Yesterday I poured 2.9" out of the rain guage. It intrigues me how fast the moisture is absorbed into the ground. We were really dry. There was a little water in the spring where our entry road crosses the creek and for a little while there was water running through the culvert.
This morning we left at 8:30 to drive through a thick fog all the way to the Cisco highway. It cleared there but the clouds kept the sun out of our eyes all the way to Fort Worth. We got to the funeral home a little after 11 and got to visit with friends and family until the service. Mark Kite's brother 7 years younger spoke first and told how Mark was a leader in his school. He graduated from high school at age 15. He was the only one who knew how to run the printing machine at the school and they shopped out printing of wedding announcements, etc. He also edited the school newspaper and printed it. I had presumed he was a leader even then. Being the eldest brother when his father died when he was 15 he helped the family cope. He took them out to the cotton fields to pick cotton for a few dollars. When the war broke out, he went with 3 other classmates to volunteer for pilot training and he was the only one who qualified. He became a pilot but flew after the shooting war was over in Japan. He then flew coal cargos in C-54s during the Berlin airlift operation. He later was sent to reactivate Reese AFB in Lubbock where I served in a reserve unit and was called to active duty during the Korean War. Mark was my boss. He had gotten married a year after Lou and I. We were there for the birth of their son, Matthew and served as godparents for his daughter, Melissa. Our son Mark was named for him.
I was asked to speak at the funeral service after his brother and filled in his life with General Dynamics. I also told of his living with us for a few weeks in Fort Worth after he left the AF and got his Civil Engr degree from SLU in Lafayette, La. and at my suggestion came to work with me in the wing group of GD. I told how he had a great impact on my religious development by bringing a copy of a book written by his CE department head, Dr. Henry M. Morris who later founded the Creation Research Society. I still read devotionals written by him every morning. I described how Mark and I used to have discussions that Lou thought were loud arguments and how I look forward to joining him in a few years when we will then have all the answers to our discussions and will be able to say "I told you I was right".
My talk was followed by a beautiful talk by his daughter-in-law, Valerie Kite, who is a poet and told of Mark's love for all literature and especially the poets. The funeral chaplain then recounted stories of Mark teaching Sunday School class at Westcliff United Methodist Church where we were both active on the Board.
We then had a police escorted procession to Grand Prairie where the DFW national cemetary is located and had a military detail fold the flag, listen to taps and then present the flag to Madge. Mark and Kathy drove us and we appreciated their help. We returned to the funeral home for light snacks before getting on the road. As we exited 820 toward Weatherford we ran into rain that became a downpour with wicked looking clouds to the left and the radio reporting tornado warnings south of us. We apparently were just on the edge of a storm that then proceeded to flood and knock out power in Fort Worth and Dallas and the towns in between. When we got home we had another inch in our rain guage. We are thankful for the rain and were glad that it didn't pour during the funeral.
This morning we left at 8:30 to drive through a thick fog all the way to the Cisco highway. It cleared there but the clouds kept the sun out of our eyes all the way to Fort Worth. We got to the funeral home a little after 11 and got to visit with friends and family until the service. Mark Kite's brother 7 years younger spoke first and told how Mark was a leader in his school. He graduated from high school at age 15. He was the only one who knew how to run the printing machine at the school and they shopped out printing of wedding announcements, etc. He also edited the school newspaper and printed it. I had presumed he was a leader even then. Being the eldest brother when his father died when he was 15 he helped the family cope. He took them out to the cotton fields to pick cotton for a few dollars. When the war broke out, he went with 3 other classmates to volunteer for pilot training and he was the only one who qualified. He became a pilot but flew after the shooting war was over in Japan. He then flew coal cargos in C-54s during the Berlin airlift operation. He later was sent to reactivate Reese AFB in Lubbock where I served in a reserve unit and was called to active duty during the Korean War. Mark was my boss. He had gotten married a year after Lou and I. We were there for the birth of their son, Matthew and served as godparents for his daughter, Melissa. Our son Mark was named for him.
I was asked to speak at the funeral service after his brother and filled in his life with General Dynamics. I also told of his living with us for a few weeks in Fort Worth after he left the AF and got his Civil Engr degree from SLU in Lafayette, La. and at my suggestion came to work with me in the wing group of GD. I told how he had a great impact on my religious development by bringing a copy of a book written by his CE department head, Dr. Henry M. Morris who later founded the Creation Research Society. I still read devotionals written by him every morning. I described how Mark and I used to have discussions that Lou thought were loud arguments and how I look forward to joining him in a few years when we will then have all the answers to our discussions and will be able to say "I told you I was right".
My talk was followed by a beautiful talk by his daughter-in-law, Valerie Kite, who is a poet and told of Mark's love for all literature and especially the poets. The funeral chaplain then recounted stories of Mark teaching Sunday School class at Westcliff United Methodist Church where we were both active on the Board.
We then had a police escorted procession to Grand Prairie where the DFW national cemetary is located and had a military detail fold the flag, listen to taps and then present the flag to Madge. Mark and Kathy drove us and we appreciated their help. We returned to the funeral home for light snacks before getting on the road. As we exited 820 toward Weatherford we ran into rain that became a downpour with wicked looking clouds to the left and the radio reporting tornado warnings south of us. We apparently were just on the edge of a storm that then proceeded to flood and knock out power in Fort Worth and Dallas and the towns in between. When we got home we had another inch in our rain guage. We are thankful for the rain and were glad that it didn't pour during the funeral.
posted by Dr. Rodenberger at 9:28 PM
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