October, my favorite month of the year. Everything happens during this month. Cooler weather, apple cider, football games, leaves turn, ghosts and goblins appear, fall festivals take place, reunions, revivals, homecomings, anniversaries, and birthdays.
My mother’s sister’s birthday was in October, and her birthstone was an opal. She hated it when people wore opal rings, and it was not their birth month. She said, “Anyone who wore an opal ring unauthorized was cursed.” This was my aunt who also ate onion sandwiches.
However, when she passed away more than 1,000 people came to her funeral in Alabama during the 80s. She was a legend. She founded one of the first Pilot Clubs in the state (a service club like the Eastern Star group) and her name was on all the payroll checks for the Tennessee Valley Authority employees, an Act that was passed and started by President Franklin D. Roosevelt during the depression in 1933. She retired from TVA.
The TVA Act: TVA was created in 1933, one of the “alphabet soup” projects championed by President Roosevelt as a way to get a flagging country back on its feet during the Great Depression. The TVA Act was to “improve the navigability and to provide for the flood control of the Tennessee River; to provide for reforestation and the proper use of marginal lands in the Tennessee Valley, to provide for the agricultural and industrial development of said valley; to provide for the national defense by the creation of a corporation for the operation of Government properties at and near Muscle Shoals in the State of Alabama and other purposes,” according to the internet.
I used to visit my grandmother every summer in Sheffield, Ala., until I graduated from high school in 1961, and we always visited our cousins in Spring Valley, Ala., near Muscle Shoals, Ala. They always wore dog tags around their necks even when swimming and sleeping. My twin sister and I were in awe of this as we knew only men in the service wore dog tags. Of course, we asked why.
Because of the importance of the electrical power, flood control, and navigational defense, the U.S. Government issued dog tags for all citizens even children in the Muscle Shoals Area. The State of Alabama believed the Tennessee Valley would be the first location a foreign power would attack the United States to shut off a main power source of electricity that was located here for the all the southern states.
When my grandmother passed away in 1960, we never returned to Spring Valley, but continued to visit my aunt in Sheffield, Alabama until she passed in 1987. She was married but did not have any children. She spoke French and studied in Canada. She was very prim and proper. We could not eat a bowl of ice cream without a doily under the ice cream dish. Also, we had to eat with the non-eating hand in our lap at all times. We had to be excused from the table to leave the dining room. She played the piano and organ and composed music, but we weren’t allowed to touch the instruments without washing our hands first. These are memories from 70 years ago; but mainly I remember her basement. Every home we visited in Northern Alabama had a basement. Was that because of TVA? I don’t know. One thing I do know, she was eccentric at the end of her life, but she loved us dearly.
•Speaking of passing, Diane Keaton died Oct. 13. She was 79 years old. Her friends knew her as a trailblazer and fashion setter. She never married but adopted two children late in life in her ‘50s. She won an Academy Award , a British Academy Film Award, two Golden Globe Awards and two Emmy Awards, as well as receiving four Screen Actors Guild nominations and 1 Tony Award.
There is a picture of Diane Keaton in Crockett at the Camp Street Café, sitting on the arms of two brothers when she was their lead singer in their band in New York in the ‘60s. Years later when she became famous, she didn’t remember them. Interesting, No?
•When you get this printed issue, the Senior Scholarship program will be a memory, but a very valuable program put on by TISD to benefit the parents and the students regarding their future education. Listed below are some of the events scheduled for October, but I would like to elaborate on the Trinity Lions Club’s Second Annual Pet Show and Talent Show first.
Trinity Lions Club’s Community Show and Fundraiser is being held at the Trinity Community Center on October 18, from 10:00am until 2:00 p.m. Planned are children’s activities, a pet photo contest, raffle prizes, concessions, dog food vendors, and “Ask the Vet.”
Eight dog and owner contests with trophies will be awarded. Current rabies vaccination must be presented at time of entry. Entry fee for the event is one can of fruit, green beans or ranch-style beans. All food will be donated to the Martin Senior Center. There is a “Dog Pawsport” required for all canine attendees. The sponsor and Chairman of this event is Dr. Garry Reece of Trinity Pet Clinic, a member of the Trinity Lions Club.
This event was a big hit last year, a lot of fun, and very professionally done by Dr. Reece, his staff, and members of the Trinity Lions Club members. You can’t beat the price or the location.
Oct. 18-31, Trinity Methodist Church Pumpkin Patch Opens, a Church Fundraiser
Oct. 18, Trinity Lions Club Second Annual Pet Show and Expo
Oct. 21, First Methodist Church of Trinity Dinner with Friends, 4:30 p.m., the menu is Stew.
Oct. 24, Most Holy Trinity Catholic Church Bingo Barbecue, Friday at 5 p.m.
Oct. 25, Trinity County Veterans Wall of Honor Society 18th Fundraiser
Oct. 26, Most Holy Trinity Catholic Church Fall Festival
Oct. 31, Treats on the Street, Trinity Police Dept. Halloween Fest on Elm Street, 6:30 p.m.
Nov. 11, Veterans’ Day Holiday
Nov. 13, 14, 15, Methodist Church or Trinity Rummage Sale.
Nov. 24-28, Thanksgiving Holidays for students
Nov. 27, Thanksgiving Day
Dec. 6, TPCC Christmas Show and Parade, at the Trinity Community Center at 10 a.m.
Dec.18, Early release day for Christmas/Winter Break
Dec. 19, TISD Student Winter Break
Dec. 25, Thursday, Christmas Day
Students return to school on Jan. 6, 2026.
Here is a sneak preview of January and February 2026:
I hope to see you at the Pumpkin Patch downtown this weekend. They are open both days, at different times Saturday and Sunday, and donations are welcomed.
