Celebration

All posts tagged Celebration

Tuesday ~ November 29, 2022

Posted by Dave Updegraff on November 29, 2022
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , , , .

Happy Tuesday!

I apologize for my lack of activity on the blog.  I’ve been having some issues with my editor and now I feel like I’ve got them under control.

Actually I spent 45 minutes writing a blog for today only to lose the entire blog with one click of the mouse.  So I’m going to try again.

I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving Holiday.  It was for me one of the best Thanksgivings in memory.  It all started when these two great friends from Kansas City, Missouri joined us Wednesday afternoon.

They were on their way to Peoria, Illinois to celebrate Thanksgiving with their Son.  They drove seven hours out of their way to come visit with us.  Jeanne and Debbie were friends in college and have maintained that friendship over all the years.  Terry (her husband) is a great guy
and we get along great.

We took them to dinner at Mario’s Italian Restaurant to give them a taste of one of the local eateries in Dubuque.  Terry and I were tired so we retired to our respective beds and the ladies
visited until the wee hours of the night.  It was so great to see them.

We celebrated Thanksgiving at Mark and Julia’s new home.  Everyone pitched and brought some food and it was a wonderful time.  In the image above (from left to right back row) Jeff and Tina Bower (Julia’s parents & her sister) Kelly Bower.  Mark and Julia, Ben and Angie.

(seated from left to right) Jeanne, Addie, Joshua, Gabby, Austin, and the old man Upde.  We watched a little football, played some cards and just thoroughly enjoyed each other’s company.

I’ve been trying to get into videography  It’s like trying to learn how to walk again.  There was a time a few years ago where I did a lot of videography mainly for training purposes but made a lot of fun videos as well.  Some very complex.  But as the old adage goes, you either “use it or lose it.” I have severely lost it.  The short video below (less than two minutes in length) is jumpy but it took me 90 minutes to put it together from the raw video.  Enjoy.

 

Thanks for stopping by.  Enjoy your day and be careful.

 

Saturday ~ May 12, 2018

Posted by Dave Updegraff on May 12, 2018
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , , , , , , .

Happy Saturday!

Yesterday was a fun day.  It started for me with a trip to Anamosa to have lunch with a great friend.  Then back to Dubuque for the celebration of an amazing person and career.

I have three images today and a story.  Remember you can click on any of the images to see a larger more detailed version of the image.

Jeanne has taught special education for 43 years.  An amazing accomplishment given the challenges she has had to face.  Coincidentally we’ve been married 42 of those years and many would say that she has had a good practice subject to perfect her craft.  🙂

I just know that there are a lot of kids over that career that have benefited and have a better life because of her care, concern, teaching, and compassion.  She taught in Missouri for two years and in the Waterloo District for 2 years before we moved to Dubuque and she has been in the Dubuque School System for 39 years.  She retires at the end of this school year after a phenomenal career.

So last week Angie received an email from the School Principle advising her that her Mother was going to be receiving  a special inaugural award that was to be given to the outstanding teacher of the year.  The nominations were made by the students and it was the culmination of a week-long staff appreciation celebration.  There was an assembly Friday afternoon when the award was going to be presented and we could come but had to keep it a secret from Jeanne.  We had to keep it a secret because if she had known about the award she wouldn’t have gone to the assembly.  🙂

So we gathered the grand kids and snuck into the back of the gymnasium where we got to see the whole program and Jeanne’s big award.  There is a phenomenon called cognitive blindness and I used to teach about it at the leadership training I did over the years.  Jeanne was unaware that we were there (even though Josh ran up and gave her flowers) because she was not expecting us to be there and as always she was focused on keeping an eye on her kids.

It was a fitting tribute to an amazing person, teacher, wife, and Mother.  I am truly blessed!

Enjoy your day and be careful.

 

Sunday ~ April 15, 2018

Posted by Dave Updegraff on April 15, 2018
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , , , , , .

Happy Sunday!

I have three images for today and a story.

This is one of the coolest gifts I have ever received for several reasons.  It incorporates my love of photography and my fondness for wine.

I retired from Ohnward Bancshares, Inc.  on February 07, 2018 after 18 years.  It was a wonderful journey and the organization, the owners, and the employees have enriched my life beyond description.  I was the Chief HR Officer for the organization, which allowed me to interact with the majority of staff.  There are friendships that I will cherish the rest of my days.

However, I have never enjoyed “being in front of the camera.”  So when my boss said they wanted to have a celebration of my retirement I declined several times.  Long story short we had said celebration last Thursday at the Maquoketa Art Experience.  🙂

It was an amazing evening and many of my fellow employees both past and present showed up to celebrate my retirement including many of the friends I have made in the community.  I was overwhelmed, humbled, and emotionally grateful for all those who came and the sentiments they expressed.

I am ashamed to admit this, but I have attended numerous retirement celebrations over the years and it never occurred to me to buy a card or a gift for the retiree.  So imagine my surprise when I received over 50 cards and gifts including the one above.

What make this gift so special for me is that it is from three former and one current employees from Cedar Rapids, all of whom made the trip to Maquoketa to attend the celebration and presented this guy to me.  I was speechless.

So for two and a half hours I greeted friends and received their kind words.  I didn’t get to spend the amount of time with anyone that I wanted to as there was always someone new to greet.

After the celebration ownership provided a wonderful dinner at the Decker House for Jeanne and I plus many of the senior management team.  Lots of memories were discussed and then my Friend and Boss Al read a commendation the company had created and once again I was speechless.  In addition to the wonderful plaque there was a donation to my favorite charity in Jeanne and my name.  It just doesn’t get any better than that.

So there were many thoughtful gifts that I received that evening.  Here is an image of some of them.  I think I’m sensing a pattern here.  🙂

Thank you Al, Kendra, Abe, Brig, and the entire Ohnward Staff for an evening and experience I will never forget.

Enjoy your day and be careful.

Wednesday ~ May 10, 2017

Posted by Dave Updegraff on May 10, 2017
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , , .

Happy Wednesday!

A quick post with only one image today.  I captured this image of three friends I use to play a lot of golf with.  Bob, Dennis and Dan.  It was fun to see them again at the surprise party for Angela Osterkamp last Friday evening.

Unlike me they still play a lot of golf and I have to admit I miss the comrade and banter we use to enjoy.

Enjoy your day and be careful.

Saturday ~ May 06, 2017

Posted by Dave Updegraff on May 6, 2017
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , , , , .

Happy Saturday!

I have five images for you today.  I spent one of the most enjoyable days in recent memory yesterday.  It started when my good friend Mike picked me up and we drove out to the Thunder Hills Country Club for a round of golf with three other good friends.

I was a member of that club for over 20 years but as I devoted more time to my photography my enjoyment of the game began to wane and as a result I am now just a once in a while golfer.  Not a very good golfer either.

Anyway many years ago a young high school girl with bright red hair began working at the club as a waitress.  I remember those days well and she would always have a happy greeting and a  smile for all the patrons.

Her name is Angela Osterkamp and she has dedicated the last thirty years of her life to serving the members of Thunder Hills Country Club.  She has seen several managers and other staff come and go but Angela has remained dedicated to the club.  For most, she is the face of Thunder Hills Country Club. 

So last night the membership threw a huge surprise party for Angela to celebrate her thirty years of service.  It was a real treat for me in that I was asked to be the photographer of the event and I got a double treat in that I was able to reconnect with so many of the dear friends I had made while I was a member there.

The image above only shows about one-third of the reception area and the whole room was packed with admiring and grateful current and past members.  Angela was overcome with joy and I didn’t get one image of her without the ever-present tears.  That is one of the things that makes her so special is that she is emotionally involved with the club and its members.

The above image is of Angela and her Mother.  I was also moved to think that a large group of people would take the time and expense to show their true gratitude to someone who has given so much of herself.  Made me proud to be a small part of the Thunder Hills Club.

Anyway other than my terrible golf game it was a day for the memory book.  I think I did a lot of damage to the golf course but only to the rough as that is where I spent most of the day.  🙂

Enjoy this beautiful day and be careful.

Thursday ~ May 04, 2017

Posted by Dave Updegraff on May 4, 2017
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , , , , , .

Happy Thursday!

This is my dear friend Dave Johnson.  On Tuesday there was a surprise celebration for him at Maquoketa State Bank before the bank opened.  The occasion was to mark his 50 years in banking.  Dave is semi-retired and works at the bank two days a week but as he loves to say he’s 24/7 and always looking to help others with their financial needs.

So about 70 folks who work at the bank gathered in the main lobby waited for Dave to show up.  He was not there at his normal time because he didn’t have a meeting that morning so he decided to have an extra cup of coffee.  🙂

I met Dave my first week on the job over 17 years ago and it was an immediate friendship.  Dave truly is one of a kind and he has done so much good for the people of the communities the bank serves.

Congratulations my friend!

Enjoy your day and be careful.

Wednesday ~ December 31, 2014

Posted by Dave Updegraff on December 31, 2014
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , , .

December-28-2014-3A

Happy Wednesday!

Happy New Year’s Eve.  2014 was an interesting year for me.  Several dramatic changes in my life mainly related to my health.

It was the year of drones that went up and came down in unexpected and disastrous ways.  The fleet is grounded now still not airworthy but that may change in 2015.    I continued to practice photography and feel like I made modest improvement.  No where near where I want to be but as my friend says it a journey.

I shot 43 images of this sunset Sunday evening.  I had narrowed it down to four images and this morning I cut it down to two.  I just couldn’t decide which one to post so I finally decided to post them both.

December-28-2014-3B

I also decided to change the header for the blog because I like this sunset better than the other and it is after all the beginning of a new year.

We are going to celebrate new year’s eve with some great friends.  We haven’t gone anywhere but to the movies on new year’s eve in years so this will be a change for us.

To my good friend who is under the weather right now, you are in my prayers.

I hope you have a safe and reasonably sane new year’s eve.  Thanks for your support this past year and as always please be careful.