Courtship and Marriage

It was definitely a match made in Heaven. Mom and Daddy continued to bond as they planned activities for the young singles.  Their first real date was attending the missionary rally in Charlotte at the C&MA Council.  He took her to lunch and she ordered a fruit salad.  Unfortunately, it did not live up to their expectations, because upon finishing, it she saw small lettuce worm crawl across her plate. Without making a fuss, Daddy simply inquired of the server if they charged extra for the meat.  They did not … Mom’s meal was free. Such was their first date.   I believe Grandma fell instantly in love with Daddy; he seemed to blend right  in the Alspaugh clan.  In fact he seemed to have a special attachment  for my Uncle Leroy who was in the advanced stages of Crohns disease and had moved back home after a failed marriage. A trip to Mayo clinic had  proved to be of no avail. A rude nurse at a local hospital informed Grandma that Leroy was just a big baby. After Leroy’s death, Daddy who always championed the cause of the underdog sought the nurse out, and said,  “Remember that big baby that wad here last month?  Well, we buried him last week.”  By this time Bill and Miriam were engaged.  Because of the funeral and due to the fact two younger sisters married that same year,   Bill and Miriam chose to keep their wedding simple. They even selected Christmas day when most of the family would already be present. Bill broke all wedding protocol by joining the family for Christmas dinner and then he and Miriam went to check on the church, which was already decorated for Christmas, and so the Family Chatom was established on December 25, 1957.  The Reverend Homer Klinsing officiated.  The special music offered was “Savior like a Shepherd Lead Us.” And so He did for 43 years of marriage. The adventure was just beginning. They took a brief honeymoon to Williamsburg/Jamestown, VA which they culminated by surprising the Acklands at the train station in Roanoke, VA , Then they returned home to Winston-Salem to a small yellow rental house on Salt St at the edge of Old Salem. Life was just beginning.