One of the final events of the Dogfest All Class Reunion in June was the Memorial Service held on Sunday morning at the Bandera River Park.
Over 100 people showed up to honor classmates and family that had passed away. The service started at 10:30 on the river level of the park by the front entrance.
A roll call of classes began the gathering. Adults stood with their children and grandchildren on the banks of the green Medina River. The interior of the Service’s program listed the names of all the classmates who had passed away.
Pastor Bob Morris, Class of 1982, and pastor of the White Rock Christian Fellowship delivered the message to the crowd by the peaceful green Medina River.
He also encouraged the crowd to “look up to God” when troubled times came around.
Morris presented a sermon which emphasized relying on God to help with daily struggles. He frequently called on scripture to emphasize the points in his sermon.
The weather cooperated with a warm breeze and patchy sunshine on the festivities. As the adults gathered by the river, children played on park equipment laughing and running.
Morris commented that the group should “thank God for the shade.”
Buckets of white carnations stood with name tags of former students who were no longer alive.
Graduates picked through the flowers looking for loved ones and friends, often collecting a handful.
At the end of the sermon, Morris talked about how to remember classmates who had passed away.
He invited the group to take the flowers home to remind them of lost friends or they could toss the flowers in the Medina River as a remembrance.
Many sat in lawn chairs or stood in a circle around the group listening to the sermon. Morris spoke about the fleeting nature of life “this is not the permanent place for us, we are just passing through.”
Everyone commented that Morris did a good job with the sermon.
At the end of the ceremony, quite a few walked to the river and tossed the carnations gently into the current.
They watched the flowers float downstream and remembered family and friends from the graduates of Bandera High School.
As with many services, the participants lingered at the end to chat with neighbors and reconnect with friends.
