CREEDS — The dinner for senior citizens at Creeds Church of Christ on Saturday, Aug. 26, was the latest in an annual tradition that gathers familiar faces for dinner, dessert and a program.
Younger folks served their elders. A sing-along of “The Pungo Song” was so certain its chorus was on the back of the program. And people from the congregation joined in fellowship with neighbors from nearby communities in Virginia Beach and North Carolina.
Garland Eaton of Pungo and Fred Waterfield Jr. of Knotts Island, N.C., were among those at one round table during the dinner.
Eaton is a lifelong member of Tabernacle United Methodist Church. Waterfield was baptized here at the Church of Christ, though in the building that preceded the modern brick structure at Morris Neck and Fitztown roads. Today it also boasts a large adjoining center which is home to the dinner.
During the meal, Waterfield remembered coming across the old church during a fire back in the early 1970s. The fire started when the furnace exploded, according to Glimpses of Down-County History: Southern Princess Anne County. Waterfield headed to a nearby store to call for help.
Eaton, then with the fire service at Naval Air Station Oceana, remembered that day, too. They didn’t have clearance to go until the fire was done, though. “We couldn’t get permission to leave the base,” he said.
The men were glad for the dinner.
“Roast beef and chicken,” Waterfield said, adding that the food was delicious.
“It was good,” Eaton agreed.
And glad for the company, too.
“I love it,” Eaton said. “Meeting the people and enjoying the food, and they have a good program.”
For years, members of churches have visited other congregations for dinners and events, he said. Then it was dessert time.
“Rice pudding,” Waterfield said, when a girl came around with desserts.
Eaton seconded that idea.
“And rice pudding,” Waterfield added, placing the order for his tablemate.
Kenny Hanks, emcee for the dinner’s program, led the way when it was time to recognize the eldest seniors in the room.
Irene Frost, 91, of Blackwater, was the winning lady, and Eaton, 93, was the winning gentleman. There was more to come during the dinner, including a favorite song about meeting at the stoplight in Pungo.
Creeds, too, is a fine place to meet. A reminder to that effect was in the program, just a bit below “The Pungo Song” lyrics: We look forward to seeing you again next year!
© 2017 Pungo Publishing Co., LLC