Final Comments for "The Pioneers," & A Brief Pause

My Dearest Book Clubbers!

My copy of "The Pioneers," has been sitting in one place for a while, and then moved on to resting in another. I finished reading our final book club selection for 2020 a while back; however, I found myself continuing to contemplate on the historic characters and the "coming into their own" of the cities and towns of "The Ohio Country." The cities and towns of Cincinnati, Chillicothe, Cleveland, and Columbus, to name a few, were places I discovered as a child growing up in Ohio and places that I discovered in a completely different light as an adult. Quite a few of my family members reside in Ohio, and they continue to make "The Buckeye State" their home.

There were limited educational opportunities in the Northwest Territory and Ohio once it became a state. Enter Caleb Atwater, in 1822, who served as chairman of a commission to study the feasibility of creating common schools in Ohio. Along with Representatives John Collins, James Hoge, Nathan Guilford, Ephraim Cutler, Josiah Barber, and James Bell, Caleb Atwater spent months researching the condition of Ohio's educational system, as well as studying public education in other states. After several years of relentless advocation for a public school system, Ohio established their very own in 1825. A property tax to finance education was the final resolve. Learning and understanding the roles of some of Ohio's historic leaders that paved the way for a public school education was inspiring.

Recently, I received a copy of the Fall 2020 magazine from Saint Mary-Of-The-Woods College, my alma mater. A featured article paying tribute to Barbara Doherty, Sister of Providence, 13th President of Saint Mary's, spoke words that I wish to share with all of my friends at The Armed Forces Retirement Home, Washington, D.C. The following are her words of wisdom...Sister Doherty's prolific words of wisdom, " Please let yourself know as you view your life in retrospect-with whatever distance of years lies behind you-that the reason you are here today, in the place you are in your head and heart-the reason you have not been swallowed up in your own pain and struggle-is because the purposes of God are riding on your existence, the power and the Providence of God are riding on your existence. With this knowledge, you cannot fail."

Missing you all very much, and so looking forward to reading together and sharing our words of wisdom in the New Year!

Merry, Merry Christmas.... :)

Love, Glenna