We will open the book. Its pages are blank. We are going to put words on them ourselves. The book is called "Opportunity" and its first chapter is New Years Day.
Boys, if there is any piece of advice that you listen to from your Mom, is to always have good friends. Friends are the base of your being. They keep you grounded. I love my friends as much as myself. 
We found a new treasure spot - Saratoga. Some pretty awesome Porter people live there surrounded by some gorgeous landscape. I couldn't have asked for a better birthday. Love my boy klan that make me feel extra special. 
It is time to harvest our souls and say thank you to God as well as our founding fathers for our families, our homes, and the food we eat. The day is a reminder of not only how much we have, but how little we truly need. May our children heed this...as well as the annual turkey gobble calls!In September 1620, a small ship called the Mayflower left Plymouth, England, carrying 102 passengers—an assortment of religious separatists seeking a new home where they could freely practice their faith and other individuals lured by the promise of prosperity and land ownership in the New World. After a treacherous and uncomfortable crossing that lasted 66 days, they dropped anchor near the tip of Cape Cod, far north of their intended destination at the mouth of the Hudson River. One month later, the Mayflower crossed MassachusettsBay, where the Pilgrims, as they are now commonly known, began the work of establishing a village at Plymouth.
Throughout that first brutal winter, most of the colonists remained on board the ship, where they suffered from exposure, scurvy and outbreaks of contagious disease. Only half of the Mayflower’s original passengers and crew lived to see their first New England spring. In March, the remaining settlers moved ashore, where they received an astonishing visit from an Abenaki Indian who greeted them in English. Several days later, he returned with another Native American, Squanto, a member of the Pawtuxet tribe who had been kidnapped by an English sea captain and sold into slavery before escaping to London and returning to his homeland on an exploratory expedition. Squanto taught the Pilgrims, weakened by malnutrition and illness, how to cultivate corn, extract sap from maple trees, catch fish in the rivers and avoid poisonous plants. He also helped the settlers forge an alliance with theWampanoag, a local tribe, which would endure for more than 50 years and tragically remains one of the sole examples of harmony between European colonists and Native Americans.
In November 1621, after the Pilgrims’ first corn harvest proved successful, Governor William Bradford organized a celebratory feast and invited a group of the fledgling colony’s Native American allies, including the Wampanoag chief Massasoit. Now remembered as American’s “first Thanksgiving”—although the Pilgrims themselves may not have used the term at the time—the festival lasted for three days. While no record exists of the historic banquet’s exact menu, the Pilgrim chronicler Edward Winslow wrote in his journal that Governor Bradford sent four men on a “fowling” mission in preparation for the event, and that the Wampanoag guests arrived bearing five deer. Historians have suggested that many of the dishes were likely prepared using traditional Native American spices and cooking methods. Because the Pilgrims had no oven and the Mayflower’s sugar supply had dwindled by the fall of 1621, the meal did not feature pies, cakes or other desserts, which have become a hallmark of contemporary celebrations.
Pilgrims held their second Thanksgiving celebration in 1623 to mark the end of a long drought that had threatened the year’s harvest and prompted Governor Bradford to call for a religious fast. Days of fasting and thanksgiving on an annual or occasional basis became common practice in other New England settlements as well. During the American Revolution, the Continental Congress designated one or more days of thanksgiving a year, and in 1789 George Washington issued the first Thanksgiving proclamation by the national government of the United States; in it, he called upon Americans to express their gratitude for the happy conclusion to the country’s war of independence and the successful ratification of the U.S. Constitution. His successors John Adams and James Madison also designated days of thanks during their presidencies.
In 1817, New York became the first of several states to officially adopt an annual Thanksgiving holiday; each celebrated it on a different day, however, and the American South remained largely unfamiliar with the tradition. In 1827, the noted magazine editor and prolific writer Sarah Josepha Hale—author, among countless other things, of the nursery rhyme “Mary Had a Little Lamb”—launched a campaign to establish Thanksgiving as a national holiday. For 36 years, she published numerous editorials and sent scores of letters to governors, senators, presidents and other politicians. Abraham Lincoln finally heeded her request in 1863, at the height of the Civil War, in a proclamation entreating all Americans to ask God to “commend to his tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife” and to “heal the wounds of the nation.” He scheduled Thanksgiving for the final Thursday in November, and it was celebrated on that day every year until 1939, whenFranklin D. Roosevelt moved the holiday up a week in an attempt to spur retail sales during the Great Depression. Roosevelt’s plan, known derisively as Franksgiving, was met with passionate opposition, and in 1941 the president reluctantly signed a bill making Thanksgiving the fourth Thursday in November.
This was being painted during Noah's last soccer game of this season. Two members of our family that our children never met, are on the board. May their legacies forever live on.
Richard H. Ladue
August 27, 2010
The funeral Mass will be said 11 a.m. Monday, Aug. 30, at St. Cecilia’s Catholic Church, Grove Street, Adams, with Rev. Patrick Ratigan officiating. Burial will follow with military honors in Brookside Cemetery, Watertown.
Calling hours are 2 to 6 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 29, at the Reed & Benoit Funeral Home, 632 State St., Watertown.
Born July 1, 1948, in Watertown, a son of Hobart H. and Virginia Gotham Ladue, he graduated in 1967 from Watertown High School. He received his associate's degree in business administration in 1969 from Jefferson Community College. Following his education, he served with the Army for two years.
Mr. Ladue joined the New York State Police on Jan. 1, 1974. He was promoted to investigator on Nov. 1, 1984, and to the rank of sergeant on Nov. 10, 1988. He was promoted to senior investigator on Feb. 22, 1996, and retired from the New York State Police April 3 , 2007.
He married Jacqueline A. Petrie on Aug. 25, 1979, at St. Cecilia's Catholic Church, Adams.
He enjoyed fishing, boating and the company of his family and friends.
Surviving are his wife, Jacqueline A., Henderson Harbor; two sons and a daughter-in-law, Maj. Richard H., Jr. and Jami, Colorado, and Chad B., Henderson Harbor; a daughter and her husband, Amy and Aaron Reid, New Hampshire; three grandchildren, Harrison (Bailey), Kaitlyn and Tristan; a sister, Sandra J. DeLand, Punta Gorda, Fla.; several nieces and nephews.
A brother, Bruce H., died July 13, 1982.
The family has requested that contributions be made to the Diabetes Association, the American Heart Association, or to the American Cancer Society.
Condolences and thoughts of remembrance may be expressed at www.reedbenoit.com.
Durma P. Elliott
April 11, 2010
Born Jan. 13, 1916, in Pulaski, she was the middle child of Charles and Verna Butts, she grew up in Watertown and graduated in 1934 from Watertown High School. After high school, she was employed by the F.W. Woolworth chain.
In 1936 she met and married Garnet E. Elliott of Hounsfield. They started their married life in Watertown and soon built a house on Pillar Point on the shores of Lake Ontario.
In the winter of 1946 during a blizzard when Garnet had to snow shoe to Dexter for food, the decision was made to leave the shore and move to Dexter where Garnet began employment with I. R. Poole Gas. They lived in Dexter until 1953 when they moved to Adams and the opened the Poole Appliance store located on Main Street which is now Cafe Mira, and then to Spring St. which is now Whitney’s. Durma was also employed by Belloffs Dept. Store as a sales clerk. She worked there until she and Garnet opened Elliott’s Liquor Store on Rt. 11.
They retired from the store in 1975 and wintered in Kissimmee, Fla., returning home summers, living next door to their son, Bill, and family on Route 11. They were happily able to continue the best of both worlds and climates until Garnet died in June 15, 1992.
Durma continued traveling back and forth for a few more years until she decided to spend her winters living with her daughter Connie in Buford, Ga., and near daughter Kay and her family also of Buford, Ga., then returning north in the summer living in an apartment at the Zoar Road farm of her daughter Lori and family. In 2001, Durma returned to the north country permanently and moved into Country View Apartments where she continued to live until her death.
She is survived by five children, Connie Elliott, Jim and wife Nancy, Bill and wife Debbie, Lori and Bruce Porter, all of Adams, and Kay and husband Jack, Buford, Ga.; a loving niece, Dee Templeton and husband Bill, Kissimmee, Fla.; 10 grandchildren, 12 great-grandchildren, and a great-great grandchild, making Durma part of five generations.
Her parents, brother, Durwood, a sister, Dorothy Crossman, and an infant grandson all died before her.
One of her greatest joys was being able to regularly attend South Jefferson sporting events, where she is one of their biggest and most loyal fans. Until her death Durma continued to enjoy sewing and crocheting and being able to share a bit of her, every time she gave one of her creations to a friend or a loved one.
Contributions in her memory can be made to the South Jeff Rescue Squad Adams NY. In lieu of flowers, her wishes were to fill the church with Lilacs.
Memorial service will be 11:00 am Saturday, May 8, 2010, at the Adams United Methodist Church, with Rev Bill Mudge and Rev. Mona Fargo officiating. There are no calling hours. Arrangements are with the Piddock Funeral Home, Adams.
Laurie A. Jones Williams
A private family service was held in North Carolina.
Born Jan. 15, 1962, in Watertown, the daughter of David R. and Alma "Midge" Simmons Jones, she graduated in 1980 from South Jefferson Central School, Adams, N.Y.
Laurie was employed for many years with the NYS DOT in Syracuse, N.Y., before moving to North Carolina in 2005.
She married Randolph L. Williams on Dec. 31, 1981, in Lowville, N.Y.
Surviving are her husband Randy, Clayton, NC; her mother Alma S. (Midge) Jones, Clayton, N.C.; a sister, Lisa Jones Kerber and her husband Thomas, and their children, Nicholas and Matthew Kerber, Adams Center, N.Y.; a brother Dave Jones, Garner, N.C.; her paternal grandmother, Sylvia R. Oatman, Adams, N.Y.; her husband’s parents, Harvey and Carol Williams, Adams Center, N.Y.; and several nieces, nephews, aunts, uncles and cousins.
Laurie was predeceased by her father, David R. Jones, Sr.
Arrangements are being made through McLaurin Funeral Home, Clayton, N.C.
Condolences may be made to the family at www.mclaurinatpinecrest.com
A memorial service in New York State will be held at a later date.
Donations can be made to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation for the Cure, Attn: Donor Services, P.O. Box 650309, Dallas, TX 75265-0309.
This is a post that I have been attempting to write for a few days. A post that I needed to put in writing for that some day. Some day when I can look back at this date, and think, wow, we had a lot of time. Some day when the unthinkable happens. When we might be faced with a decision. A decision that no one ever wants to make. A decision to end a life. A life that is like no other. A life that we chose to be part of our family. A being that we looked at and said "Yup, he's the one, he will be our son". 
A few special minutes shared between brothers. Noah and Sam are almost a decade apart, but the love of books certainly brings them together.
On a day such is this...what do we give to a woman who is 94? What can we give her that she hasn't already given to all of us? She loves you like you are the only one in the family, but turns around and duplicates this love for the next person. She continues to do this even with the great-grandkids making each one feel special. She brags about every achievement, every ball game, each journal article that her family is in. She makes us feel good even when we do something bad. She reminds us that this might feel like a big deal today, but in 100 years no one will remember. Her knowledge is either verbally shared or constantly being shown...she has taught us many things.
My Grandma is: love without boundaries, faith in God, acceptance, and grace. She demonstrates how to share and to give to others. She teaches us day to day life; working hard, but enjoying the work; how to win, but more importantly how to lose; how to save your earnings for later in life; cooking dinner and sitting down to that meal as a family; shucking peas; canning and freezing; saying what is on your mind without letting it fester; even ingenious ways of keeping your feet dry. Growing up she treated us with fun stuff like homemade cookies or a candy out of her 'Elliott refrigerator drawer'. And, if you were really, really special, she might share one of her treasured Little Debbie's.
Grammy Durma taught me how to live in a world of boys growing up. How to make them think I was like them. For instance, how to catch crayfish. Then proceeding to chase the boys with them before they could even think about doing it to me. Or, how to walk through the garden repeating "the snakes are more afraid of me than I am of them". I often wondered if she was reminding me or herself?! She always tells me that I am the bravest coward that she has ever known. Is there such a person?
I believe the one most important lesson that I have learned (still learning) from Grandma is simplicity. Less is always more. I struggle with this, but as I age, I am trying to embrace it. Reminding myself often, do I really need that? Most often, the answer is no. Truly, all I need is my family.
This evening, Grandma celebrated her 94th year by giving her family a present. Yes, you heard it, she wanted all of us to have a present on her day. Dinner with all of her family together in one room, with the bill being paid by her. We love you, Grandma!
Funny, when I was a teen, I remember reading books where 2010 was a popular year for good fiction. The date always seemed so distant, but yet here it is upon us, we are living it, making history. I welcome the fresh year with new adventures with my family and friends, great books, excellent music, and fantastic food (healthy? still up for vote). 2010 marks my 40th year on earth, and I think I have finally embraced who I have become. I intend to live to the fullest for myself, my husband, and our boys. 
