August 14, 2018

          Our main drag, Highway 36, has been undergoing a summer construction session. Chipping started at the county line on the road up Strawberry Canyon and has made its way steadily down to the intersection of Highways 36 and 34, just north of the bridge over Bear River. The time it has taken our residents to get to and from Preston has lengthened considerably while waiting for the pilot cars to guide us through. However, we know that it will be worth it in the improvement of future travels.

          The family of Wynn and Cecelie Costley celebrated her birthday with all family congregating at the Costley homestead. With five daughters and two sons, all with families of their own , it amounts to a good-sized group. They enjoyed the time together with games, food and lots of visiting and sharing of memories.

           There was a Jepsen Reunion, this time the Freeman and Ada Jepsen family. The headquarters of this group is on the family farm, now occupied by their oldest son, Glen and Betty Jo Jepsen. Seventy-three people attended. There were family representatives able to be here for all siblings except Bruce who lives in Washington state. Marilyn and Robert Godfrey of Mesa, AZ, JoAnn and Kevin Auger of Woodland Hills, UT, Dan Jepsen of Bountiful, UT. Projects and fun abounded: fence painting, timber cutting, attending the rodeo, and water fun at both the Mink Creek Ballpark and the Oneida Narrows Dam with three family boats to keep the water spraying. They included the annual family foot race for those feeling extra fit.

         The daughters of John and Edith Olson returned to their Mink Creek roots for a few days at their place perched on the western slope above Strawberry Creek. They have a splendid view in all directions and can soak up the mountains that became so dear to their family. They grew up in a spot called Heliga Vista. Karen Tribett from Elk Ridge; Margaret and Bill Wright, Janet Bergera, Mary Carter all of Payson; Nancy Olson of Alt Lake City; Emily Johnson and her daughter Jaycee of Moab; all are now Utah residents. Bill Wright is the mayor of Payson so Mink Creek is a good get-away for the Wrights. Some of the group included a visit to a neighbor from the past, Naomi Wilde, age 103, who now resides in Pocatello.

           Sheldon and Candy Longhurst announce the birth of their first grandchild. Tiffany and Spencer Wheeler, of Parma, ID, now have a tiny son, born on July 29^th. The whole Longhurst family drove up to celebrate this event.

          The Tate Family Reunion kept things going at the Egley Park on the shady banks of Mink Creek. There were multiple cousins from Utah and Idaho present to reconnect. There was no rain and it was good times all around.

            The grains are going through the combines. The whir of the combine motor is fall music. Golden fields transformed into tons of small golden kernels, hauled by trucks, dumped onto the storing floors of the recipient. Grain isn't the only thing in need of harvest at this time. Gardners are picking their green beans, chokecherries are nearly black in ripeness, summer apples are begging to be picked. It is a rewarding time to live in the country.