Reunion
The annual 2003 Whelchel Family Reunion will be held on Sunday, August 03, 2003, at the Whelchel Family Reunion Center, Whelchel Road, Gaffney, South Carolina. Commence making your plans now to attend the 2003 Reunion and make it better than the 2002 reunion.

Deaths
Nancy Jones - Died Saturday, August 03, 2002 - No further information available.

Harry Mitt Whelchel - Died Saturday, September 28, 2002, in Spartanburg Regional Medical Center, Spartanburg County. Burial was in Frederick Memorial Gardens, Gaffney, South Carolina, Cherokee County.

Mitt was the Treasurer for the Whelchel Family Reunion for many years, and had been re-elected again on August 04, 2002. Due to the severity of his illness, he was unable to attend the reunion this year. He certainly will be missed and is in our thoughts and prayers.

The 2002 Family Reunion
Gaffney, SC - The 2002 Whelchel Family Reunion held on Sunday, August 04, 2002, was one of the best in a long time. There were 118 persons signing the guest book, but there were others who did not sign the register. There were families from Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Georgia, Florida, North Carolina and, of course, many from South Carolina.

The Rev. S. Michael Miller, pastor of Berry Memorial Baptist Church, Gaffney, S.C., sang a very rousing rendition of "God Bless America." He has a great voice and sings with much enthusiasm. We thank Rev. Miller and his wife, Sandra, for taking their time to join us. We hope they will return next year.

We also want to thank those who chopped the onions, pulled the meat, and cooked the meat. Without the assistance of all these people, the hash would not have been possible.

It appeared that everyone enjoyed themselves with new family members meeting each other for the first time, and others just renewing their relationships. There were several people I had known for years (went to school with) but did not know we were related until this year.

To take a phrase from Disney, "It’s a small, small world, after all."

Photos
Please see our photo gallery for photos from the 2002 Family Reunion.

Apologies
I apologize for the time that has passed since the reunion and updating the web-site. You see, I own my business and the work load must come first. This has been a very busy period with the Federal Government instituting new laws affecting the medical profession with deadlines which must be met; therefore, work must come first.

Also, John, who donates the web-site space for us, has his own business, which must come first; therefore, he takes the information I write and transfers it to the web-site server.

Without both of us maintaining our income, there would be no www.whelchelfamily.org. So, please, bear with us in our endeavors.

The printed news letter should be forthcoming. If you gave your mailing addresses when you registered in the Website Guest Book or the guest book at the reunion center, you will be receiving a copy. My apologies if you have not provided your mailing address.

New Officers Elected for 2002-2003
New officers were nominated and elected for the coming year. They are as follows:

Officers 2002 - 2003
President:	Raymond Steve Whelchel
Vice-President:	Jeff Whelchel
Secretary:	Margaret F. (Whelchel) Cooper
Treasurer:	Mitt Whelchel
Public Relations:	R. Wayne Whelchel, M.D.

Donations and Sales
Donations from family members were received in the amount of $1,050.00. These donations are marked for a new roof and trussing. We thank those of you who gave so freely. The donations were not enough to purchase the materials needed for repairs; therefore, we must come up with more money between now and the next reunion, or rely solely on the donations next year.

The sale of hash after the reunion was sold at $6.00 a pint. This brought in another $459.00. The cost of the meat for the hash was $221.00. When the cost of the meat was deducted from the sale, there was a profit of $238.00

We must remember that there are property taxes, electricity and water bills, which must be paid each year.

Should we become a Non-Profit Organization?

I was approached by Mrs. Polly Whelchel Clary, asking if donations were tax deductible. Unfortunately, we are not a non-profit organization. We could easily become a non-profit organization. The papers are easy to complete, but we would need a certified public accountant or other qualified person to submit all accounting to the state and Federal government as necessary. This would be a large expense, UNLESS, a family member volunteers to take on this responsibility. Are there any takers out there willing to volunteer their time to do this? If so, please contact me . It would also be beneficial to know who or how many people would be willing to donate more money if it was tax deductible. This information would help us assess whether it is feasible to become a non-profit organization. Any information sent to me will be held in strict confidence.

Building Repairs and Maintenance
Are there family members or friends in the Gaffney area who would be willing to donate time and/or money to help repair the reunion center and assist in the maintenance of the building and property. If so, please contact me by e-mail, telephone (954-956-1790 or 954-341-2203) or by mail at the address listed in this newsletter.

Joe Byars has joined Horace Whelchel in maintaining the grass around the building. Horace has done this alone for the last unknown number of years. It seems as though it has been forever. Their contribution is greatly appreciated by all.

New electrical lighting was added this year. The installation was done by Rocky Clary (married into the family), Joe Guthrie (married into the family), John Zolnoski (married into the family), and Mike Guzik ('adopted' into the family <grin>).

Air Conditioning
I inadvertently left out the names of Mildred (Blanton) and Roger Mahaffey who so graciously donated the air conditioner last year. The donation has made the building a bit more tolerable. The air conditioner was installed by Steve Whelchel. Thank you very much.

Poems
Several poems are forth coming on the web-site in the near future. They were written by a Whelchel. Look for them soon.

Wayne Whelchel, M.D. 10-26-2002

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