One of our Lions Visually Impaired Persons (VIPs) has now left us. The last two times I visited Harvey Rosselli he was living in his house with his son part way up Tryon Peak, overlooking I-26 as it climbs Miller Mountain. His late wife Johanna used to bring him to our Lions’ luncheon for our VIPs, and she sang for us at one of them. I had been tuning their piano for them, so I was well acquainted with both.

Their home on the mountain is at the end of a half mile private road, one lane between trees, with interesting curves and dips for the driver’s enjoyment. The Rossellis were thus isolated from the world, but I hope some of you knew them. Johanna sang operettas with her lovely soprano voice in Germany before they came here.

Another shock: the passing of young Horace A. Smith! I used to see him at the former NCNB in Tryon, later Bank of America. I fully expected him to be promoted to Manager, but BofA had a different idea. I ran into him often lately at the Columbus Post Office, always a big grin of recognition and sharing of a long term friendship. I worked with his late brothers, Paul and Clarence, at Tryon Builders Supply way back when I was in high school! Not to mention another late brother, Cecil, who had the grocery and hardware stores where Calvert’s is now.

While we are remembering the old NCNB, it followed the old Tryon Bank and Trust, managed for so many years by the younger John Landrum. Now I must say a fond farewell to his wife, Elizabeth. She has been in White Oak of late, always seemed glad to see me, but also seemed to be tired of living in her circumstances. At long last, she has rejoined John for eternity.

Also sorry to have to bid farewell to Jim McPherson . . . he stopped joining us for breakfast at TJ’s shortly after Nancy died. He was pastor at Tryon Presbyterian when they had their 75th anniversary observance. We attended because I expected to meet many of my Tryon High alumni friends, and we certainly did. They included Bill and Joe Derby, Gelolo Iris Kell and even “Lock” McGeachy, who had disappeared shortly after graduation (no one knew what became of him). He came from Tennessee and filled us in on his absence.

Fran told Jim after meeting him that she was disappointed. Startled, he asked “Why?” She then eased the shock by saying that with a name like his she expected a fine Scottish brogue. Lacking that, Jim was still a great storyteller, always entertaining us with his wry comments and anecdotes. We’ve certainly missed him already, but the finality that his voice is stilled is sad.

We got our flu shots, our pneumonia shots and faithfully swallow a handful of pills morning and night to maintain our “good” health, such as it is. I get on the treadmill as often as my activities will permit in order to help my cardiologist keep me alive. Between medical appointments it is becoming difficult to meet our other obligations, such as Lions. We are thankful for our friends in the medical  and related professions as well as the ones we meet socially. One of my fellow toilers at the gym asked me one day, “Garland, are you going to work out, or just talk to people?” He just continued to smile as I told him, “That’s what I DO!”