Waukena Family 43rd Annual Reunion..........

We were invited by a man named Danny J to his family reunion...................what an experience. The invitation listed on the back some rules for the reunion.

• No alcohol
• No smoking
• No drugs
• No fireworks
• No obscene language

This family was huge............we drove about 20 miles to the summit of the mountain and there was their family property - there were hundreds of people from everywhere - Florida, Oklahoma, Utah, Oregon, Washington...............It was an original brother and his 3 sisters.......as soon as we pulled up we wondered about being there - but immediately we were accepted just as if we were family - what a lesson again of their love and humility...........I have never seen so much food. This was organized to the letter - they were just staying one night, and so there were tents set up all around this huge clearing..........Upon talking to Della (one of the sisters) we found this was their original settling where they had lived and herded sheep and cattle when the family was little.

It was fun to a FAMILY so united - even when they hardly knew some of the members that were there. They had about 3 big tents filled with prizes..............(so of course I felt right at home!!!)

Before we knew it - we were in the middle of the action - Elder Hafen was serving food and I was at the punch table pouring punch and helping people carry it to their campsites............They had roast pork (they'd had in a pit overnight), beef, hamburgers, hot dogs, sausages, mutton stew, potato salad, potato chips, beans, fry bread, steamed corn (this is the corn they steam over night in those big outside ovens), cake.........punch.........

They had an opening prayer and blessing - what a beautiful prayer expressing gratitude for each little thing of the earth, family, friends, food...............it was a LONG prayer........I was impressed that they asked the teenagers to come to the food booth first and SERVE the elder people of the family - neat to see..............They had a live band performing from the flat bed trucks...........stage....Elder Hafen felt right at home with his country music!!!! Visited one Vietnamese woman from Provo who was married to a Navajo.......she wanted our pictures - so I am taking pictures of all of them and they are taking pictures of us!!!

One young man had served his mission in St Michaels about 2 1/2 years ago and he visited a grandma here a lot and saw a picture of her grand daughter (who was serving a mission in California) and told the Grandma - "I'm going to marry that girl"................and when he finished his mission he came here from Florida again and did marry that girl!! What a darling little family. They have a sweet baby girl. That whole family from Florida were here to visit them for the reunion.............

We loved our day - what fun!!