CLASS NOTES Jennifer and rest of family were in Boston over July 4th for a week. It was a great experience/fun – but sure kept us going. And below are my comments on the Southern Inn fire, mostly taken from the Lexington News Gazette. I did send out an e-mail announcement on the fire to those on the list. Judy and I have eaten there several times in recent years, and it is quite a change/upgrade from those VMI days, or even when I used to take my son, ’84, there during weekend visits. Those at the 55th will recall that we had our early arrival dinner that Sunday night at the Southern Inn. Lexington Trivia: The historic Southern
Inn burned on the morning of Friday, July 9th, starting about 1:30 a.m. It is believed that the fire was caused by lightning during a major thunderstorm at the time. The inside was almost totally destroyed, roof collapsing into the first floor, but the exterior walls held up. The historic, vintage “Southern Inn” neon sign survived the fire and can be reused when the restaurant is restored. It had just been repaired and repainted last year. The restaurant was established in 1932 by the Macheras family. The room above the restaurant was empty, which is where the Macheras – the building owner’s grandparents – originally lived
at the time the restaurant was established. Alex Macheras and then George and Sue Ann Huger, who run the restaurant, said that they have plans to restore the restaurant. George Huger is a relative of our Brother Rat Scott Huger, who was killed in an auto wreck at VMI in 1954. When I last looked, they were still cleaning out the mess and evaluating the structural condition of the walls. Last estimate that I saw was six to eight months to get back into operation. The Hallmark store next door was damaged, mostly by water, and the adjacent SunTrust Bank had to close for several days due to smoke infestation.
Class of 1953 2010 Richmond and Beyond Lunch Warren and Win Koontz hosted the 2010 Richmond and Beyond ‘53 Lunch at the Country Club of Virginia. Attending the event this year were 39 Brother Rats, wives and friends. Herold and Ellen Hofheimer, Warren and Win Koontz, Robert and Keith Miller, Kenneth and Chris Perry, Luke Witt, Parker and Anna Cross, Warren and Anne Goddard, Reed Johnson, John and Maggie Lund, Frank and Lois Wootton, William and Christina Allison, Webster and Helen Maddux, Terry and Betty Davis, David and Betsy Stuart, Ronald and Elizabeth Haywood, Theodore Mariani, John and Bruce Evans, John and Meridith Townes, John and Doris Gilbert, and Bill and Judy Noell.
2010-Issue 4
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