Ruth & Algie Boone

ALGIE

"A righteous man who walks in
his integrity - How blessed are his sons
[and daughters] after him." Proverbs 20:7

Daddy, did you know that you have been a teacher?
Oh, I know—you thought you were a salesman.
And you were, and are, the best salesman I've ever seen in action.
But by your life and actions, you have been a teacher.

Where was your classroom?
First at 220 South Myrtle Street
And later at 113 South Locust Street.

What subject did you teach?
How to live a godly life.

Who were your students?
There were three of us.
One was an intellectual,
One a bookworm,
And one a socialite.
Quite a diverse group!

What methods did you use in your classroom?
Your primary teaching method was by example.
You may not have verbally said as much as some men do,
But by your actions, you said volumes to us.

What did you say to your students by your actions?
You said that God was first and foremost in your life.
Many mornings while getting ready for school
I came through the den and saw you sitting in the rocker reading your Bible
Or on your knees praying for each of us.
And nightly we gathered for family devotions, regardless of who was there.
There were precious moments as a family where we learned to pray,
And then there were the humorous moments.
Remember when cousin Bobby Gene prayed
That those who were lost would "get out of lost"?

You also taught your students to love people.
First of all, you loved Mother.
The first thing you did when you came in the door each night
Was to walk to the stove and hug and kiss Mother.
We were next in line for the hugs and kisses.
But you loved many others outside our family.
Last summer after family reunion we stopped at Wendy's on the way to the airport
And I watched with pride as you talked to the homeless man sitting at the next table.
You commented on his artwork, offered to buy him food,
Told him about Jesus, and asked about his life.
And through all of this, you treated him with the same dignity and respect
You would have shown to a millionaire.
I also knew that you would have been equally at ease
With this homeless man or with the millionaire.
I have always admired that quality in you.

You taught your students how to play.
Thursday's were special days in our family - your day off.
Remember tomato sandwiches and watermelon at Bogue Chitto River?
And when each of us got old enough to swim out to you at the log,
We knew we had reached a milestone in life.
Then there were the rare occasions when it snowed.
You taught us how to build snowmen and how to go sledding.
With baby bathtub in hand, we would head for the hill in the backyard
As soon as the ground became white.
One of my favorite pictures is the movie film of you
Running through the front yard kicking up the snow.

You taught your students how to give to God freely.
Tithing is easy for me today
Because it started with giving a penny from my allowance of a dime.
Then it moved up to giving the dime from the dollar.
I thought everybody did it that way.
And it always seemed like they took pledges at church for something
On the day after we decided to buy a new sofa.
We would ask about the sofa a few weeks later
And you would explain that we really didn't need it right now
And had decided to give that money to God's work.
I'm not sure if you ever got the new sofa before we left home.
The sofa would have worn out long ago
But the lesson you taught me is very much alive today.

You taught your students that family is more important than career.
On the rare occasions that you had to be gone overnight on business,
You always brought us something to let us know you had been thinking about us.
And you talked about how good it was to be home.
At Christmas you brought us chocolate-covered peanuts from Sears.
And in the midst of your busiest season at work
You took the time to be Santa Claus for our Sunday school parties.
Remember when Rose Annette recognized Santa's hands?
You also drove thousands of miles between McComb and Trevecca College.
That must have been your vacation time you were using,
Yet I never heard a word of complaint.

You taught your students that "a good name is to be more desired than riches."
And you gave us that good name.
I have always been proud to be a Boone
And have enjoyed the godly heritage that comes with that name.
During my college years I realized what a special heritage I had received
When night after night traveling from coast to coast with a music group
I met person after person who had good things to say about The Boones.

The Scripture above says it best.
I am truly blessed because of you.
Thank you. I love you.

Vickie

RUTH
Compassionate, Beautiful

"She extends her hand to the poor;
And she stretches out her
hands to the needy." Proverbs 31:20

Did I ever tell you "Thank You" - For my facial features?
You can't deny the fact that they came from you.
Everyone at Bethel Church would heartily agree as they called me "Little Ruthie."
And people who see your high school graduation picture (my favorite picture of you)
In our upstairs bedroom today still ask if that's my mother or me.

Did I ever tell you "Thank You" - For instilling in me a love for reading?
How many trips did you make to the library? I know it was at least once a week.
Let's see, eleven years x 52 weeks per year = 572 trips minimum!
And how many books did you read that would not have been on your "to be read" list
Except for the fact that they appealed to me and you wanted to be sure I was reading the best.
You weren't reading them because of spare time, but because you knew that was important.

Did I ever tell you "Thank You" - For teaching me piano that first year
And for paying for many years of lessons and for sacrificing to buy the piano?
The number of trips to Mrs. Moore's house isn't far behind the number of trips to the library.
You must have felt like a taxi service during those years, but you were much more.
Somehow it doesn't seem fair that you had to listen to the beginning years of piano practice
And didn't get to hear the "listenable" years of practice in college.
How many recitals did you attend? Every single one.
You even drove 500 miles to my college senior recital in Nashville and made the dress I wore.
I think you were more nervous than I.

Did I ever tell you "Thank You" - For the hours you invested in making vacations so special?
You have the ability to pack more food into an ice chest than anyone else I know.
Remember the picnics alongside the highway,
And the family breakfast times in our room at the Terrace Motel,
And ice cold watermelon at Bogue Chitto River,
And counting the bears in the Great Smokey Mountains,
And Granny making and unmaking her bed,
And the upside-down movie pictures of our trip to Ruby Falls.

Did I ever tell you "Thank You" - For teaching me to sew and to enjoy crafts?
When Christmas rolls around each year, I still want to make something with my hands
Whether it's cross-stitch or crochet or sewing.
Your rewards for patiently teaching me to crochet weren't exactly fair.
Remember the sweater I crocheted for you that Christmas in college?
I still don't understand how one sleeve came out six inches longer!

Did I ever tell you "Thank You" - For teaching me how to manage a home?
In a marriage seminar last year we were asked to list five things we appreciated in our spouse.
Do you know what Chuck wrote?
The ability to spend money carefully and wisely, to keep a clean, neat house,
And to be a good hostess.
You modeled those so well at 220 South Myrtle and 113 South Locust Street.

Did I ever tell you "Thank You" - For making birthdays and holidays special?
I thought everyone had birthday parties with lots of friends, fun games and decorated cakes.
And that everyone colored and hunted eggs at Easter.
And that everyone went looking at Christmas lights
And returned home to find that Santa had come
And that Santa had gotten exactly what you wanted
Even when you didn't ask until the day before.
Remember the roller skates?

Did I ever tell you "Thank You" - For teaching me to cook?
That one must have really tried your patience.
Remember the dried Kool-Aid and sugar mixture I spilled on the kitchen floor?
But I did try to mop it up for you with water!
And remember Rose Annette's attempts with fudge?
How many pounds of sugar did she use over the years?
Snickerdoodles, homemade rolls, "hello dolly" candies.
I remember a cold December afternoon in 1988 in Bedford, Texas.
I was making "hello dollies" and listening to Christmas music,
Thoroughly enjoying the Christmas spirit.
I was thinking about when you taught me to make "hello dollies"
And to decorate the house for Christmas;
And realized that I was enjoying this afternoon because of things you had taught me.
That's when I knew for certain that I wanted a child of my own to pass those same things on to.

Did I ever tell you "Thank You" - For the letters and care packages you sent to college?
For the encouragement and prayers in your letters,
For the clothes you made,
For the packages of delicious homemade goodies,
For the money slipped in with the packages.
You made my day when I stopped by the post office after chapel
To find a slip in my box telling me I had a package from home.

Did I ever tell you "Thank You" - For these words which I've quoted you on many times -
"An unhappy single person will make an unhappy married person;
And a happy single person will make a happy married person."
Those words encouraged and challenged me many times during those ten years of single life.

Did I ever tell you "I'm Proud of You"? - Against great obstacles, you made something special of yourself.
You created a Christian home.
You minister to many through listening, teaching, and giving.
Your name even means "compassionate."
You started using your middle name in high school long before you ever knew its meaning,
And yet you have lived out the meaning of your name to the fullest extent.

Thank you, Mother. I am proud of you. I love you.

Vickie