taught fourth grade at Lawrenceville Elementary School for 26 years and her enthusiastic attitude about her years as a teacher is apparent as she relates fond memories of the years that she spent there. Joyce taught for one year at the school on the hill before going to the new elementary school on Gwinnett Drive.

After graduating from UGA in 1953 Joyce began her 30 year career as an educator in the Atlanta School System before moving back to her hometown and teaching at the school where she had been a student and where she knew families of her students. Joyce remembers that she was inspired to teach by Omie Jackson and Louise Cooper who were her teachers at Lawrenceville.

Joyce remembers that when she went to see her room at the new school Mr. Timms took her to her room which was painted yellow, her favorite color. Joyce said that Mr. Timms was a great principal and her years at the school were happy years; her twin sons also attended Lawrenceville Elementary and rode to school with Joyce every morning. One of Joyce’s not so pleasant memories was when she was supervising students who were playing ball at recess, a student fell when trying to get to third base and broke his wrist. Joyce was more upset about the accident than the student.

Joyce Reed taught 26 years at Lawrenceville Elementary and never lost her enthusiasm for teaching or for the Georgia Bulldawgs.

 
THIRD GRADE TEACHER BOBBIE TURNAGE REMEMBERS TEACHING AT LAWRENCEVILLE ELEM.

Bobbie Turnage -86 190Bobbie Turnage graduated from O’Keefe High School in Atlanta and the University of Georgia before coming to teach school in Lawrenceville. She is the mother of three daughters who attended Lawrenceville Elementary and all three graduated from Central Gwinnett High School and from college.

Bobbie taught third for one year when Lawrenceville Elementary School was housed in a row of buildings called the “Chicken Coop” on the hill near the corner of Oak and North Perry Streets in Lawrenceville. Bobbie said that Mrs. Rebecca Baggett often sent sweet snacks for teachers and how delicious those treats were. Bobbie also said that she covered her bulletin boards with paper towels before putting pictures on them.

Bobbie moved to Lawrenceville Elementary on Gwinnett Drive in 1965 and retired in 2001 after teaching for 29 years; she taught third grade except for one year when she taught fifth grade. Bobbie said that she and her family were blessed with good health so she did not miss many days at school except for the time when her mother was very ill and hospitalized in Franklin, N.C. Bobbie said that Larry Smith was principal when her mother was sick and he understood her situation and supported her as she tried to teach and to care for her mother. Bobbie said that she lived near the school so commuting was not a time consuming event; she went to school early and stayed late. Her children rode with her in the mornings.

Bobbie remembered that when Lawrenceville Elementary was being renovated classes were moved to Simonton Elementary and she enjoyed being in a new building there.

While Bobbie taught the school principals were Neal Timms, Larry Smith, Freddie Williams, Jane Robertson and Dorothy Hines. Bobbie has many good memories about her school teaching years and she enjoys seeing her former students as they become adults.

 
FIRST GRADE TEACHER JIMMIE MAE SOSEBEE’S MEMORIES OF LAWRENCEVILLE ELEMENTARY

Jimmie Mae Sosobee -86 190Jimmie Mae Sosebee taught 24 of her 30 years as an educator at Lawrenceville Elementary School, she spent a year and a half teaching first grade at the school on the hill where she had been a student.

Jimmie Mae was a student at Lawrenceville High school then she transferred to Washington Seminary to take advantage of the music program there. She graduated from the University of Georgia.

Jimmie Mae taught first grade at the Gwinnett Drive School and during the first six weeks of school for several years first grade students were dismissed at 1 p.m.; older students stayed until school was dismissed at 3.

Jimmie Mae remembered that she had bus duty and also was responsible for many chapel programs presented by her young students; her background in music was very important as she planned special programs and activities. She said that for several years her classroom was next to the one taught by Maxie Lord who was a great teacher and good friend to Jimmie Mae.

Jimmie Mae said that students who misbehaved were sometimes paddled by the principal.

Jimmie Mae’s two sons and two grandsons were students at Lawrenceville Elementary School; the family business, Sosebee Auto Supply, has been in operation in Downtown Lawrenceville for over 50 years.

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Allan Johnson with Military team mate reunited in Greece, 2013.

Overtime with Allan Johnson

October 15, 2013

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Most senior citizens look forward to retiring and taking it easy but Allan Johnson, known as AJ, did not adopt that attitude when he retired; he continued to play ball, run and compete in athletic events into his seventies and he is still running.

The Gwinnett Roadrunner - On The Run August 2013

The Gwinnett Roadrunner – On The Run August 2013

August 10, 2013
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(Click the photos to enlarge and read captions)

When a Southern girl calls a man “Honey” it means that she either likes him or can’t remember his name. 

No one would have been invited to dinner as often as Jesus was unless he was interesting and had a sense of humor.  ~ Charles Shultz

Honesty means integrity on everything.  Honesty means wholeness, completeness; it means truth in everything- in deed and in word.  ~ Orison Marden

Integrity is the glue that holds our way of life together.  
~ Billy Graham 

marylongSALUTE TO GRANDFATHER:Lt. John Robert Todd received his West Point Diploma at graduation exercises held at the Point on May 25, 2013; his major was Chemical Engineering.  John gave his first salute after his graduation to his grandfather, Robert Norton of Lawrenceville.  Robert Norton was a prisoner of war for 86 days in Stalag Luft#4, Germany during WWII.

John Todd will be stationed at Fort Benning, Georgia for a short time then he will go on to Ranger School in Dahlonega, Georgia.  John’s mother is Janet Norton Todd, a Lawrenceville native and graduate of Central Gwinnett High School; John’s father is John C. Todd and he and Janet are Dallas, Texas residents.  Their daughter, Mary Charlotte (Lottie), is a senior at the University of Virginia where she is majoring in Economics. 

BEST CONTEST IN GWINNETT

On Saturday July 13, 2013 judges and guest gathered at the CHEW restaurant located in the old railroad station on North Clayton Street in Lawrenceville.  The occasion was the annual home made ice cream event and the judges chose the best tasting entry along with the ones that placed second and third according to the judges taste test.  Linda Moore and Linda Henderson coordinated the event; judges were Bob and Marie Beiser, Mary Long and Shelby Jack.  (Shelby Jack was selected as Miss Georgia National Miss for 2013).  Marie Beiser and Bob are retired Gwinnett educators and Marie also serves on the Lawrenceville City Council.  Mary Long qualified as a judge because of her sincere devotion to eating ice cream.  The ice creams judged were butter pecan, strawberry cream, German chocolate, cherry and vanilla.  The cherry ice cream made by Ann Boyd placed first.  Selecting a winner was not easy for all entries were delicious.  Some of the judges had to make several trips to the freezers to compare flavors and make sure that cherry won; the Butter Pecan and Strawberry Cream tied for second place.  A peach ice cream entry came in after the judging was complete; however, the judges sampled the entry and said that another making of the concoction should be entered in the 2014 contest.

The Chew Restaurant in Lawrenceville is open on Saturdays and Sundays to serve delicious home cooked, southern food prepared by Landy and Linda Henderson.  The gift shop is opened from 9 until 4 on Saturdays and handcrafted items are for sale there. 

VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITY

The Gwinnett County Public Schools will take applications to become a member of the GEWS Oversight Committee.  This committee will provide curriculum feedback to the school system and deadline for submitting and application is September 16, 2013.  For information visit www.gwinnett.k12.ga.us.

CONGRATULATIONS

• Lawrenceville residents Joel and Martha Darsey will celebrate their Golden Wedding Anniversary on Saturday August 3rd, 2013 at a drop in reception at the Central Baptist Church.

• Terese Danner and Krisinda Dean, counselors at Level Creek Elementary and Heather Heigl and Ginna Smith counselors at Puckett’s Mill Elementary have been selected by the American School Counselor association for outstanding service to students.  

• Gwinnett County ranks fourth in a measure of health outcomes in a study by an Atlanta Regional Commission.  The commission found that Forsyth County is the healthiest county in the state.  

• Jan Burke, Snellville’s controller has received an Award of Financial Reporting Achievement by the Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada.  This award was presented because Snellville’s annual financial report has been judged to meet high standards.  To read the report: www.snellville.org.

• Greg Holley was recently appointed to the Georgia Structural Pest Control Commission by Georgia Commissioner of Agriculture Gary W. Black.  SPCC is made up to seven members, four of which are enforcing rules set forth by the Structural Pest Control Act.  In 1966 Holley founded Zone Pest Solutions Inc. in Lawrenceville, Ga.  He has served as president of his company for 17 years.  Gregg Holley is the son of Reverend Lamar and Jean Holley of Lawrenceville.  He and his Dedie have twin sons, Jake and Sam and a daughter, Anna. 

LAWRENCEVILLE REUNION

Long time residents, LHS graduates and friends gathered in the Lawrenceville First Baptist Church Community Center for the annual reunion on July 6, 2013; arrangements were made for the covered dish luncheon by Norma Bennett, Sarah and John Briscoe brought drinks for the crowd of 70.  Mayor Judy Johnson led in prayer before the delicious meal was served; one of the favorite dishes was Jean Biggers’ sweet potato casserole.  Some favorite dishes were the caramel cake made by Norma Bennett, the Class of ‘48 chocolate cake brought by Blanche Emerson, the cake that Linda Oakes and Phyllis Hood made and another favorite was the slaw that Esther Edwards made. 

Those who signed the attendance register for the 2013 Reunion were Sarah and John Briscoe, Bill and Anita Fowler, Linda and Eddie Oakes, Jimmie Sosebee, Benny and Jeanette Bramblett, Betty Jo Reepe, Jack and Darlene Craig, Morris Langley, Dwight Williams, Charles and Shirley Whitehead, Barbara Moore, Louise McMillan, Jean Turner, Phyllis Hood, Blanche Buchanan Emerson, Mary Arnold, Blondine and Charles Cooper, Bernice Bruce Raybon, JoAnn Clark, JoAnn Yancey Smith, Yvonne and Dick Keel, Yvonne Baker, Robert Norton, Robert and Grace Cain, Jo and Marvin Brownlee, Jack and Peggy Britt, Jimi Haney, Bill Medlin, Irl Chrisope, Annelle O’Kelly, Barbara Chadwick Williams, Aubrey Daniel Sensibar, Gene and Sarah Lowry, Lawrence Davis, Hoyt Caylor, Victor McKelvey, Martha Frances Hutchins, Brenda Sue Davis, Jimmie Ruth Young Swanson, Ed and Janelle Walton, Jack Webb, Judy Jordan Johnson, Sonny and Barbara Wooten, Ruby Beard, Esther Edwards, Jean and Robert Biggers, Norma Bennett, Farrar Atkinson, Myrna Fountaine Davis, Mary and Dean Long.  

The 2014 Reunion will be held on Saturday July 5 at Lawrenceville First Baptist Church.

LAWRENCEVILLE HIGH SCHOOL – CLASS OF 1956 REUNION

The Lawrenceville High School Class of 1956 met on Thursday, June 6 for a covered dish lunch at the John and Sarah Briscoe Farm in Commerce, Georgia.  Those who attended this annual event were Jimmy and Carolyn Patton Alford, Doug and Evelyn Chadwick Carlisle, Jimmie Ruth Young Swanson, Johnny and Barbara Haney Fricks, Arthur and Duane Holcomb Long, Kenneth and Carolyn Hood, Rodger and Barbara Chadwick Williams, Larry and Fern Herrington, John and Sarah Dunson Briscoe.  

Members of the Lawrenceville High School Class of 1956:  James Emory Baggett, William Langley Bell, William Jerry Brooks, Shirley Faye Brooks, Mae Belle Cannon, Barbara Ann Chadwick, Evelyn Frances Chadwick, Darrell Cicero Clack, William Robert Clack, Maurice Donald Cooper, Jo Ann Davis, Randell Millard Davis, Linda Leigh Dowis, Freddie Ronald Dodson, Sarah Rogers Dunson, Bobby Glenn Edge, Parker Harlan Edmonds, Donna Allene Fortune, Edna Lorene Fountain, Lionel Kelley Hamilton, Marjorie Jewell Haney, Barbara Jean Haney, Larry Webster Herrington, Vivian Mae Herrington, Patricia Ann Hodnett, Vivian Duane Holcombe, James Victor Hood, Jr., Kenneth Hopkins, William Robert Mahaffey, Trudie Maebell Mercier, Gary Eugene Mitchell, Judith Virginia Mundy, Jimmy Ray Oakes, Frank Barron Osborne, Mildred Grace Parks, Carolyn Patton, Jane Audrey Raney, George Gainum Robinson, Martha Robinson, Helen Louise Sells, Raymond Charles Sells, Donald William Smith, Bruce Randolph Still, Jimmie Ruth Young, Willard Turner Swanson, June Audrey Wages, George Webb, Shirley Beatrice Turner, Doris Deanna West, Esther Martha Wilkerson.

Abraham Baldwin College 1998 Reunion
reunion 440
From the left: Dean Long, Charles Daughtery, Marvin Giddens, George Rowan, Robert Golden, James Sutton, Leona Carter Upchurch, Eleanor Gaskins, Lavern H. Purser, Arthur C. Layton, Gladys Dunn, Robert Harrison, Howard Pridgen, Albert Bryan, David Dean, Gerald Cowart, William Harrell, Delmas Rushing, Nan S. Rushing, Wava B. Beard, Martin Price, Clarice H. Bell, Neal Johnson, Joe Ben Powell, Wilma R. Tillman, Barbara D. Eason, Joe Porter, Cromer Adkins, Dan Bacon, Louis Parker, John Stewart, Zack Williams, Arthur Morgan, Lavelle Webb, Herbert Ingram, Chuck Almand, John W. Adams. Note: J.W. Benefield, for whom the Elementary School was named and former Gwinnett County School Superintendent was an ABAC alumnus and many from Gwinnett were students there. ABAC is a junior college and many students finish two years there and transfer to UGA.
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