Mark’s Musings – October 24, 2018

Mark Fortune

The third weekend of October is typically one of my favorites to be a resident of Coshocton County. The cool, crisp evenings and anything less than a ninety degree day makes it a favorite for me. It seems that we have – at least so far – simply bypassed the 70 degree days of autumn and have started the slippery slope towards – dare I say it – winter temperatures.

Back to why this is – and is for many people – a favorite time of the year. The Coshocton County Fall Foliage and Farm Tour held this past weekend sent folks to the northeastern part of Coshocton County – up the Bakersville, Chili and Fresno way. Talk about a great lunch! The folks that prepared and made the food deserve a shout out for just how delicious it was. Thank you!

And if that was not enough, they were kind enough to let all of us know that the Bakersville Volunteer Fire Department siren would go off – as usual – at noon. This lets the folks that live in the area know that it is noon and time for lunch! Kind of the modern version of the old dinner bell being clanged that hung on the front porch. Okay, I have no idea what those looked or sounded like – at home growing up it was just mom hollering. And if you missed it – you missed it. And I didn’t miss many meals.

There were some great stops on this year’s tour and a nice driving route – due to some other conflicts the spouse and I missed a couple of the stops but heard from many others that all the stops were awesome and informative. If nothing else you get the opportunity each year to learn more about our county and the wonderful people and organizations that make it a great place to live, work and play.

Thanks to everyone involved that made this year’s Fall Foliage and Farm Tour possible. It was appreciated.

And of course, the third weekend in October also means the Apple Butter Stirrin’ at Roscoe Village. The Apple Butter Stirrin’ is another terrific event for our community that showcases the beauty of our community and the hospitality of our people to the region.

There was a wonderful turnout for Tom Thompson’s Memorial Service that was held in the Coshocton High School gymnasium on Sunday. I learned a lot about Tom that I did not know and found myself laughing along with everyone else as twin nephews Eric and Eron Fleming shared insights and family antidotes. Then friend Roger Moore shared more stories and experiences that had folks both laughing and crying as they remembered this great man that so unselfishly served the young people of this community, his family and many organizations with his time and talent.

I’ll be honest. I wish I would have known Tom better. I imagine many of us sitting in the bleachers on Sunday were thinking the same thing. “What a tremendous guy” is what went through my mind as I listened to the stories about his life, his experiences and most importantly, how he lived his life. And I also thought what a much, much better place the world would be if we all had just a little bit of Tom Thompson inside of us and let that shine forth each day.

Category: Mark's Musings, Opinion