Family Quilt/Family Reunion Shirts

A couple of family members proposed making a family quilt to display at reunions and other family events, especially weddings. The material for the individual quilt squares was bought and brought to the family reunion in Custer State Park. We had a large meeting hall there and conducted a workshop to design our squares. Each family member was asked to make sure their full name, birthdate and wedding date was included on their squares. Other than that they were encouraged to put anything on their squares that would represent their hobbies, jobs, personalities etc. Some members used iron on tranfers, some were artistic enough to draw free hand designs, some used a light box to trace patterns on their squares and some had them embroidered. When putting the quilt together, we put our Mom and Pop in the center of the quilt. Then starting with the oldest child and their family members, we proceeded down the quilt to the bottom where the youngest of nine was located with their family. The quilt is king size and has 104 total squares with some that are still blank but will not be when our new members are added. We will need to start a new quilt very soon because we are adding members at an alarming rate. The quilt is displayed on a HUGE quilt rack designed and built by Uncle Dennis. The quilt is supposed to be shared during the year by each sibling for a year at a time but some of the siblings are afraid to have that responsibility and allow a couple of the members to take care of it through the years. This quilt is meant to be a living history of our family and we hope it will be continued with the following generations.

The family reunion committee members are in charge of ordering shirts every year for our reunions. We have had tee shirts and denim shirts and I know several members who have every shirt that was made for our reunions. Each year has a differnt design or theme on the shirt along with the family name and year. We will include some pictures. We usually get a group discount for the shirts which makes it very affordable. We have had many people stop us to ask about our family when they see all of us in our shirts. One year we even had baseball caps that were bright orange with a BIG "G" on the front of the cap. It is a lot of fun to arrive at reunion to see what our shirts will look like.

Tea Parties/Tailgate Parties

About ten years ago, our darling Aunt Ramona decided that the little girls in our family needed a way to learn proper etiquette, and that is how the tea parties began. She gathered old party dresses, jewelry, hats, feather boas, cosmetics and nail polishes, and tea sets. Invitations were sent to each little girl in the family inviting them to attend a tea party at the next reunion. They were so excited to get those invitations and couldn't imagine what this new experience would be like. No parents were allowed to attend. Aunt Ramona planned everything out in advance and set it up as a formal high tea. The little girls arrived at the party and were helped to dress up and prepare themselves. A formal menu board was displayed which included the list of food and drink of the day. A formal table was set with cloth napkins, tea cups and saucers, placecards with their names on them, and a little gift beside each plate. Since we were never allowed to attend these events, we "understand" that ladylike manners were to be used at all times. She taught them the correct way to use all the silverware, how to hold and drink from their teacups, ladylike conversation using polite language, and many other important tea party etiquette rules. As the years went on, more and more little girls joined the tea party group, and eventually, at a certain age, the older girls graduated with honors having learned all that is necessary to behave in a ladylike polite fashion. Aunt Ramona has also graduated and has now passed the tea party responsibilities to Deana and attends only as an honored guest. The little girls each year are impatient at the reunions to hurry and get to the tea party portion, so they can have their special afternoon with the other girls and Aunt Ramona and Deana. We can't imagine now not ever having this special event at our reunions. It means so much to these little girls and is always the highlight of every reunion for them.

The tailgate parties were also started by Aunt Ramona because she worried that the little boys would be left out. She gathered the boys at one reunion and told them that they were going tailgating. She prepared hot dogs and chips for them and they played games, including baseball. She sent invitations out to the little boys, just like the girls received and made the experience just as special for them. Parents still were not allowed to attend, as this was supposed to be special time just for them and no one else. Aunt Ramona decided that it would be better to have a man organize the tailgate party and asked Bryan if he would take this on. Since then all the boys are just as excited about their party and are no longer envious of the little girls.

The Paul Gearheart Memorial Golf Tournament

In 19 we decided that the casual golfing that was going on during reunions should be changed to an official tournament to be held each and every reunion. Anyone could participate, including women and older children. Usually, the men on each year's committee would choose the teams either by drawing names, or just by putting people together with at least one good golfer on each team. The rest were just divided up while trying to separate immediate family members as much as possible. This gave the golfers the chance to play with different members of the Gearheart family to make it fair and interesting, so that you get to play with different people that you might not otherwise get to play with. When choosing a reunion site, the committee must always consider whether there is a golf course close by, and is in charge of getting the tee times set up. Tee times are usually set up as early as possible so that everyone can be done around noon and get back to the reunion. After Uncle Paul's death, the family decided to name the tournament in his honor. Also, when Uncle Marvin died, the family named the trophy the Marvin Gearheart Memorial Trophy in his honor. After reunion is over, the committee has to add that year's winners plaque to the trophy. Over the years some really hilarious hijinks have happened; such as, golf balls hitting buildings, trees, downpouring rains, being chased and stung by bees, etc. Only one woman has been lucky enough to be on a winning team, Judith, and we are very proud of her. Gifts are given away at the end of reunion for closest to the pin, longest drive, and the winning team.