1924
Ninety-two years ago, my mother, Bernyce Gates, starred in the role of the Baby Jesus at the
Belford School Christmas program when she was barely three months old. She and
her parents lived in the home where she was born about one mile west of where
she resides now. The Farrell Morris family lived in the same house during the
1950s – 1970s. I attended Vacation Bible School with Marcy, Jean, Gayle, Wayne,
and Kathy Morris at the Big Bend Baptist Church situated on the hill just west of their
house in the valley. Even though the house is no longer there, the place is
located north across Big Bend Road from Chuck and Lisa Crabtree’s farm.
At that time, the Big Bend community boasted two grade schools. The smaller of the two was the Belford School, located on the east side of the "peninsula" - the term some atlases use to describe what is know as "the Big Bend." Woodland, the larger school, located on the west side of the Big Bend provided education for my father, Edmund Gates, Jr., and his siblings as well as my maternal grandmother, Gladys Rainey Smith and her younger siblings. In contrast, my mother and paternal grandmother, Mamie Tripp Gates, graduated from eighth grade from Belford.
At that time, the Big Bend community boasted two grade schools. The smaller of the two was the Belford School, located on the east side of the "peninsula" - the term some atlases use to describe what is know as "the Big Bend." Woodland, the larger school, located on the west side of the Big Bend provided education for my father, Edmund Gates, Jr., and his siblings as well as my maternal grandmother, Gladys Rainey Smith and her younger siblings. In contrast, my mother and paternal grandmother, Mamie Tripp Gates, graduated from eighth grade from Belford.
1930s
In the 1930s and 1940s, social events called box suppers ranked as the primary fund raiser for small
communities. Usually first, the children in the school presented a program. Contests followed the children's presentation. These contests allowed people to vote with their cash on various titles, such as prettiest girl and most popular girl.
For days in advance, each young woman in the community planned a special box with delectable treats, such as sandwiches made with "store-bought bread and lunch meat" and fruit like bananas, oranges, and apples. A large candy bar usually was a necessity, too. The young men brought their money and usually had their eye on a specific girl and her box. Each specially-decorated box was auctioned off, hoping to raise as much money as possible. Getting to share the purchased box with the girl who prepared it provided added incentive for the boys of the community to bid up the box of that certain girl. Gladys Rainey Smith, my grandma, noted that the box supper held on December 3, 1937, brought in $103.54, that included donations given, too.
It is almost inconceivable that people during the Great Depression would contribute an amount equivalent to $1,749.27 in 2016, based on calculations according to dollartimes.com. It especially astounds me since Dad had a couple of quotes to describe the economy during the 1930s. He would say, "A man would work for a dollar a day. That was when a dollar was a dollar, but nobody had one."
Mrs. Mary Clark, Mrs. Ada Forrest, and my grandma took the $103.54 to Fairfax and bought Christmas treats for the Belford Community. The women purchased 160 pounds of nuts, 670 pounds of candy, 640 oranges, and 320 apples. Grandma’s records indicate they made 320 sacks to be given out the night of the Christmas Tree or the school Christmas program. Just imagine – 320 people in attendance, this included parents, their children, the couple who taught at Belford, and the neighbors.
For days in advance, each young woman in the community planned a special box with delectable treats, such as sandwiches made with "store-bought bread and lunch meat" and fruit like bananas, oranges, and apples. A large candy bar usually was a necessity, too. The young men brought their money and usually had their eye on a specific girl and her box. Each specially-decorated box was auctioned off, hoping to raise as much money as possible. Getting to share the purchased box with the girl who prepared it provided added incentive for the boys of the community to bid up the box of that certain girl. Gladys Rainey Smith, my grandma, noted that the box supper held on December 3, 1937, brought in $103.54, that included donations given, too.
It is almost inconceivable that people during the Great Depression would contribute an amount equivalent to $1,749.27 in 2016, based on calculations according to dollartimes.com. It especially astounds me since Dad had a couple of quotes to describe the economy during the 1930s. He would say, "A man would work for a dollar a day. That was when a dollar was a dollar, but nobody had one."
Mrs. Mary Clark, Mrs. Ada Forrest, and my grandma took the $103.54 to Fairfax and bought Christmas treats for the Belford Community. The women purchased 160 pounds of nuts, 670 pounds of candy, 640 oranges, and 320 apples. Grandma’s records indicate they made 320 sacks to be given out the night of the Christmas Tree or the school Christmas program. Just imagine – 320 people in attendance, this included parents, their children, the couple who taught at Belford, and the neighbors.
21st century readers must remember that fruit, candy, and
nut meats were seldom enjoyed by most Big Bend residents. These were truly treats for the people of that era.
Interestingly, I recall my grandfather, Calvin Callcayah Smith, telling of a
man with several children, being so ladened down with a huge pack holding the treat bags for his wife
and their children that he could barely lug it out of the school house. Grandpa
jokingly said of the man with the load of treats slung over his back, “He
looked like Santy Claus!”. For us today, with such abundance, the delight over
candy sacks is hard to envision. It was such a different day and time. What a
sense of gratitude and appreciation the children in the Bend during the Great
Depression had for the smallest things!
 |
| This is a sack that was given out the morning of the Ralston Baptist Church program this year. The treat bags were generously donated so the tradition of treats,as my father referred to them, was carried on. Dad thought treats were essential to celebrating Christmas. The 21st centruy bag included an apple, an orange, and wrapped candy, instead of the loose ribbon candy of years gone by, which was in no way germfree! |
Late 1940s – Early 1960s
We always lived less than four miles from my paternal grandparents,
Edmund, Sr. and Mamie Tripp Gates, so I never stayed all night with them.
However, most of my other cousins spent nights on the Gates farm. Until Grandpa
had a stroke, my grandparents resided in a two-room house. All Christmases
prior to the mid-sixties found many aunts, uncles, and cousins squeezed into
the two-room house and bunk house.
A brief explanation of the bunk house is required. It was located just
a few steps to the west of the tiny Gates home. The bunk house had no heat so
it was not suitable accommodations for the faint of heart. My father, Edmund
Gates, Jr., claimed his younger brothers put the lantern under the covers for
warmth. Uncle Jim Gates said Grandma, Mamie Tripp Gates, was a worrier. It
sounded like she had something to worry about!
I told Dad his prospective brothers-in-law must have truly loved his
sisters. Their accommodations when first meeting the family of the five Gates
girls was the bunk house. Talk about an icy reception into the Gates family!
My oldest male cousin, Ron Bledsoe, is the son of my father’s oldest
sister, Ella. Ron recalled when the number of cousins spending Christmas peaked
that the boy cousins slept in the granary. In a recent email, Ron reminisced
about Steve Gates’ description of winter nights in the granary. As I read Ron’s
remembrance, I could hear Steve’s animated voice and face as he talked about
days gone by on the Gates farm on the Arkansas River.
 |
| Ronnie Bledsoe with the granary in the background. Obviously, this was not taken at Christmas. |
When beds got scarce, some of
us had to sleep in the granary. Talk about cold. Steve used to laugh about
that and say we were piled in there like a bunch of skunks! He was so much like
Herb when it came to telling stories.
 |
| Steve Gates on the Gates farm with the bunk house in the background. |
How precious the recollections of those Christmases past are! We are
blessed when we recall the humorous, downright funny, or even poignant,
emotional moments in previous yuletide days. What thanks we can give for the
enrichment poured into our lives by those family members who have passed on!
Cousin Ron shared in another email about those December days when
Grandpa and Grandma hosted their children and grandchildren.
My thoughts drifted back to
Christmas on the farm with my grandparents and our extended family. It was
always so exciting to me because everyone was excited about being together.
There were a few small gifts for the grandparents, but not the extravagant and
soon forgotten gift swapping of today. I remember sleeping in the bunkhouse
under quilts and how it was so cold at first, but as the bed warmed up it felt
so good. Of course, you dreaded the next morning when you had to put on cold
clothes, but the smell of the wood fire and breakfast cooking spurred you on. I
know those times are long gone, but as you get older those great memories
become a cherished possession.
Seldom do we recognize the treasure surrounding us. How often,
when we can no longer recreate them, do we miss the quiet moments with family –
just being together. Let’s not exchange the family times that seem mundane and
uneventful for the glitzy and trendy. If we fall victim to this, someday
regrets will creep into our hearts.
The inability to treasure the important causes me to wonder if anyone
in Bethlehem, other than the shepherds, realized in the smelly stable lay Emmanuel - meaning God with us. Did anyone take time to listen to the shepherds’
report of the angels in the field and the night sky illuminated with brilliant
light or were they too busy with the day-to-day activities? After all, with the
town inundated with out-of-towners for the taxation, business must have been
booming. The demand for goods and services for the influx of outsiders provided
a boon to the “bottom-line” of any industrious entrepreneur in Bethlehem. The exchange for temporal business success in the little Judean town caused most to miss one of most extraordinary happenings to occur on earth.
May we share the joy in the shepherds’ excitement and glorify and
praise God for the Savior, who is Christ the Lord. Only through Him, the Prince
of Peace, can we truly experience peace on earth, peace in our families, and peace deep within our own hearts.
