Southwest Sierra #103 – A Wedding and a Celebration of Life

The population of Alleghany exploded briefly last weekend. A wedding was held at “The Point” for our oldest son Tahoe. It was his wife Courtney’s idea to hold the ceremony there. The backup plan, if the weather was bad, was to hold the ceremony in the Old School Theater (aka Gym), where the reception was going tobe. Happily, the weather was perfect. The father of the bride, who happens to be a Minister, conducted the ceremony. The setting was breathtaking. We were all surprised when the bride arrived in a black wedding dress! (Those preacher’s daughters) One of the Grandmas commented: “She shines in the dark.” A perfect sentiment for this woman who is THE MOM, who has turned our son’s house into a home. Approximately 80 people attended the wedding, and another 30 or more showed up for the reception. Dinner seating was in front of the Old Theater with a taco bar. Inside the building, the band BuckStar graced the stage, and the father of the groom conducted a liquid light show to the music. A great time was had by all!

About three weeks before the wedding, Robbin DeWeese contacted me about using the Old School Theater for Bruce Coons’ Celebration of Life. I held my breath waiting for the date that she had in mind and was relieved when she didn’t say Saturday the 24th but instead said Sunday the 25th. “That will work!” I exclaimed. The building hadn’t seen an event since May 24th of last year. Holding the two events back-to-back had the advantage of only having to do the heavy cleaning once.

The morning after the wedding, we moved about a third of the tables inside and hauled the rest away. We cleared out the garbage and swept out the wedding celebration debris. After that, the Coons family and friends took over the set-up for Bruce’s Celebration of Life. They did a beautiful job decorating the tables, a slide show, and everything else. It all came together perfectly. The potluck was fantastic, with plenty of food to go ‘round. The event was well attended by friends and family from many places and times in Bruce’s life. It was interesting to learn about pre-Alleghany Bruce. He was more multi-faceted than I ever realized! Bruce’s three grown children did an exceptional job speaking, and a toast with Bruce’s favorite, peach brandy, was led by Robbin. We honored the memory of Bruce with a mixture of laughter and tears.

The Old School Theater (aka Gym) is part of the fabric of many lives lived in Alleghany. It was built by the Sixteen to One Mine as a Community Hall, probably in the 1920s. I have seen the iconic roofline with the large vents in at least one photo from that era. When the decision was made to build a new school in the 1930s, it made sense to build it next door and use the Theater as the school Gym. Since the Theater pre-dates the Gym, I am trying to switch to calling it a Theater.It always feels good to sweep out the cobwebs, mop the floor, and invite everyone in. I love the building so much that cleaning it feels more like a privilege than a chore.

A few fragments of old masking tape cling stubbornly to the floor. It is all that remains of the Cake Walk squares. When the School was still next door, and the building was being used on a regular basis, cake walks were a part of most holiday parties. For those who do not know, a “cake walk” is held by marking a square or circle with numbers on it on the floor. Participants walk in the square or circle until given a signal to stop. Numbers that coincide with the numbers on the floor are drawn from a hat, and whoever happens to be standing on the chosen number wins a cake! For these events, cakes were baked and donated by residents. Speaking of cake, I have the leftover wedding cake in my fridge if anyone wants a piece.