Bridging the Gap

We spent some time in Charleston again this past week/weekend for Donald's biannual family reunion (themed Bridging the Gap). We are very close to his family who lives in Charleston, and see them quite often, but this reunion was comprised of people from all over the country...Texas, California, New York, etc. I figured out over the weekend that Donald's grandfather's mother had 8 brothers and sisters, so it was all of their children and grandchildren, etc. who participated. The last time they held the reunion in Charleston was 1999. D and I had just started dating, so in attending the reunion, I was just trying to survive! This time I was trying to learn more and more about my husband's and my children's family and the history behind it. What a difference 10-years makes. Anyways, the week was fun...it was a four day event, which definitely puts white family reunions to shame! Here are some pictures to enjoy...

The whole group at James Island County Park...yes, I know you can't see faces, but just giving you an idea of the size of the family

Cousins Jrew and Charley, held by their daddies
Here we are in our family reunion t-shirts
Happy First Birthday, Jrew!

Here is a pic of Donald's mom, grandfather, and 7 of his 8 aunts and uncles. No, it wasn't a coincidence, everyone was instructed to wear white on the last evening. :)
From left to right: Myra, Darryl, Frenchie, Alice, Granddaddy Thomas, Andrea (Novice), Ron, Kenneth and Evelyn (uncle Leo is missing in the pic)

Here's the family after church on Sunday. The family has been members of this church ever since times of slavery. The church was founded in 1818 and is referred to as Mother Emanuel because it is the oldest AME church in the south. Remember the story in history class about Denmark Vesey? He was a founding member here, and during the Vesey controversy (planned but unsuccessful slave revolt), the original church building was burned. After the church was rebuilt, worship services continued until 1834 when all-black churches were outlawed (that's insane). The congregation continued the tradition of the African church by worshiping underground until 1865 when it was formally reorganized (after the Emancipation Proclamation, I'm assuming). Just an interesting piece of history for you. Hopefully the Lord has received almost 200 yrs of glory and honor from the people of the church.