Category: Larry Briggs

Dear Joneses:
I finally pulled the trigger on scheduling our 52nd Annual Descendants of Ransom Jones Reunion. Like I said in my last email, I did not act in a timely fashion to secure the Sequoyah facility, so we will be meeting at the NorthPoint United Pentecostal Church in Sperry on Saturday, August 5. As usual, bring your favorite dishes and share. I will open the church at about 10 a.m., and could use some help setting up the table and chair layout. Bring photos if you can so that others can take a phone shot of them. There is no charge for the facility, but we normally put a donation jar on the dessert table. Hope to see everyone there.

Larry Briggs

Thanks to all of you who could break loose and spend the day Saturday at Sequoyah State Park. We had a great turnout (about 70) and the air conditioning was “mahvelous”. The surrounding park was beautiful, and while driving through the pines to the facility, I spotted about a dozen wild turkey hens scavenging through the pine needles. Several people came to me and told me they really liked the facility, and asked me to book it next year. I will research all of the available camp sites at the park, including the group camp facility. I plan to try to set aside a “room block” at the main lodge (Western Hills Lodge). There are cabins and several prices of rooms, and if a few families really want to make a full weekend event at the park, they could reserve one of the rooms. Since we are not at the mercy of Lutherhoma to book particular weekends, we can be more flexible with our dates. Some have suggested a cooler time of the year while school is out. My first thought would be for a date around the third weekend in June. I realize that any date during the summer would be vulnerable to certain ones being on vacation. One influencing factor would be the availability of facilities at the park. Give me your thoughts on the date change.

Thanks to everyone for the plaque, card and the hand-carved cedar cane crafted by our patriarch Uncle Johnny, and presented to me just before lunch. It was a show of appreciation for the 35 enjoyable years I have spent as the organizer of the reunion. This made my weekend and my year, and I truly was overwhelmed by the gesture.

Larry

From 2011-08-20 Jones Reunion 2011

From 2011-08-20 Jones Reunion 2011

Lutherhoma out….Sequoyah State Park in.

Dear Joneses:

Yesterday I received the new contract from Lutherhoma and was shocked to
find rate increases that I feel to be unaffordable. Camp Director John
Busch had assured me that the rate increases would be very modest, but I
guess his superiors overruled him. Since we have struggled over the years
to collect the $5 per person for the Saturday camp visit, I felt the new
rate of $11 for the Saturday session was over the top. Lutherhoma’s weekend
rate more than doubled… from $21 to $44. Therefore, at the risk of
ruffling a few feathers, I had to scramble to find a workable alternative
and destination for this year’s 45th Descendants of Ransom Jones Reunion.
At the upcoming event, we can discuss plans for future reunions, so I would
like everyone to come prepared with a suggestion or two on future locations.

For this year, I have booked the Cherokee Pavilion at Sequoyah State Park (8
miles east of Wagoner) for Saturday, August 20. The total charge for the
group for the weekend is $150 plus a refundable $100 cleaning deposit. Plan
on spending $4 for each person you bring age 5 and above. If our attendance
is good we can probably lower it to $3. We can have access to the building
from 7:30 a.m. until 11 p.m. The building is air conditioned and has an
attached screened-in area that should work well for overflow conditions.
The facility is 2400 square feet including the screened-in area. There are
55 chairs and 16 eight foot tables furnished. I suggest we all bring a
couple of lawn or folding chairs to finish out the requirement, as we have
had as many as 100 guests in past years. There is a food prep area
consisting of a counter some 10′ long with sink and cabinets. There is also
a residential type refrigerator. This means we need to bring ice chests to
keep the food until time to serve. Closer to time for the reunion we will
call for volunteers to bring extra ice, etc.

The Cherokee Pavilion is located some 200′ from the Fort Gibson Lake water’s
edge and there is a boat ramp nearby. Just outside the pavilion entrance is
a brand new state-of-the-art bath house with modern showers and handicap
accessible toilets. There are RV pads with electric and water available…
only a few feet away that rent for $25 per night through the headquarters
office. Some of you may wish to come down Friday night and park your rig,
and have access to your RV during the day for naps, etc…..or stay
overnight Saturday into Sunday to relax the next day at the park.

I have attached photos above, and will send a map of the park in a separate email.

From Sequoyah State Park

>Click here for larger version of the map<
Let’s make the upcoming reunion a great one and future ones even greater.
Thanks for your understanding and participation.
Larry (quite contrary) Briggs