November 18, 2022 Coats Museum News
The folks in Coats were preparing to flip the page on the 1991 calendar to September when the August 30th edition of the Daily Record printed the engagement announcement of Janet Rose Howell of Dunn to Kenneth Earl Clevenger of Coats. He was son of Mr. and Mrs. Keith Clevenger.
The same readers may remember Jenny Temple from Coats who attended Coats School in the 1980’s? In 1991, Jenny was Mrs. Murray Van Johnson and the couple announced the birth of Megan Leigh Johnson (Daily Record Sept. 3, 1991).
A name that is etched into the memories of thousands of people in Coats is that of Rev. Jesse Mooney. The Daily Record Sept. 5, 1991 edition shared that the Coats Baptist Church had welcomed Pastor Jesse and Peggy Mooney to their church.
Do you know how long he served in the Coats community? Our being members of the Ebenezer Presbyterian Church, H.L. and I never had the opportunity to hear many of his sermons but we did get to hear his soft spoken words at funerals and community events. We shared the love of camellias with Peggy and her mom who made many visits to our place to get volunteer young plants. We were so appreciative that Pastor Mooney, in 2009, would drive hundreds of miles to return to Coats Baptist to hold the final services for Nell Penny Williams who had so many family connections in the Coats Baptist Church. Pastor Jesse Mooney touched the lives of so many others in the Coats community and beyond.
While Coats Baptist was welcoming Pastor Jesse and Peggy Mooney into their lives, Buster and Angela Penny Stone were welcoming a son into their family. Grandparents were Ted and Sue Penny and Velton and Delores Stone. This newborn would grow into an amazing young man Jereon Stone who would become an Eagle Scout in Troop 779.
Wonder how many veterinarians have their roots in Coats? I do know that In 1991, Dr. Tonya Stewart, DVM, daughter of Tony and Anna Belle Penny Stewart, had spent three months in Australia working in the Intensive Care Unit for the foal season there (Daily Record Sept. 5, 1991).
Many teachers often tell their former students that they remember exactly where the student sat in a classroom. Such is the case of former student Shelia G. McLamb who graduated from Wake Tech with her associate degree in nursing. She was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. D.J. McLamb of rural Coats (Daily Record Sept. 10, 1991).
When we give tours in our museums, we share that young school students worked to make a difference in helping the cause of peace in WWII by collecting scrap metal. Several youth organizations made it a competition with other youth groups. We tell visitors that one such 4-H Club president was Junaita Ogburn Hudson from the Cleveland School in Johnston County. Her 4-H club had won the challenge. The conversation with the visitors gets attention but it is not until we ask them if they ever knew anyone who had christened a ship that they perk up. Then we share that this young 17 year old girl was to do just that and then we point out the pictures and book to verify her doing so.
But in 1991, Juanita O. Hudson made the Sept. 13, 1991 edition of the Daily Record when it shared that she was elected the treasurer of the National Homemakers Association during the 55th Annual Conference in Portland, Oregon.
Who remembers when Coats had a business named Durabilt Engines, an engine rebuilding plant located behind the former Ma’s Restaurant on NC Highway 55. The plant was owned by Jerry McLamb. It had exploded and burned to the ground. Arson was reported as the cause.
Tony Beasley and Joseph Hawley led the Coats attack against Anderson Creek for a 46-8 win. Diane Shue traveled to Russia to pass out Bibles and share news about Jesus (Daily Record Sept.18, 1991).
A former Coats resident, Darwin Whittington, had suffered a heart attack in New. Bern. Mary Jo Mann had had surgery on her leg.; Vara Neighbors was ill in Rex and Willa Mae Parrish had had eye surgeon (Daily Record Sept. 19, 1991).
Two celebrations were recorded in the Sept. 20th edition-Mr. and Mrs. Ralph Langdon had celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary and the Coats Baptists were celebrating with a full house to hear Rev. Jesse Mooney as their new pastor.
For those who have followed the Coats Museum News since it began to appear in the Daily Record in 2009, you may recall reading about those days when students fired the old wood heaters before they began lessons. Sometimes the wood was gathered from the woods surrounding the school.
One person who could surely have remembered the early days of schools was Mrs. Ella Footman. The former teacher was 93 years old when she died. Her arrangements were by O’Quinn Funeral Home in Lillington. Another lady helped us with the Coats Reunion Project in 1985 by sharing names of former students, teachers and much information about the Ennis and Sorrell Schools. This lady was Vera Hodges Neighbors, 90, of Coats. She had died on Saturday and her services were held at Rose and Graham Funeral Home in Benson and burial was in the Hodges Chapel Cemetery. Her survivors were Ella Miller, Christine Cole, James Neighbors, and C.H. Neighbors.
Did any of you attend the Annual Rhodes Pond Antique Engines Festival? When that area is restored to earlier days, will they continue that festival there? I do know that Ed Dixon attended the event in 1991 (Daily Record Sept. 23, 1991).
We were so sad to hear that Charles Manning had died. For years Charles had been a member of Kiwanis and was a silent work horse behind the scenes. We will miss Charles and are honored to remember him with a memorial to the Coats Museum.
A big thank you goes to all the former scout leaders and Boy Scout Eagles who came out to the Gathering of the Eagles. It was wonderful to see the oldest living former scoutmaster Teeny Pleasant who is credited for bringing scouting back to Coats in the 1950’s. From the event, headed up by Marc Powell and Kevin Pope and assisted by Lynda Butler and David Barnes, the Coats Museum now has a remarkable history of Troop 779 in Coats via both video and written copy.
The folks in Coats were preparing to flip the page on the 1991 calendar to September when the August 30th edition of the Daily Record printed the engagement announcement of Janet Rose Howell of Dunn to Kenneth Earl Clevenger of Coats. He was son of Mr. and Mrs. Keith Clevenger.
The same readers may remember Jenny Temple from Coats who attended Coats School in the 1980’s? In 1991, Jenny was Mrs. Murray Van Johnson and the couple announced the birth of Megan Leigh Johnson (Daily Record Sept. 3, 1991).
A name that is etched into the memories of thousands of people in Coats is that of Rev. Jesse Mooney. The Daily Record Sept. 5, 1991 edition shared that the Coats Baptist Church had welcomed Pastor Jesse and Peggy Mooney to their church.
Do you know how long he served in the Coats community? Our being members of the Ebenezer Presbyterian Church, H.L. and I never had the opportunity to hear many of his sermons but we did get to hear his soft spoken words at funerals and community events. We shared the love of camellias with Peggy and her mom who made many visits to our place to get volunteer young plants. We were so appreciative that Pastor Mooney, in 2009, would drive hundreds of miles to return to Coats Baptist to hold the final services for Nell Penny Williams who had so many family connections in the Coats Baptist Church. Pastor Jesse Mooney touched the lives of so many others in the Coats community and beyond.
While Coats Baptist was welcoming Pastor Jesse and Peggy Mooney into their lives, Buster and Angela Penny Stone were welcoming a son into their family. Grandparents were Ted and Sue Penny and Velton and Delores Stone. This newborn would grow into an amazing young man Jereon Stone who would become an Eagle Scout in Troop 779.
Wonder how many veterinarians have their roots in Coats? I do know that In 1991, Dr. Tonya Stewart, DVM, daughter of Tony and Anna Belle Penny Stewart, had spent three months in Australia working in the Intensive Care Unit for the foal season there (Daily Record Sept. 5, 1991).
Many teachers often tell their former students that they remember exactly where the student sat in a classroom. Such is the case of former student Shelia G. McLamb who graduated from Wake Tech with her associate degree in nursing. She was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. D.J. McLamb of rural Coats (Daily Record Sept. 10, 1991).
When we give tours in our museums, we share that young school students worked to make a difference in helping the cause of peace in WWII by collecting scrap metal. Several youth organizations made it a competition with other youth groups. We tell visitors that one such 4-H Club president was Junaita Ogburn Hudson from the Cleveland School in Johnston County. Her 4-H club had won the challenge. The conversation with the visitors gets attention but it is not until we ask them if they ever knew anyone who had christened a ship that they perk up. Then we share that this young 17 year old girl was to do just that and then we point out the pictures and book to verify her doing so.
But in 1991, Juanita O. Hudson made the Sept. 13, 1991 edition of the Daily Record when it shared that she was elected the treasurer of the National Homemakers Association during the 55th Annual Conference in Portland, Oregon.
Who remembers when Coats had a business named Durabilt Engines, an engine rebuilding plant located behind the former Ma’s Restaurant on NC Highway 55. The plant was owned by Jerry McLamb. It had exploded and burned to the ground. Arson was reported as the cause.
Tony Beasley and Joseph Hawley led the Coats attack against Anderson Creek for a 46-8 win. Diane Shue traveled to Russia to pass out Bibles and share news about Jesus (Daily Record Sept.18, 1991).
A former Coats resident, Darwin Whittington, had suffered a heart attack in New. Bern. Mary Jo Mann had had surgery on her leg.; Vara Neighbors was ill in Rex and Willa Mae Parrish had had eye surgeon (Daily Record Sept. 19, 1991).
Two celebrations were recorded in the Sept. 20th edition-Mr. and Mrs. Ralph Langdon had celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary and the Coats Baptists were celebrating with a full house to hear Rev. Jesse Mooney as their new pastor.
For those who have followed the Coats Museum News since it began to appear in the Daily Record in 2009, you may recall reading about those days when students fired the old wood heaters before they began lessons. Sometimes the wood was gathered from the woods surrounding the school.
One person who could surely have remembered the early days of schools was Mrs. Ella Footman. The former teacher was 93 years old when she died. Her arrangements were by O’Quinn Funeral Home in Lillington. Another lady helped us with the Coats Reunion Project in 1985 by sharing names of former students, teachers and much information about the Ennis and Sorrell Schools. This lady was Vera Hodges Neighbors, 90, of Coats. She had died on Saturday and her services were held at Rose and Graham Funeral Home in Benson and burial was in the Hodges Chapel Cemetery. Her survivors were Ella Miller, Christine Cole, James Neighbors, and C.H. Neighbors.
Did any of you attend the Annual Rhodes Pond Antique Engines Festival? When that area is restored to earlier days, will they continue that festival there? I do know that Ed Dixon attended the event in 1991 (Daily Record Sept. 23, 1991).
We were so sad to hear that Charles Manning had died. For years Charles had been a member of Kiwanis and was a silent work horse behind the scenes. We will miss Charles and are honored to remember him with a memorial to the Coats Museum.
A big thank you goes to all the former scout leaders and Boy Scout Eagles who came out to the Gathering of the Eagles. It was wonderful to see the oldest living former scoutmaster Teeny Pleasant who is credited for bringing scouting back to Coats in the 1950’s. From the event, headed up by Marc Powell and Kevin Pope and assisted by Lynda Butler and David Barnes, the Coats Museum now has a remarkable history of Troop 779 in Coats via both video and written copy.