By NANCY PATRICK Sunday, October 10, 2021, Dr. Bob Ellis filled the pulpit at First Baptist Church, Abilene. He treated our congregation to an excellent sermon while our search committee seeks a new senior pastor after our long-time pastor, Dr. Phil Christopher, retired. Dr. Ellis, a true intellectual, has the talent of imparting difficult concepts to average people. He chose
Read moreBy NANCY PATRICK I have not kept up with all the new trends in modern American education since my retirement from public school teaching in 2004. Although I continued to teach at the college level for another 10 years, I discovered that not all state rules apply to private college education. In the Sept. 14, 2021, edition of the Abilene
Read moreBy NANCY PATRICK Recently, our country commemorated the events of September 11, 2001. Amid the sorrow expressed across the nation, I saw glimpses of the patriotism I saw back twenty years ago when the effects of the terror attacks were fresh and raw. I will never forget the moment I learned of the tragedy. One of my senior English students
Read moreBy NANCY PATRICK I hope my title doesn’t imply that I think I know more about life than the rest of you do. I have, however, had so much time on my hands during the pandemic that I’ve done a lot of thinking. I have confessed before that I think too much—always have. One of the issues filling my thoughts
Read moreBy NANCY PATRICK “Somewhere at sea”—These words appear at the top of Bill Hahn’s first letter home, dated September 22, 1944, as he looked back at the shores of New York and headed toward Europe. His last set of letters did reveal what I felt sure would happen once he deployed to Europe and faced battles on the ground and
Read moreBy NANCY PATRICK My first article about William (Bill) Hahn covered his basic training at Camp Fannin in Tyler, Texas. When I began reading his letters from the second packet the 12th Armored Division Museum gave me, I learned of Bill’s participation in further training in a program called the Army Specialized Training Program (ASTP). The new program, created to
Read moreBy NANCY PATRICK Do you ever feel as if the world is spinning out of control? I do. As I watched world news recently, I learned the staggering new statistics regarding Covid-19 and its Delta variant. Patients, medical personnel, families, and politicians frantically urge people to get vaccinated to protect themselves and others against this aggressive and deadly virus. At
Read moreBy NANCY PATRICK In the late 80s and early 90s, my son Jason had a favorite television show called Quantam Leap. Though not a fan, I knew that in each episode the main character traveled to a historical time where he would need to help with someone’s problems. Although I don’t really believe in time travel, I have to admit
Read moreBy NANCY PATRICK During the last several decades of my life, I have come to question just how well I really know the people in my life. When you consider your relationships with others, you must recognize that each relationship between you and someone else remains unique. For example, I knew my parents only in their parental roles in my
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Spirit Of Abilene 