Clan Henderson to be honored clan in Henderson, Nevada!
The Clan Henderson Society of the United States of America will be the Honored Clan for the Henderson, Nevada Highland Games to be held in Henderson on the weekend of April 23-25, 2004. The selection of the Henderson Clan was made after the event was transferred to the city of Henderson from its previous venue of Las Vegas. The Henderson city fathers determined there would be no more appropriate Scottish Clan than the Henderson to be their Honored Clan at this, their first such celebration.
Clan Chieftain for North America, David Simmons Henderson of New Bern, North Carolina will be the event's Honored Guest. He will be joined at the Henderson Games by his wife, Loulie. Also attending will be other Clan Society officers including the president, CDR Rex A. Maddox of Alexandria, Virginia and the vice president for operations, J. Michael Henderson of Annapolis, Maryland. Both of these personages will be accompanied by their wives. Other clan Society officers will be matriculating to the site of the event and a large contingent of Henderson Clan Society members are expected to be present.
This event will be one of several held during the year where the Hendersons will be honored. Known as the fastest growing Clan in the United States, the Hendersons currently boast a membership of nearly three thousand five hundred families. Membership in the Clan Society has been increasing as more Henderson cousins are found at Scottish and Celtic events held throughout the country. Of the nearly two hundred and fifty events conducted in the fifty states, the Hendersons have initiated a program which permits the convening of Clan Society tents at over half of these games and festivals. The Henderson Highland Games will be a first time event for the city and to be attended by the Clan Henderson Society with numerous Henderson cousins expected to be in attendance.
The Henderson event will include a parade through the city on Saturday morning, the 24th of April. This event is to be televised and will feature many marching units including Pipe and Drum bands from the Southwest US. The games are featuring athletic events on Saturday and Sunday, as well as the presence of the Pipe bands and a rugby match between local teams. Children's events are to be highlighted along with an unusual activity at Scottish events, carnival rides. A ceilidh is planned for Friday evening at a site yet to be selected. Numerous entertainers will be present.

We have Internet connections!!
Who is older and younger than you? How old were you when. . .?
Visit this web site. A small box will pop up, you will add your date of birth and have a lot of fun. Go to: http://web.superb.net/boy/age1.html

Triad Highland GamesTM announces new contract with the city of Greensboro
Triad Highland Games, Inc. is pleased to announce the acceptance of a 10 year contract with the City of Greensboro to relocate the annual Scottish Games held each August to Bryan Park in Greensboro, North Carolina. The Triad Highland Games Board of Directors unanimously voted to accept the new contract during its monthly meeting on Saturday, January 24, 2004.
The 10 year contract, beginning with the 2004 Games, is the culmination of negotiations with the City of Greensboro which began back in October of 2003. Triad Highland Games began seeking a new venue in which to hold its annual event after the 2003 Games when it was decided that it had outgrown its previous home in Creekside Park of Archdale, North Carolina.
The Bryan Park Complex, located in Northeast Greensboro, is an ideal location for the Games, offering nearly twice as much space in which the Games may continue to grow. According to Junny Jackson, co-founder of Triad Highland Games, Inc.:
The Greensboro Parks and Recreation Department, along with the Greensboro Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, the Greensboro Sports Commission and Bryan Park Golf Course have been instrumental in working to foster this new relationship with Triad Highland Games. In a statement by Bonnie Kuester, director of Greensboro's Parks & Recreation:
Ann Jackson, president and co-founder of Triad Highland Games states: "Triad Highland Games is extremely grateful to the City of Greensboro for its desire to host our Games, and we wish to become as active and involved in the City as possible. While working toward our goal of becoming the premiere Scottish event in the Southeast, it is our desire to also hold an event that the City of Greensboro and her citizens will be proud to host."
For more information on the Games, or if you are interested in volunteering, contact Ann or Junny Jackson at 336-431-8482 or email Triad Highland Games at games@triadhighlandgames.org or visit the website at www.triadhighlandgames.org

Florida State Genealogical Society plans conference in Melbourne, Florida
The Florida State Genealogical Society (FSGS) is pleased to announce their 28th Annual Genealogical Conference will be held in Melbourne, Florida, in November 2004. This exciting conference will feature a main speaker and other lectures on topics in five tracks: Beginning and Intermediate Genealogy, Society Helps, Florida Research and Computers & Genealogy.
Registration will be on Thursday evening and Friday morning with the conference starting on Friday morning and continuing through Saturday afternoon. The full two-day registration includes the lectures, the Friday banquet and the Saturday luncheon.
Regionally and nationally acclaimed suppliers of the latest and best genealogy books, maps, CDs, periodicals, software, supplies, etc. will be available at the conference in the exhibit area for your shopping needs.
The annual banquet, held on Friday night, will honor individuals who have documented their Florida pioneers through the Florida Pioneer Descendants Certification Program. Certificates will be presented to qualifying descendants of pioneers who settled in Florida prior to statehood on March 3, 1845. In addition, awards will be given to individuals who have exemplified their dedication to genealogy.
To request conference and registration information, please contact C. Ann Staley, State Conference Chairman, PO Box 441364, Jacksonville, Florida 32222 or e-mail astaley@comcast.net


Conference dates to look forward to...
32nd Annual Genealogy Conference in Topeka, Kansas: Saturday, April 24, 2004 at the Kansas History Center. Featured speaker will be Lloyd Bockstruck. Event is sponsored by Topeka Genealogical Society. For more information, visit <http://www.tgstopeka.org/conference.html>.
NGS Annual Conference & Genealogy Exhibit in Sacramento, California: Wednesday - Saturday, May 19 - 22, 2004. For more information, visit website <http://www.eshow2000.com/ngs/>.
FGS 2004 Conference in Austin, Texas: Wednesday - Saturday, September 8 - 11, 2004. The event is titled Legends Live Forever: Researching Your Past. For more information, visit http://www.fgs.org/2004conf/FGS-2004.htm.
A Day of Computers and Learning in Grove, Oklahoma: Saturday, October 16, 2004. Featured speaker will be Cyndi Howells. For more information, visit website www.gregathcompany.com/workshop/2004/index.htm

Liverpool, New York will hold Scottish Games
The 2004 Central New York Scottish Games and Celtic Festival will be held on August 14 at Long Branch Park in Liverpool, New York (near Syracuse).
Competitive events begin at 9 AM and the festival concludes with closing ceremonies at 5 PM. A ceilidh follows at 6 PM in the park with pipe bands and folk musical groups playing throughout the evening.
Included in the day's events are solo bagpipe, drumming and dance competitions; massed bands and band competitions; clan tents and genealogy; Irish and Scottish country dance demonstrations; heavy athletics; children's events; Scottish military history; a Harmony of Harps; Highland cattle; Scottish and American foods; and Celtic vendors.
For more information and directions, write CNYSG, PO Box 6405, Syracuse, NY 13217; or call Betsy Buchanan 315-252-5876 or John MacNeill 607-749-6624. You may also visit the website www.cnyscots.com

Moultrie/Colquitt Co. Public Library & Odom Genealogy Library Holidays for 2004
Please always call ahead if you are traveling a great distance. (229-985-6540) We surely do not wish for you to be disappointed by the libraries being closed.
We will be closed:
May 31 - Memorial Day
July 5 - Independence Day
September 6 - Labor Day
November 24 - 27 - Thanksgiving
December 20 - January 1 - Christmas

Joel Gray Henry, 36, died Saturday, February 14, 2004, in Atlanta. The service was held at Killearn United Methodist church in Tallahassee with the Reverend Bob Tyndall of Killearn United Methodist and Father Tom Crittenden of Holy Comforter Episcopal Church co-officiating. A memorial service in Cumming, Georgia was also planned. Memorial contributions may be made to the Stone Mountain Highland Games for a Celtic studies scholarship in care of Jim Henry, 5991 Ponder Lane, Tallahassee, Florida 32309-8904..
The cause of death was a large and inoperable cancerous brain tumor that had precipitated an initial stroke on January 11 and a second fatal stroke on Saturday morning. Joel was a 20-year veteran employee of the Publix Supermarket chain. In his spare time, he was a stalwart supporter of the Stone Mountain Highland Games in Georgia. He was a well-regarded produce manager with Publix who received consistently high ratings from his supervisors. He began his career as a part-time worker at age 16, while still in high school in Tallahassee, his home town.
He was an active member of the Clan Donald, and he was extremely active with the grounds committee of the Stone Mountain Highland Games. For several consecutive years, Joel volunteered his time to the highland games organization for a full week preceding the event to help ensure its successful set-up. He also participated in the Tallahassee Highland Games. He graduated from Lincoln High School in Tallahassee and attended Tallahassee Community College.
He is survived on his father's side by his father, Jim Henry (and second wife Peggy Henry) of Tallahassee; a stepbrother, Mac McDuffie Sr. of Mercer, PA; and a stepsister, Lisa Robbins of Seagrove. On his mother's side, he is survived by his mother, Sara Brunger (and second husband Robert Brunger) of Tallahassee.

William Keddie MacPherson, son of William Duff MacPherson and Georgina Strachan MacCallum, both originally from Brechin Scotland, was born April 6, 1942 in Lynn, Massachusetts. Will died November 18, 2003 at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Washington, DC. He was a retired USAF Major, having served 21 years (64-85) in cartography and intelligence in Texas, Missouri, Alaska, California, Nebraska, Korea, Germany, Virginia and several assignments in the Washington area. He graduated from Lynn, Massachusetts English High School in 1959 and from Tufts University in 1964 as a geology major.
He is survived by his wife, Carol Waytovich, Mid-Atlantic Regional Commissioner and Listserv manager for Clan Macpherson Association; his daughter, Julia Mary MacPherson Gilroy; and grandchildren Nicholas Brian and Samantha Mary Gilroy. He is also survived by two sisters, Nan Berg of Harwich, Massachusetts and May Reid of Spring Hill, Florida.

Life Member and Membership Chairman of the Clan MacPhie Society of America, Norrie MacPhee, died on December 16, 2003 after a heart attack on the preceding day. Norrie had been a member and staunch supporter of the Macfie Clan Society of America since 1985, and membership chairman since 1998.
He was born in 1922 in Boston, Massachusetts, and married his wife, Connie, in 1943, who preceded him in death. He is survived by three daughters, Linda Mulley, Leslie Sacco, and Lorraine Buttrick (who are all members of our Society) and a host of grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Capt. The Hon. John Michael Johnson, USNR, BA, MA, JD, Chief US Administrative Law Judge in Iowa for both the Department of Health and Human Services, and for the Social Security Administration. He is survived by his wife, Nancy Lee Caywood Johnson, BA, JD, LLM, and their daughter, Virginia Ann; as well as by his daughters from an earlier marriage, Darcy Lynn Johnson Davis, Victoria Elizabeth Johnson, and Jayme Marie Johnson. At the time of his death, August 30, 2003, he served as a member of The Board of Governors of The American College of Heraldry.

It is with extreme regret that we note the passing of a long-term and faithful member of the Clan Shaw Society, Arthur F. Smith. Arthur was the husband of Nell Smith.
Having joined the Society in early 1984, and holding memership number 0008, Arthur and Nell were among the very first members and were the first outside the national capital area where the society began. Nell and Arthur were long time conveners for the society in Mississippi and were enthusiastic supporters. (Nell has recently been elected a trustee.)
Arthur was also very active and supportive in the Caledonian Society of Mississippi and other similar organizations.

Scottish master fiddler Johnny Cunningham passed away December 15, 2003.
Linda Collier Soule lost her only sister on May 21 and on October 2 her mother, Alma Tessener, just one day short of her 94th birthday.
Elizabeth Hylton and Sarah Shaw lost their mother, Virginia Kellog, on December 9, 2003 at the age of 92.

Beth honored by SHSSEG
Family Tree editor, Beth Gay, was honored by The Scottish Heritage Society of Southeast Georgia with an Honorary Membership at their recent Burns Night dinner by the late Dr. R. Quinn Pugh, society president..
Beth was presented with a membership certificate and she and her husband, Mel, were guests at the event in Statesboro, Georgia.
Just received at The Family Tree offices in Moultrie is a most kind check donated to The Family Tree by the SHSSEG, in memory of Dr. Pugh, who died recently during surgery in Savannah, Georgia.
Thank you so much for the honor of being a part of your most distinguished group.