MYSTERIES CONTINUE...
A long telephone conversation with Gillian, my new cousin, was lively. We were both talking at once with excitement and exchanging of information – the latter mostly from Gillian.
She informed me of my paternal grandfather’s parent’s names but knew nothing about the where and when of his death. That is still a mystery! Could it possibly be that my grandmother was a bigamist when she married the second time?
Gillian has conversations with a Hughes family relative from this second marriage. I hope to speak with him soon. More avenues to pursue. It’s like reading a novel but the next chapters have yet to be written.
After February 10th I will have a lot more time to pursue more of my ancestry with the hope of uncovering more puzzle pieces.
Until then my life in Manzanillo is absorbed with helping organize the Gala Dinner in benefit of a poor orphanage, leaving no time to pick up the pursuit of my ancestry right now.
Speaking of the Gala, I needed guidance for the drinks for 200 people. Bruno, the owner of Portofino’s, a local restaurant in Club Santiago, spent an hour with me recommending wines and beers to purchase and the liquors he uses for making the always popular Margaritas. He suggested how much to purchase and what to charge at the dinner - a great help!
Further assistance was required about the silent auction for the event. I reached out to Fred Taylor, a man who has them annually for the benefit of stray dogs and cats in Manzanillo. Over two hours, he proved to be a fountain of information on how he handles silent auctions.
I am grateful to both these men for the generous amount of time they gave me, and their genuine desire to help.
An annual event that has been held for many years for a larger orphanage is next Thursday. Many Snowbirds have been supporting this event for over 20 years.
The annual Bocce Ball Tournament organized by Fred Taylor is held just after our event. Both organizations have built up great support for donations to their silent auctions over the years and I congratulate them for their success.
Our event is brand new. We started planning in December, so donations for the silent auction are coming in slowly. Ticket sales are good – this morning I have only 6 tickets left of the 100 I had to sell! There’s a lot of interest in supporting this needy orphanage and a lot of curiosity to see the venue, Hacienda Juluapan, which is not open to the public.
I hadn’t said much about the musicians for the event until the University in Colima told us who was coming. On Friday they confirmed they were sending 20 members of the symphonic orchestra and a singer to perform at our Gala!! What an evening it is going to be!
The Gala is my priority for the next few weeks, but I ensure I make time for me to keep my batteries from being drained. Aquafit thrice weekly and walking when I can. Painting club Tuesdays, and evening get-togethers, like the one at the Beach Club last night, are also diversions. Last evening was spent with many friends, lots of laughter and dancing. More social activity is planned for the coming week, so it is definitely not “all work and no play” for me. LOL.