In Memory of Derwood Lupton

Capt. William Derwood Lupton, 78, of Hobucken passed away Sunday, March 30, 2014, at CarolinaEast Medical Center.

He served in the U.S. Army and retired from commercial fishing.

He is survived by his wife of nearly 56 years, Rita V. Lupton; one son, Alton Derwood Lupton and wife, Misty, of Alliance; two daughters, Teal Lupton Sadler and husband, Doran, of Hobucken and Wendy Lupton Honeycutt and husband, Jeff, of Vanceboro; one sister, Ella Lupton Bullock and husband, Melvin, of New Bern; seven grandchildren, Derwood Glenn Lupton, Savannah Morgan Lupton, Doran Thomas Sadler, Erica Sadler-Young(Scott), Nicole Sadler Ecker (John), Teal Yvonne Sadler, and Andrew Dylan Hardy; and three great-grandchildren, John Noah Ecker, Lillian Marie Ecker and Wyatt Knox Young.

His funeral will be held at 11 a.m., Tuesday, April 1, at Bryant Funeral Home Chapel with the Rev. Wesley Taylor and the Rev. Earl Sadler Jr. officiating. Interment will be in Barnett Cemetery, Hobucken.
T
he family will receive friends and relatives at any time at the home, 15552 Hwy 304 N, Hobucken.

In Memory of Albert Taylor McKinney

                                                        

                                                              Albert Taylor McKinney
                                                          July 4, 1932 - March 21, 2014

Albert Taylor McKinney, 81, of Mesic passed away Friday, March 21, 2014, at CarolinaEast Medical Center.

He was a member of New Vision Pentecostal Holiness Church. He served in the U.S. Navy where he played baseball as well as playing for the Chicago White Sox in the mid to late 50’s. He retired from Intercoastal Marine as a tug boat captain.

He is survived by his wife of 61 years, Edna O’Neal McKinney; two daughters, Joanne Clark and husband, Richard, of Carmel, Indiana and Nancy McKinney of Aurora; four grandchildren; and 10 great-grandchildren.

His memorial service will be held at 5 p.m., Sunday, March 23, 2014 at New Vision Pentecostal Holiness Church with the Rev. Ray Bonner officiating.

The family will receive friends and relatives from 3 to 5 p.m. at the church.

In lieu of flowers the family suggested memorial contributions be made to New Vision Pentecostal Holiness Church Building Fund, c/o Sharon Leary, PO Box 129, Hobucken, NC 28537.

We Stay for the History

     

     I have a love for history.  Not just Goose Creek Island history, but anything historical.  When I am involved in some research, I like to warn people that I am on a mission.  I become entranced by the quest to learn more, to find another clue that will lead me to the next snippet of information.

     I think I got this from my Granddaddy Mike.  He was an avid reader of anything and everything.  Whenever I wanted to know something, he was always telling me to go get the encyclopedia, a map or dictionary and “look it up”.  Usually he would be there to help me understand or to discuss it with me.  He always said that if you read, you learn.

     But history has always been my ‘forte’.  When it comes to Goose Creek Island history, I have learned that we are shaped more by the past than we realize.  Events that happened so long ago makes us think about how things got to be the way they are today.

     Countless events have created Goose Creek Island to what it is today.  The things we say, do, eat and believe has accumulated from our past to present.  It probably took years to determine that eating oysters made us “fancy” to some people or that picking crabs was an artistic talent. Things develop slowly over time.

     History is a part of our present experience.  In our communities on the Island, we have some folks with long memories.  They know how certain things began or can at least give an opinion of how.  The unfortunate thing is there are so many of those folks who have passed that had a vast knowledge of our Island history.  A constant shifting of characters has become harder to hold onto in our shared pasts.

     Most of us from the Island have known each other since birth.  We live with accumulated history from living and being with each other in our confines of isolation on this Island.  Our connections and stories provide layers and a backdrop to daily life.  You look at the Goose Creek Island Community Center and you remember that the school was there.  The vacant ball field reminds you of the broken wrist you got from a baseball game.

     It can be tough living with everyone in a place like Goose Creek Island.  It’s hard to escape from a reputation.  Imagine living in a community where at 70 years old you still have to deal with the nickname you earned from elementary school.   We all have things we’d rather people forget, but with the bad we pay for keeping the good memories.  When it comes to long memories, our Island has nothing on other places.

     So when you and others begin reminiscing about events or people from the Island, remember that an active presence of history is often the foundation of our identity and everything that makes a place important to us. Life on Goose Creek Island is not always easy.  There are more places to live if you want convenience to shopping, schools or doctors.  We stay here for the people, the memories, and the stories.

     Whether we realize it or not, we stay for the history.