Awesome reunion, ya'll

Here's our little boy, Taz, doing what he does best.

Richard has lots of help with his garden. Kojak picks 'em and Little Bit and Pandy steal 'em.
Our house just before the outside was finished. I really should take an updated picture.
Some of the Willie Quarles clan and Carrie G.

The fire on the mountain smoldering after the rain.
Pickin' and Grinnin'
Richard by the stream running through Sundance.


The horseshoe competition was intense.
Was Willie ever in the ballet?
Good form, dear.
Ms. Mary and Carrie, pretty ladies.
The food was GREAT!

All those tossed shoes and still no winner was declared.
We'll have to wait 'til 2010 to crown a champ.
Horseshoes....
horseshoes....
horseshoes.

And lots of breaks.
And lots of cuties running around
Conversation was good.
Lots of togetherness.
Margie and Lila at the 'visiting' table.

The brave souls took the plunge.
There were children everywhere and they were all having fun in Steve's amusement park.
Nice smile, Tammy :)
Again, Steve's amusement park.
This is a great shot, don'tcha think?

We didn't post pre-reunion so thought a post-reunion blog was in order. We had a great and memorable time in Utah. There were so many people! Richard enjoyed seeing his relatives that he hadn't seen in such a long time, and I was thrilled to finally put faces to all the people I've been hearing about for the past 14 years. I would like to apologize to any of you whose names I may have gotten wrong...sorry :/.

A very special THANK YOU to Steve and Roxanne. You guys *rock*!

It's always nice to go on pleasure trips, but it's good to be back home in muggy Mississippi. Ms. Mary got off the plane just fine and is holed up in her house resting. Guess all the excitement, visiting, shopping and walking really pooped her out. She'll be back to her old self in a few more days though, and she had a blast so it was worth it. Our four-legged kiddies were happy to have us back home too. Particularly Taz, who has not let us out of his sight since we got back.

I'm going to try to upload a few pictures of the reunion here, and also a couple from home. Again it was awesome meeting/seeing all of you! I can't remember ever being in such a large group of good folks.

Richard and Dawn Treat

Leigh Anne Quarles and Family

I've been working for the Indian Health Service for the past 2 1/2 years down in Arizona on the Navajo Nation. I'm an RN on the Adolescent Care Unit at the Fort Defiance Hospital- the first (and only) inpatient youth behavioral health program in the IHS system. I came down here when the unit first opened. It's been kind of a big deal and we have a lot of detractors so we're scutinized closely. It's been a challenging experience but immensely rewarding in many respects. I'm taking online (and summer) classes to get my masters in nursing education through Saint Joseph's College in Standish, Maine. It's absolutely gorgeous down here on the high desert- we're at 7800 feet elevation so we don't get hot summers, and the winters are relatively mild exept that it gets very cold at night. Not the weather that you typically think of when you think of Arizona. The gentleman in the picture with me is my good friend Dana. We met when I came down here to work; he works at the same hospital as a pharmacist. He's from Delaware. We have the best time together discovery this mystical country.

All three of my boys live together in a house in Niwot, Colorado - a little, idyllic town just outside of Boulder. Christopher spends a lot of time in Montrose on the western slope of Colorado as he is part owner of a house down there with a good friend of his. His friend's family has a ranch and Christopher goes there for cattle driving and branding and riding horses and ATV's and just general ranch living/working. Nate graduated from the University of Colorado - Boulder last year with a double major in studio art and philosophy. Adam also graduated last year from the University of Colorado - Denver with a major in music. Their college majors reflect their attitutes toward conventional life....and work. Isn't life interesting?

Justin & Calista De Vries & Family

Justin - a.k.a Daddy; has just finished his 4th year at Novell, Inc. For those in the know that is quite an accomplishment. When not busy at Novell, he is in training as the next Lance Armstrong. (Well a wife can dream.)

Calista - a.k.a Mommy; is beginning her 6th year as super mom, well maybe not super mom. Her boys keep her busy (all three of them), but she still finds time to do a little sewing, and reading, among other things.

Dante (5) - a.k.a Big 'D'; is in training as a Jedi Knight, a Musketeer, or Robin Hood, depending on what weapon he gets to first. He can be persuaded to take time off for soccer or a movie, but only if the movie can be acted out. If only mommy had that much energy!

Bennett (3) - a.k.a Little Bit; is currently in training as Dante's Igor. He loves his big brother and is up for anything Dante can think of. He also thinks that mommy tastes like chicken.

Stacey Weigers and Family

We moved to LoDo (lower downtown Denver) to a Brownstone in May of 2006. Our place is just a couple of blocks from Coors Field and we have enjoyed the “city” life immensely. We love being able to walk just about anywhere. One of the girls’ favorite things to do is freak out the people standing in our doorway…one of them sits at the window and watches for people and the other stands at the intercom for the door…the one at the window tells the other what a person is wearing and the one at the intercom says, “You in the red shirt…step away from the green door…quickly and no one gets hurt!” People jump and look around and the girls just laugh and laugh…too funny! It’s been a lot of fun living here…come visit any time!


Stacey - I just completed my certification for teaching Yoga and am in the process of setting up my own practice. Right now I am doing a “Heart of Service” teaching yoga twice a week at the People House in Denver. I also do private yoga lessons. In addition to teaching yoga, I am also a certified herbalist and am thinking of ways I can incorporate my herbal knowledge with yoga. When I am not doing yoga I can be found riding my bike, playing tennis, yelling at the dog to stop trying to scratch her way into the TV, taxi-ing the kids here, there and everywhere, or hanging out with my boyfriend, John.

Hanna just finished the 8th grade and is an accomplished flutist—she was in the Honors recital; received a 1 (the highest) on her ensemble and solo pieces at the State Federation. She also placed 3rd in the Continental Math League competition. This spring she played soccer for the first time and was on the LAX team. In June she will join some of her 8th grade classmates for a 3-week trip to Russia! She is looking forward to high school and after much deliberation has decided to go to Middlesex School in Concord, Massachusetts. What an exciting adventure!

Lizzy just finished 6th grade. She plays the harp and is getting quite good. She is also a published writer…having won a nationwide poetry contest for young poets. Also, she was asked to submit two poems to the literary publication at her school, Colorado Academy…quite an honor. You can find her work in “A Celebration of Young Poets” and … Her favorite subject is Spanish and though she doesn’t love her teacher, she loves the language. This spring she participated in the Circus at school and was a featured artist on the Spanish Web. She also played LAX and is looking forward to playing lots of tennis this summer.

Phil Quarles Family

Hello from Rocky Mountain High!!
Shirley's blog has summed up my family, but here are some additional facts. We have resided in Fort Morgan for the past 15 years. We are thrilled to have both of the girls living 90 miles away in the Denver metro area. With Kana and Noel being close, we have been able to throughly enjoy our new grandson, Cole.
Unfortunately, we will not be able to make the trip to Utah for the family reunion. With or without me, the Quarles family horseshoe trophy will arrive on time. My only regret is that if it arrives without me, I will not be able to retain my title (Steve, make sure to have a backup partner on standby).

Erin Bakke and Family

Hello from Las Vegas, where we've been for 18 years now...hard to believe!

Life is a lot of fun here, living with my sister Megan and my daughter Libby. I have my own business doing art and interiors. And when I'm not working, I guess I'm doing the same thing for fun! I inherited the creative streak from mama Sharon.

Benjamin is 23, living and working in Lake Tahoe at The Cedar Lodge Hotel. He enjoys snowboarding, hiking, and guitar and just climbed Half Dome in Yosemite! I think that's pretty cool.

Samantha, 21, is happily married to Tyler Leavitt. He is currently attending the Las Vegas Metro Academy preparing to be a police officer, and Samantha is in her 2nd year at the College of Southern Nevada where she is studying interior design. They are a great team, and since they live just 5 minutes away we get to see them all the time!

Libby, 17, will be a senior next year in high school where she is totally immersed in the theater program. She has been involved in every production since her freshman year and has the lead for the upcoming school play in the fall.

And Megan has been with us for 5 years after moving from Reno. She is celebrating her 30th birthday in style in Hawaii this week, and acts as moderator/auntie extraordinaire/comic relief for our family here.

Ralph & Beverly

My twin brother, Robert, and I were born 6 February 1934. I am the 5th child, and eldest son (by 5-minutes) , of John R. and Ethel M. Quarles.

I met Beverly Hulse in 1951; we were married in Raton, NM, 18 September 1955. From this marriage, we had four children: Randal Keith, 5 September 1957, San Francisco, CA; Leigh Anne, 6 April 1960, Greeley, CO; Stacy Lyn, 10 June 1969 and Robert William, 24 May 1971, both born in Ogden, UT.

After my discharge from the Navy in June 1958, we moved to Greeley where I enrolled at Colorado State College and worked as a Teller at The Greeley National Bank.

Our family experienced a great sorrow when Robert was struck by lightning and killed, 18 May 1959. He was living with us while attending College and working for a local farmer.

I graduated from Colorado State College, with a degree in Business Education, June 1961 along with my brother, Willie. We were the first in the family to graduate from College.

Following graduation, my family and I moved to Vallejo, CA and I worked for a brief time as a Management Intern at the Federal Reserve Bank in San Francisco, but the call to return to Colorado was strong and we moved to Denver, August 1961, and for the next two years I worked for a Stock Broker.

I had an opportunity to return to Las Animas in August 1963 when I was offered a job as the Distributive Education Teacher at Bent County High School (BCHS), the name had not yet changed.

Again, in the summer of 1964, another opportunity came my way when I was offered a job at Hill Air Force Base, UT, in their Management Intern Program. BCHS had elected not to renew my teaching contract. When one door closes another opens??.

Our young family moved to Roy, UT, September 1964 and I began my career at HAFB, starting as a Contract Negotiator in Procurement and retiring in June 1987 as the Deputy Chief of the Small Business Office. During this time, I did leave HAFB and worked at Thiokol (the Space Shuttle Booster Manufacturer) as a Contract Administrator, from January 1970 to January 1974.

After retirement from HAFB, I again went to work at Thiokol, now known as ATK, in November 1988, as their Small Business Administrator. I retired from ATK, June 1999.

I have been working at Triple Stop/Storage Star, a locally owned Convenience Store, Used Car Dealership and Storage Rental Business since November 2000 as their "Jack of All Trades". It was to be a part time job which quickly became a full time job....

In my younger years, I enjoyed playing baseball, softball, basketball and bowling; now I enjoy watching baseball, softball, basketball and bowling, on TV or at the games!! I also enjoy an ocassional game of horseshoes, almost specifically limited to Family Reunions. It is always fun to be with the children and grandchildren.

Beverly worked for the Government, starting as a Food Service Worker at the VA Hospital in Fort Lyon the year we lived in Las Animas; after moving to Utah she worked at HAFB, IRS, Defense Depot Ogden and back to HAFB where she retired from the Foreign Military Sales area in March 1993 as the Assistant Program Manager for the Countries of Korea and Spain (F-4 Program). In February 1996 she started working at Intermountain Health Care (IHC) as a Receptionist, later becoming a Scheduling Coordinator; she retired in August 2006 but stayed on call; her job really did remain "a part time job"....

Beverly enjoys spending time with her children and grandchildren, gardening, walking, reading, traveling and watching her beloved "Yankees".

Along with our four children we have eleven grandchildren and will let our kids tell about their lives and their children.

There was a wedding, 18 June 1925. And now, 83 years later, this wonderful family just keeps on growing.

Soon it will be the reunion; we look forward to seeing you and express our thanks and appreciation to all who make these wonderful events possible.