Sugar Grove
By Paula Mitchell
A Sugar Grove legend has passed on. When she first arrived, an onlooker at the store said, “Sugar Grove will never be the same.”
Clinton Ann’s parents, Minnie Bell Gordon Johnson and Clinton Anthony Johnson, were married Dec. 31, 1928. Her father worked for the Atmospheric Nitrogen Corporation where they lived in Hopewell, Virginia. Her father tragically passed away April 14, 1930, prior to Clinton Ann’s birth on Oct. 4, 1930. Her mother then married Spencer Howard Smith, several years later, and to this union Clinton Ann had two stepsisters, Helen and Elizabeth.
In 1947, she graduated as valedictorian from Stafford High School. She then graduated in 1951 from Madison College (James Madison University) with a bachelor’s degree in education and economics (and it is to be noted that she was in a beauty pageant). It was there she met John Roy Bowers on a blind date, eloping two years later, Jan. 26, 1951. (JMU had a long-standing rule that one couldn’t get married whilst attending college, so to Hagerstown, Maryland, they went).
Several years later, they moved to Sugar Grove, making the old pool room into a four-bedroom home. Life was different here, but it wasn’t long before Clinton Ann befriended the locals, even learning to understand the “Dutch” that was spoken by a lot of the store customers.
Clinton Ann had an infectious personality. She was very comfortable with greeting everyone, interested and engaged in their well-being. Her sunny disposition greeted each day, feeling truly blessed along the way. She served her community by being postmistress of the Sugar Grove Post Office for 34 years, beginning that charge in 1996. She also had contacts in the political arena, namely U.S. Senator Robert C. Byrd and Senator Jaye Spears. In 1987, she was instrumental in having Jennifer Mitchell Hoover (daughter of Tom and Paula Mitchell) and Carrie Jo Howard Fox (daughter of Donna and Marshall Harper) be Page for a Day in the West Virginia Senate.
She distinguished herself all of her life, with many goals set in place. Never one to lay idle, she became a member of Francis Asbury United Methodist Church, where she was a driving force. Children soon learned the Lord’s Prayer, the 23rd Psalm, Ten Commandments, etc. under her tutelage. Her faith was important to her.
She continued giving back to the community in various other ways…serving 12 years on the Pendleton County Board of Education, serving as a board director at Pendleton Manor, the first Tractor Parade Queen, was instrumental in organizing the South Fork Rescue Squad, being one of the first three EMTs, and supporting her husband’s membership of the Lion’s Club, where he was a charter member. She imparted this passion to her children, Diana, Clinton (Donna), Maria (Richard) and Roy (Teresa), who also have become involved in various ways. Her life reflected a very disciplined mind. In honoring her wishes, she donated her body to West Virginia Medical Science to benefit the studies of children. This was her last service in helping others.
Clinton Ann loved antiques of which she refinished many pieces, selling them in the Sugar Grove store. She also collected sugar shakers, and stamps. She was a meticulous dresser of style.
She loved to have fun, and she was fun to be around. Halloween parties, which she always attended, trick or treaters which she delighted to see, and a joke or two along the way was delightful to her. Her quick wit and humor were exemplified in this particular happening, as told by Steve Conrad, “Clinton Ann was at a sale, so was Frederick Rexrode. William Conrad overheard this conversation between the two of them. Clinton Ann had purchased a chamber pot, after which Frederick asked Clinton Ann if she was going to use that ‘piss pot’ (what it was commonly called). Clinton Ann responded without a beat, ‘I’m not sure I can wait until I get home!’”
She loved to travel and took each of her grandchildren to a destination, being an excellent tour guide for them. One such trip was when she, along with John, their daughter, Maria, and Ellen and Cary Mitchell took off to Biloxi, Mississippi, to attend a five-day horticulture convention associated with the 4-H club (having won state), where the girls demonstrated, “An Apple a Day, Keeps the Doctor Away.” They all had a fabulous time with John and Clinton Ann as excellent tour guides.
Reading for Clinton Ann was something she really enjoyed, especially in her late years, until she was no longer able to do that. She aged with dignity, even taking time to check on friends who were ill, sending cards and notes, picking up the phone to take part in conversations, and delivering food to family who had lost a loved one. Visits from her four children, 13 grandchildren, and 23 great-grandchildren were especially meaningful to her. She certainly enjoyed life to the fullest knowing how well she had been blessed along the way.
A favorite hymn of Clinton Ann’s was sung by her granddaughter, Susanne, at her memorial service Sunday, which was pastored by Pastor Judy Vetter.
“When Christ shall come with shout of acclamation, And take me home, what joy shall fill my heart! Then I shall bow in humble adoration, And there proclaim, my God, how great Thou art! Then sings my soul, my Savior God to thee; How great Thou art, how great Thou art! Then sings my soul, my Savior God to Thee; How great Thou art, how great Thou art!”
Yes, “Sugar Grove will never be the same.” Another legend is gone. Sympathy is extended to the family during this difficult time.
Life’s little instructions to help along the way include the following:
- When receiving a gift, always, always, always send a thank you.
- Ask questions and interview grandparents. They will not be around for a person to do this at a later time.
- Volunteer to help without being asked.
- Dance at weddings, even just a little.
- Close one’s mouth when chewing.
Friday was a day to enjoy and wish that it lasted all year long. There was no humidity; the skies were cloudless and blue, and the temperatures very refreshing. The “tree frog” continues to hoot for rain. There is no guarantee for that to happen anytime soon. When traveling around the county, one will notice that the trees are beginning to show their color — a mark signifying that fall is soon on the way.
This week’s quotes are as follows:
“Summer’s lease hath all too short a date.” — William Shakespeare
“Just remember when you’re over the hill, you begin to pick up speed.” — Charles M. Schulz
“You will always be ‘too much’ for some…too loud…too soft…too this…too that. But you will always be perfect for the people who really love you.” — Katherine Hepburn
“Don’t let yesterday use up too much of today.” — Will Rogers
“The only place success comes before work is in the dictionary.” — Vince Lombardi
Sitting by the porch swing to hear the “Talk of the Grove.”
Dover, the Emu, seems to have made his home in the field adjacent to St. John Lutheran Church at Sinnett’s Lane. He seems undaunted with the traffic that slows down to see about his well- being.
Charles and “Pidge” Anderson dug potatoes Saturday. They got about 28 bushels, making for a good crop this year.
Weekend visitors of Rosalee Grogg were Marleta Wimer and Diane Kuykendall and friend of Harrisonburg, Virginia.
Phil Downs enjoyed the weekend visits of Tara Kelly and Amelia Gibson of Springfield, Virginia, and Judy O’Keefe of Louisa, Virginia. They all attended the Gordon and Lula Smith reunion which was held in Staunton, Virginia. The oldest attendee was 99-year-old Cleo Simmons, with Case Smith being 1 year old. Everyone enjoyed the company, delicious food, and the time reminiscing with each other.
Clickety-clacks for the chin waggers are as follows:
- As little as 6,000 years ago, the vast Sahara Desert was covered in grassland, pocked with rivers, lakes and forests,that received plenty of rainfall, but shifts in the world’s weather patterns abruptly transformed the vegetated region into some of the driest land on earth.
- Ordinary house mice have been known to sing and whistle and even warble like canaries.
- Perhaps the most interesting musical sounds were once played in China by pigeons flying overhead with whistles tied to their tails.
- The 1970 calendar is day for day exactly the same as the one used in 1801.
- Benjamin Franklin suggested setting the clocks ahead an hour, or “daylight saving time,” as a joke.
Concerns for this week are many. They are as follows Charles Anderson, Roger and Joan Ashley, Mercedes Aumann, Vernon “Fuzzy” Baldwin, Lynn Beatty, “Bo” Boggs, the Clinton Ann Bowers family, Marie Cole, the Jed Conrad family, Jeff Craig, Maurice Davenport, Mary Eye, Donna Fleisher, Lola Graham, Jordan Greathouse, Marlene Harman, Marvin Hartman, Steve and Armanda Heavner, Jackie Hill, Edsel and May Ann Hogan, Virgil Homan, Jr., Adelbert Hoover, Myrtle Hoover, Debbie Horst, Alice Johnson, Richard Judy, Marsha Keller, Danny Kimble, Dennis Kincaid, Kim Kline, the Charlotte Rose Crummett Kuykendall family, Melissa Lambert, Robert Lambert, Rex Landis, Angela Lung, Linda Malcolm, Betty Mallow, Roger and Skip Mallow, Willard May, Neil McLaughlin, Tucker Minor, Barbara Moats, Melvin Moats, Aaron Nelson, Ruth Nelson, Don Nilsen, Cheryl Paine, Barbara Parker, Sutton Parrack, Shirley Pratt, Alda Propst, Kathy Propst, Linda Propst, Harley Propst, Mary Puffenbarger, Charles Rexrode, Jason Rexrode, Jimmy Rexrode, Pam Rexrode, Donna Ruddle, Annie Simmons, Barry and Phyllis Simmons, Davey Simmons, Erin Simmons, Eva Simmons, Robbie Sites, Steven Smoot, Connie Sulser, Rosa Tichenor, Sandra Vandevander, Amy Vaus, Sheldon Waggy, Judy Williams, Junior Wimer, Margaret Wimer, Dana Yokum, and the fire victims of Maui, Hawaii.
