September 7, 2013
The Presque Isle Passage RV Park greeted us warmly when we
arrived on September 6th. Coincidentally, this park was formally
owned by a “Hill” family. A Wal-Mart run was on the schedule for the morning of
September 7th, to purchase provisions and take a ride into the city
of Erie. Ten of the Tall Ships were in port and due to the multitudes of people
trying to get close enough to view and tour these amazing sailing vessels, we
couldn’t get anywhere near, within the time frame which we had. Soooooo, back
to the RV Park we went to prepare for the Official Visit at Selket Temple No.
140, Daughters of the Nile. This Temple meets at Zem Zem Shrine Center, a
beautiful building! It was a short night after the banquet as we left at 5 pm
this morning for our 5.5 hour trip to Parkersburg, WV. Actually, we are on the
road as I am writing this. The farther south we go, here in the state of Ohio,
the hillier the terrain becomes. Being from the Northeast, I think of this
country as being so industrial and it is amazing to me to see so much farm
country! This is truly the “Heartland”. Thus far on this journey we have
crossed into and out of 22 states and provinces, have visited 15 Shrine
Centers, 6 Shriners Hospitals for Children® and logged almost 12,000 miles!
September 11, 2013
I would be sorely remiss if I did not make mention in this
blog of the horrific attack on this country 12 years ago today. We as Americans,
lost so many innocent citizens on that fateful day, from the attack at the
Pentagon in our Nations’ Capitol, the devastation and destruction of the World
Trade Center in New York City and the fatal crash of Flight 93 in a remote
field in rural Pennsylvania. Our country and mostly our hearts will be scarred
forever; may we always honor and memorialize our fallen citizens and members of
the military who have fought so valiantly to uphold the honor of this United
States by securing our freedoms, not only for us but for our future
generations.
After arriving in Parkersburg, WV on the morning of September
8th, we were greeted at Nemesis Shrine Center by Queen Agnes and
Princess Royal Pat, who brought us delicious cheese balls, homemade salsa,
chips, crackers, homemade Plum wine and a homemade apple pie. Yum!!! This 5
year old Shrine Center is nestled among the trees, high on a hill and
overlooking the valley where the city of Parkersburg is located. Beautiful!
These Shriners built their building to accommodate their needs as well as
provide a great venue for receptions, banquets, etc. They have an outside
pavilion, complete with picnic tables, a kitchen, sound system, grills and
electric hookup. Future plans include adding a gazebo. Deer and turkeys wander
around the property on this serene site. The Official Visit was at the Masonic
Center; a beautiful old building in the heart of this quaint and historic city.
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| Hillbilly Unit honoring SQ Margaret Ann |
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| Proclamation from the City of Parkersburg |
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| Queen Agnes' granddaughter performing "We Put Children First". |
On Monday morning, before leaving town to head towards Pittsburgh, we met with
several of the ladies at the Blennerhassett Hotel for breakfast. Let me back up
a little here. In Supreme Queen Margaret Ann talk during the Ceremonial, one of
here suggestions is to encourage the members to dress alike and go out to a
restaurant, etc. and have fun. This will stimulate questions from onlookers re:
who they are and what organization do they belong to. So, when we walked into
the hotel restaurant I glanced at a table of five ladies who were dressed in,
at first glance, what appeared to be t-shirts. Well, when taking a second look,
they were not dressed in t-shirts but in identical nightshirts, slippers, hair
clips and each holding a stuffed animal. We couldn’t stop laughing!!! (Note to
Supreme Queen – be careful what you suggest!) True to form, we were asked by
other patrons, who we were and what organization did we belong to.
On the road toward Pittsburgh we stopped at a Wal-Mart to
look for identical garb such as the ladies in the restaurant were wearing, but
to no avail, we struck out and could not conceal our disappointment. We parked in
Connellsville, PA at an RV Park for the night.
Airys Temple, Daughters of the Nile greeted us on the
morning of September 10th at Syria Shrine Center in Cheswick, PA;
another beautiful building on an expansive site. After the Ceremonial and at
the banquet, many events occurred. We were escorted in to the main ballroom on
a plush “Red Carpet”. We were entertained by the Syria Shriners Chief Rabban
and his singing partner Tony, fabulous! Supreme Queen Margaret Ann was
presented with a Pennsylvania State Flag which had been flown at the capitol
building for a day and an American Flag which too, was flown over the capitol
building and was presented by the pageantry unit of Airys Temple in a flag
folding ceremony, amazing!
Oh, I almost forgot, the five ladies who were dressed alike in Parkersburg were introduced at the beginning of the banquet, as the “Traveling Nilettes and dressed in their “outfits”. They presented both Margaret Ann and me a gift; in the bag were complete outfits, identical to theirs, complete with hair clips and stuffed animals. Apparently they shopped at a different Wal-Mart than we did!! So, do I think that the “Traveling Nilettes” will show up at another Nile banquet? Oh yeah!!!
My original intent with this blog was to keep you all updated on an almost daily basis, so I apologize for the extended gaps between postings. Really, I’ll try to do better, however while the Supreme Queen is traveling in the Northwest, Nila, her driver and company are on hiatus in the Northeast. Back to my journal – This has been a journey of a life time for us; to be able to gaze out of the large windshield of the motor coach and take in the landscape of the cities, country and Great Lakes! The people along the way have been amazing, including the ladies and gentlemen of the Daughters of the Nile and Shriners as well as the curious seekers when we stop for fuel, or at an overnight stop in an RV Park. We’ve even received donations from strangers who after learning about the tour, felt compelled to contribute to the Foundation. Priceless!
After leaving Pittsburg, we traveled the short distance to
Altoona, PA, home of the railroad industry in its early days. After lunch, my
counterpart, Jackie Grove took me on a tour of the city, showing me where her
Dad worked for his entire career at the railroad yards which manufactured
engines and cars. We also stopped at the Boyer Candy plant where Smoothies and
Mallow Cups are made….remember them? The very large Shrine Center holds its
Shrine Circus inside this historic building. Beautiful!
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| Three Shriner's Kids were present at the banquet and told their stories. |
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