Home»All Photographs»Charlie & Barbara's 50th

"So Bob, where are Bruce & Nancy?" "Oh, they're on their way to Aruba!" ... It all began when Charlie indicated that he did NOT want any surprises on his 50th Anniversary. So, everyone obliged...kind of. A date was chosen and reservations were made. It will be at their local church after the morning service...and they have been actively involved with planning ever since. What they did not know is that "the Family" -- 22 7/9ths people -- were already planning the ultimate surprise--a three day "fishing trip" with Bob, Pam, Bruce and Nancy. The story went something like this: Bruce & Nancy have been offered a free weekend at a customer's fishing camp-- somewhere near Sunday River Maine -- and they want to invite Bob, Pam, Barbara and Charlie to go fishing with them. This was the bait and Charlie--the famous angler--swallowed it hook, line and sinker. The problem was to keep him from figuring things out. Endless telephone calls, discussions with Bruce (thank you, Bruce for your ambiguous explanations as to what and where...and making sure they understood that they were not to bring any food...after all you have been doing a lot of cooking lately and you want to show off. You and Nancy will take care of procuring the food and we will settle up later), making sure Pam had a fishing license (Sorry about the $50, Pam...you can still go fishing for the balance of the season), and exploration of maps looking for potential fishing spots. So when the time came, we had to make sure that before the guests of honor arrived, everyone had a chance to find the "little" fishing camp, unpack, decorate and practice the song "How Sweet It Is To Be Loved By You." This we accomplished by indicating that Bruce and Nancy were running late and would meet us at the camp at 9:00PM. In the meantime Bob & Pam guided Charlie and Barbara-- by cell phone-- to the "Crossroads Diner" where we formally celebrated Barbara's birthday. Finally, everything was in place. It was time for the Surprise! As we drove into the driveway on Lake Christopher the suspense was at a high pitch. Apparently Charlie saw some people gathered in the dark at what appeared to be a party "next door" -- a large place next to a more modest structure. He didn't think a thing about it until Donovan suddenly ran into the beam of his headlights. Still no comprehension! It was obvious to hm that Bruce had invited Donovan and probably Pam's Andrew to fish with us -- after all-- they both love fishing. And then, suddenly, everyone lit up sparklers and Music filled the air. It was Andy, his guitar and the French Family Singers--"How Sweet It Is To Be Loved By You." By then Charlie and Barbara were in a mild state of shock. "How could Bruce & Nancy afford to have so many people for the weekend?" ... It was truth time ... "So Bob, where are Bruce & Nancy?" "Oh, they're on their way to Aruba!"