SIGMA/ATO Christmas Luncheon – December 7, 2023

We had another very successful turnout for our annual Christmas luncheon this year. If you were not able to attend, please look at the brothers whom you missed seeing. We hope to see all of these brothers, as well as those of you who were not able to attend the December luncheon, at the SIGMA/ATO Reunion in Gulf Shores, Alabama, this May. The reunion is ALWAYS the first weekend in May, unless that’s also Mother’s Day. This year the reunion is from the 2nd of May, Thursday, until Sunday, the 5th of May.

Please mark your calendars to insure you don’t plan something else for that weekend!

BUIB,

Wayne Burdette, SIGMA ’68

SIGMA/ATO 2023 Reunion in Gulf Shores, Alabama

It’s that time of year again, and the alumni brothers of SIGMA/ATO of the University of Montevallo are meeting again in Gulf Shores, Alabama, to celebrate their unique brotherhood which has permeated their lives for the past 60 years. We hope you are able to make it down this weekend. The pictures below are of the Thursday night dinner at Big Beach Brewing Company in Gulf Shores. At last count there were 35 brothers attending. If you look closely, you will see Shuler Griffin, ATO National representative, enjoying the food and brotherhood. Welcome, again, Shuler!

Day 2 – Breakfast

SIGMA 60th/ATO 50th Reunion Luncheon – Anna Irvin Hall – University of Montevallo

There was a lot of hype and preparation for the August 20th Luncheon at the University of Montevallo commemorating the founding of SIGMA Social Club and ATO. Much went into the preparation, including an unbelievable effort by Dr. John Draper and others. We hope this type of gathering will continue in the future, including the December Christmas Luncheon at Lloyd’s in Birmingham, and the Annual SIGMA/ATO Reunion in Gulf Shores next May. If you missed it, we hope you will enjoy seeing those who were able to make the trip.

A Note from Batman who attended the Luncheon

On Aug 25, 2022, at 1:27 PM, Jim Hayes <hayes.james.d@gmail.com> wrote:



Wow, what a great Sigma/ATO 60th/50th anniversary celebration at the University of Montevallo this past weekend! Thanks to everyone who made this event possible. To those who conceived, communicated, organized, executed and attended this event, a hearty “Thank You”. The schedule was such that there was ample opportunity to converse and reconnect with other attendees and to meet the current ATO members. The tour of the potential ATO house, the registration, the luncheon, and the historical and awards presentations were all well done. No doubt a lot of work, some obvious and some behind the scenes, went into making this happen. A special thanks to the anonymous donor who paid the lunch tab for the entire group.

It was a wonderful opportunity to mingle with the Sigma, Theta Sigma Chi and ATO alumni as well as the current fraternity members (future old guys), spouses, sisters/sweethearts and other guests. It had been a long time since I last visited the University of Montevallo. To walk on those old brick streets, as I have done so many times so many years ago, gave me a wonderfully surreal sensation of making a huge leap back in time and reminded me of what I owe to the University of Montevallo in terms of my educational experience and how fortunate I was to become a member of the Sigma Social Club way back then. The quality of the current ATO membership is obvious. I am encouraged by that and am optimistic about the future of the fraternity. James “Batman” Hayes

60th SIGMA/50th ATO Alumni Reunion – Gulf Shores

We are all recovering from a fantastic weekend with our brothers in Gulf Shores, celebrating both the 60th SIGMA anniversary and the 50th ATO anniversary of our beloved fraternity at Alabama College/U of Montevallo. So much has happened in the previous sixty years at our alma mater that it would be impossible to list those things here. While much has changed on campus, nothing has changed with the imperishable bond we all have in our brotherhood. Whether you spoke with Harry McDonald of the Founding Fathers of SIGMA Club, or Bobby/Julian David twins of the 1970s graduating class, I witnessed no division in that bond which we enjoy but few of us can explain to an oursider.

If you missed this year’s reunion, you missed one of the most memorable gatherings of all time. We were happy to see Bill Heron back, and no one will ever forget the love and respect we all showed for Larry Benton. As we all age, develop maladies which keep us from gathering with our brothers from time to time, let’s remember that we are only promised today, and no one is promised tomorrow. I personally want to take every advantage to visit with my SIGMA/ATO brothers every chance I get, because we never know if we will all be back together next year.

I want to thank each and every one of my brothers, from the oldest to the youngest, for making the effort to come to the reunion this year. I meant a whole lot to me, and I’m sure I’m speaking for many of you who also attended this year.

There are over 100 photos below celebrating our 60th/50th anniversary below.

Enjoy!!

Annual SIGMA/ATO Christmas Brunch – Birmingham, Alabama

Those brothers who missed the Annual SIGMA/ATO Alumni Christmas luncheon missed a great time, and the opportunity to meet brothers from the 60s, 70s, 80s, and even the active ATO chapter vice-president.  (He’s the one pictured with Bruce who looks like a kid!)

Besides the great fellowship and brotherhood which we shared, John Draper, ATO ’76, brought to our attention that next year will mark the 60^th anniversary of SIGMA, as well as the 50^th anniversary of the ATO Chapter at Montevallo.  Suggestions were made that we celebrate with a special event.  Behind the scenes planning has already begun for that to happen.

Our next planned event is the Annual SIGMA/ATO Reunion in Gulf Shores, Alabama.  Bruce will get us the rooming information, as well as the golfing package opportunities for the golfers in our group, as soon as he can get them to agree to terms after the first of the year.  Normally, we have that specific information by the end of February or the beginning of March.  Just mark your calendar for the first weekend in May (April 29, 30 through May 1).  Bruce will send us more information when it is available. If you’re not a golfer, come anyway. More than half of the attendees each year are not golfers!

Enjoy the happy pictures below!

SIGMA/ATO May Reunion at Gulf Shores

Having read Bruce’s synopsis of the 2021 SIGMA/ATO Reunion, I must agree wholeheartedly.  The old brothers and the younger ATO Alumni brothers mixed well together and everyone could feel the enthusiasm in the activities and dinners we shared.  You should read Bruce’s comments if you haven’t gotten around to it yet.  It was spot-on.

A recent composition by the Bruce/Andy songwriting team, is highlighted below.  It is in honor and memory of Doug Patterson.  If you will go to the songs page you can listen to the “Old Guys Still Have It” video that the Chancellor shared with us.

I am posting the pictures that I took, or that some of the brothers shared with me, from the reunion.  If you have photos that don’t appear below and you want to share them with the group, just email them to me and I’ll get them posted.

SIGMA Luncheon at University of Montevallo – November 18, 2020

We had a good gathering of “Old and New” brothers at the John Stewart Center on campus on Wednesday, November 18th. For those of you who could not make it to the luncheon, I can only say that you missed a treat! Dr. Stewart was complimentary to the SIGMA Alumni present, as well as the ATO Active Chapter president and those active ATO brothers, about six in all, who attended. We were brought up to date on the amount of the corpus in the Bruce Higdon Scholarship Fund and we are swiftly approaching $160,000! Brother Todd Strange offered to match all contributions to the Scholarship Fund, dollar for dollar, up to $15,000 to the end of the year. If you haven’t make your contribution to the University of Montevallo this year, but you still intend to do so, please do it now so we can take advantage of the “Mayor’s” generosity.

I have posted pictures below, and you will see that for the most part we all wore our masks, used social distancing, and met and ate lunch outdoors. See if you can identify the “bandits” in masks below.

SIGMA Reunion 2019 in Pictures

SIGMA Christmas Luncheon December 2019

INSTRUCTIONS FOR HIGDON OPEN 2019

May 2, 3, AND 4

ANNUAL SIGMA ALUMNI REUNION FOR 2019

PRINT THIS OUT AND BRING IT

Brothers, please call Marsha and provide your credit card, room requests, etc. Her number is 251-978-6571. 

The address at StayBridge Suites is 3947 Gulf Shores Parkway.  This is, also Highway 59.  Here is some info on dining and entertainment.  Hot breakfast available each morning!

Thursday Evening (AFTER GOLF AT PENINSULA)

Somewhere around 6:30, we will meet at Wolf Bay Lodge (20801 Miflin Rd., Foley, AL) where they have a room for us.  It is easy to find.  If you leave the motel and turn left, go 4 miles and then turn right onto Miflin Rd., Lamberts Restaurant is on the corner.  Wolf Bay Lodge is 0.8 miles on the left.  Everything is Dutch.  I have asked them to have shrimp cocktail for appetizers.

Each person can order separately (including cocktails).  We will divide the cost of the shrimp cocktail.

 Friday & Saturday Evening

We are going back to Craft Farms where we played golf.  Seven minutes away. They have a private room reserved for us for a great meal.  There will be a cash bar.  Friday’s meal will be the same we had last year.  Saturday will be a more seafood- oriented fare.

   —Bring cash!! Because we are going to get a head count and divide by the number.  Should be about $40 per brother with tip.

Directions to Craft Farms Golf and Clubhouse

• Turn right out of Hotel and go south 0.9 miles
• Turn left onto Cotton Creek Drive (Highway 4)
• Go 0.8 miles and turn left onto Cotton Creek BLVD/Craft Farms Blvd.
• Go 0.5 miles and turn right onto Cotton Creek Circle

Thursday Golf 2 May Peninsula Golf Club 1:00 Tee Time (Meet for lunch about 11:15)

Go south from hotel, cross the canal, and then go about a mile and turn right on Fort Morgan Road and go about six miles to Peninsula.

Friday Golf 3 May Craft Farms Cotton Creek 12:56 Tee Time (Meet for lunch about 11:15)

Saturday Golf 4 May Craft Farms Cypress Bend 9:36 Tee Time

Charlie White arranging teams

BOATING INFORMATION

Wayne is sending this out.

Hope this all works out great.  If not, please direct all bitching to Larry Benton!  BUIB, Bruce

Christmas Luncheon at Lloyd’s in Birmingham, December 2018

For those of you who were not able to join us at Lloyd’s last December you missed a treat. We had approximately 29 to 30 alumni brothers who attended-some older guys and a few younger ones. It was a nice opportunity for us to gather in the “off season” when the May SIGMA Reunion is still a few months away. Check out the pictures below and see who you missed visiting with if you weren’t there:

 

Great Opportunity for Brotherhood!  

Scholarship Presentation a few years ago.

Brothers, we will have an awesome opportunity to experience the presentation of the Bruce Higdon Brotherhood Award in Montevallo on February 24th at a special luncheon in Anna Irvin Hall.  Bruce will be presenting the scholarship to the most worthy active ATO who was voted by his peers in the active chapter to receive the award.  The qualifications for the award are daunting, but the ATO chapter finds the most deserving brother each year.  The fund has more than $140,000 as a corpus, and our Bruce Higdon Scholarship Fund continues to grow because of you and your designated donations to the University of Montevallo.

It’s not possible for all the SIGMA alumni brothers to be present at the presentation, but for the local brothers and those a few hours away it would be another opportunity to establish an annual reunion of sorts when the scholarship is presented every year.

I know I will be there from Atlanta, and I hope you plan to be there as well.

By the way, Bruce wanted me to tell you that he would not be embarrassed in the least if you brought a donation to the Bruce Higdon Scholarship Fund with you when you attend!  Just saying.

We hope to see you there!

5th Annual SIGMA Club Alumni Christmas Luncheon at Lloyd’s in Birmingham

On Thursday, December 7th of 2017, the local SIGMA’s in and around Birmingham held our 5th Annual Christmas Luncheon.  There were 30 brothers in attendance, some coming from as far as Pensacola, Fairhope, Nashville, and Atlanta.  This has become the second largest gathering of SIGMAs each year, only exceeded by the Annual Reunion in Gulf Shores, Alabama.  If you didn’t get to attend you can see who did by scrolling down the page.  Enjoy!!

Brother Bruce Higdon urged each of these brothers to plan on attending the Annual Reunion in Gulf Shores on the first weekend in May, 2018.  Please plan on joining us for the festivities!

55th Anniversary Reunion of Founding of SIGMA Club

 

Gulf Shores Reunion Rooming List – Is Your Name Below?

2017 GULF SHORES ROOMING LIST

Note: Be sure you have contacted Marsha Guyer to give her credit card info.  251.923.3082

          If Marsha is not available, you can call Kevin Whitney @ 251-968-3002

WEDNESDAY ARRIVALS 3 MAY 2017

Charlie White, Ray Davis, Buddy Long

2 Bedroom Suite- 2 Double Beds, One King & One Couch

THURSDAY ARRIVALS 4 MAY 2017

Bruce Higdon Reg Patterson, Larry Benton, Bill Heron

2 Bedroom Suite- 2 Double Beds, One King & One Couch 

Buddy Eslava, Todd Strange, Jack Mayhall, Harry McDonald

2 Bedroom Suite- 2 Double Beds, One King & One Couch

Rocky Stone, James Hayes, Steve Stubbs, Sid McGlaughlin

2 Bedroom Suite- 2 Double Beds, One King & One Couch

Tiger Timmons, Larry Pharo

1 Bedroom Suite – 2 double beds

Paul Doran, Jay Jaxon

1 Bedroom Suite – 2 double beds.

Jerry Fulmer, Jim Moss

1 Bedroom Suite – 2 double beds.

 

Bob Rollins, Jack Hawkins

Request adjacent rooms

1 Bedroom Suite – 2 double beds.

John Schmidt, Doug Patterson

1 Bedroom Suite – 2 double beds.

Bobby Hand, Fred Crawford

1 Bedroom Suite – 2 double beds.

Danny Mobley, Darryl Baygents

1 Bedroom Suite – 2 double beds.

 

FRIDAY ARRIVAL 5 MAY 2017

Dave Palmer, Jim Daniel

2 Bedroom Suite- 2 Double Beds, One King & One Couch

Wayne Burdette, Ricky Ray

1 Bedroom Suite – 2 double beds.

Looking for room mates

Lewis Miller

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2017 is the 55th year of celebration of the founding of SIGMA Club at Montevallo.  A few of you were there in the beginning, and many more of us joined the group within a few years to form one of the most significant bonding experiences of brotherhood ever known by man.  I, like many of you, have spoken to other members of organizations over the last five decades and I have never found any group of men who could come close to the commitment to organization and members as we have achieved with SIGMA.  Personally, unless hampered by bad health or other circumstances beyond my control, I plan to celebrate those 55 years of excellence with you all in Gulf Shores at Craft Farms this May 5-7.  If you are unaware of the Craft Farms facilities, I have added some information below for your edification.  Please plan to come and share the great reunion with us all in May!

 

3RD Annual SIGMA Luncheon at Lloyd’s

There were twenty-six SIGMA brothers and friends of SIGMA at the recent luncheon at Lloyd’s in Birmingham the first weekend in December.  Although some of our regular attendees were otherwise obligated, we felt that it was a great showing of brotherhood and friendship that continues to grow each year at events such as this.  If you will look at the photos below, you will be able to see who attended this year:

See anyone you know below?

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Speaking of reunions, Bruce is working on our annual reunion in PC again this year.  Rumor has it that the restaurants, as well as the pier, will be back in service so we should have more options for food this year.  We hope that is the case because the boaters can simply walk down to the pier, have lunch, and then putter away on the pontoons.  If you’re not a golfer, don’t be put off by not coming to the reunion.  We always rent a couple of pontoon boats and spend some time looking for eye candy on those afternoons when the more talented brothers hit the links.  We don’t know what we would do if we actually were confronted by beautiful young ladies while on our cruise, but we have so much experience in the boat that somebody would surely come to our aid with instructions!

As you know, we are normally in Panama City the first weekend in May for the reunion.  As soon as we get the dates and confirm the hotel we will send you the information so you can make your reservation.  If you know of a brother who you need to invite and encourage to attend, now is a good time to start working on him!

More to come…

A Reunion in Birmingham for the Three-On-A-String Concert

Reunion 2016 in Panama City on April 28 – May 1

Well, the 2016 SIGMA Reunion in Panama City has come and gone again, and we are left with memories to last a lifetime.  A gathering of wonderful brothers and friends that never seems to grow old, even though we are ALL growing older.  Some brothers were missing this year due to personal illness or illness of a family member.  Our thoughts and prayers go out to each of them as they struggle to get well or to nurse a loved one back to good health.  For those of you who were not able to attend, I hope the pictures below will rekindle a fire in you to insure you will make your best effort to attend next year’s festivities!

Just as in the past, Brother Bruce Higdon outdid himself, working with a property that was less than 100% in efficiency, but he always seems to pull it off for us.  The rooms were nice, as always, and we have been assured that the main lodge and restaurants will be back in full service next year.  The dinners that were catered were fantastic and the dinner cruise was as good, or better, than it was last year.  Thanks, Higgie, for all of your efforts.

Please enjoy the pictures below, and send me any by way of email or text if you took some pictures that I don’t show below.  I will try to get them up as soon as possible.

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Brothers,

Now seems like a great time to revisit our last reunion to Bay Point in Panama City.  We had some unusual things happen last year that made the reunion different from many reunions that we have shared in the past.  First of all, the hotel was under construction and most of the amenities that we enjoyed in 2013 were greatly limited last year.  Thankfully, it appears that most of the hotel’s facilities will be available this year and we are hopeful that the dinner cruise boat will be able to pick us up at the hotel this year, avoiding the bus ride that we experienced last year just to get to the Betsy Ann.  For those of you who could not make it last year, I can say with confidence that the river boat was a highlight of the weekend, and it gave us a couple of hours of time to continue building brotherhood and renewing old friendships.  When you are on a private boat for a few hours with only your brothers, it makes for good fellowship and recalling memories.  I am enclosing a few pictures of the Betsy Ann river boat to remind those who were there of how great it was, and to invite those who didn’t come last year to “get on board” so we can make more memories to enjoy in the future.

By the way, Brother Bruce Higdon renegotiated the fees for us this year and saved us lots of money on the dinner cruise again this year.  You should give him an “atta boy” when you see him!

For those of you who missed the pictures from last year’s cruise, enjoy some of them again below:

   

SIGMA Bay Point Reunion 2015

Videos Provided by J. Danny Cooper of the recent reunion

 Bus Ride A          Bruce and the Cruise Boat

Fred on the Cruise       Huffy on the Cruise

I think that every brother who attended our 53rd reunion in Panama City Beach of the founding of SIGMA at Alabama College will remember always the passionate and moving comments that our first and best SIGMA Advisor shared with us while on the dinner cruise on Saturday night.  It was that kind of a reunion, for those of you who could not or simply did not come to the reunion this year.  I can honestly say that it was your loss.  Many who attended have said that this was the best reunion that they had ever attended, and I must agree with that thought.

Below you will see many pictures revealing the great times shared by all who attended.  Although we had Chancellors, Mayors, Judges, Politicians, and very successful businessmen present, we were all again just brothers as we were when we were living in Napier Hall some 50+ years ago.  A special thanks to Bruce who managed to put together transportation, catering, and great lodging during a reconstruction project at the resort.  What could have been a disaster was turned into a magical weekend thanks to Bruce.  Kudos to you, Brother Bruce!

   

A Summary from Buell on the reunion weekend

But first of all… the always bizarrely coincident biker weekend: Did anyone there, or on the way or the way back, manage to sight a skinny biker? And excepting the elegant James “Jim” Hayes, does anyone even know one? On my trip I must have tallied 416 big-bellied Bubbas, most with big-butted mamas enjoyin’ the ride behind. Saw enough bandannas to outfit 30 minstrel shows, enough facial hair to fur the breast of Pike’s Peak. And I mean, that was only after I started noticing….

Well, vrooom-vrooom landscape aside, how was the actual event?

I’m innocent of bogeys and birdies and Burdette-boating, so I can’t speak to any of that. I didn’t even sleep with the guys (watch out!), but I twice joined BroCro, T-Bone, Benton and others at dinnertime. And did I mention brownies? Well, we actually had some, on the paddle-boat excursion, fulfilling a sweet-tooth fantasy I’ve chased for years at these events — not helped at all by Mayhall’s cruelly seductive promise of one more piece of pecan pie or apple cobbler left back at the serving table….

Another personal indulgence: I don’t know if anyone else ever notices the courtly, almost choreographed, sparring between alter-ego Higdon and me that renews itself at such times. Why can’t you just act normal?! seems the gist of Higgy’s complaint. Flexing my eccentricity, I skitter around the outer limits of his patience and test his irritability. Sorry, Brucie. But might as well have another year of it, right? And I, like the rest, am indebted to you for the vision that keeps us going and the considerable labor that undergirds it. Great job, as always.

Fleeting images: Huffy, ever the soul of grace and wit; Doran, the essence of coolness; a smiling Moonpie, the essence of openness; Rocky Stone, whose firm steadfastness befits that double namesake; Jim Moss, who, in his faith, triumphs over adversity; Charlie White, who’s always good about keeping his opinions to himself (love it!); Pharo, who, despite these advancing years, still seems a youngster amongst us…

Throughout, we were frequently reminded that, notwithstanding inequities of health and wealth, no disparity was greater than that between the few who can tell a joke and the many, God-love-us, who’re still practicing….

But good sports we are, and good sportin’ fun we had. Old memories, hardened over time, glistened in the retelling — and gained a new, appreciative audience of those who forgot they’d heard ’em last year or the year before…. Guffaws galore.

Cooled by bay breezes, warmed by fellowship, we reentered the past, savored the present and pledged the future. And put it on come-up: Next year….

Dee, Scotty, Malone, Reg, Robinson et al: Yo’ name have been mentioned….

Buell

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Other Responses from Brothers to the weekend

Thanks much for the fotos, ol’ broh . . . especially for the pic of the old geezer standing there, stunned and almost wordless, microphone in one hand and the other hanging uselessly at his side.  Honors that touch one deeply will do that to you.Cheers, and . . .

Bind us​,

Huffy

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How very Buell. No one can quite capture a moment or a feeling as well as your seasoned pin. Thank you for putting into words the feelings and emotions most of us lack the ability to write. It was just a special time with our brothers.

BUIB

Rocky Stone

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I had fleeting thoughts of trying to summarize the weekend but Buell did it so much better than I could have. Thank you Buell. The only comment I would add is this. I always leave wishing I had asked a follow up question to someone to get more information or had talked to someone more.  But, fortunately I was able to talk to a lot of brothers beyond a superficial level. Thanks to all of you for accepting a country boy from Six Mile into the fold and helping me evolve from a book worm into whatever I turned out to be. You totally screwed up my GPA but there were compensating benefits and they were probably more important. I especially enjoyed the time with my weekend roomies; Sid, Tiger, Stubbs & Rocky. And, oh by the way, thank you Bruce for all your efforts & to Cro for retrieving my credit card from the boat!! Batman out.

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From the time you board the Betsy Ann Riverboat, in total wonder and amazement, until the time you step off of the boat hugging the crew members goodbye…We promise you an experience that will create memories to last a lifetime. Come aboard…close your eyes…listen to the paddles slapping the water in perfect time…and let your mind wander! There is no better way to enjoy the beautiful waters and scenery of historic St Andrews Bay, than on a true old fashioned paddle wheel boat. Regardless of your age, young or old, you will find yourself thinking back to the days of old, when paddle wheelers were the modern marvel of their time…the days of Mr. Mark Twain! Come learn a little history about the Betsy Ann, the St Andrew Bay, the area and more. Come enjoy the peacefulness of just being on the water. See lots of playful dolphins, watch the pelicans flying in formation just inches above the water or diving from the air to catch a fish. Listen to the echo of the cannon blast as we pass under the Hathaway Bridge. You can even come up in the pilot house with the captain, get to steer the boat and get your picture taken with the huge wheel!

The Betsy Ann crew is second to none in North Florida…guaranteed. From service to personality and a 110% dedication to making sure you leave us with great memories. We have a full bar along with friendly bartenders, heated and air conditioned main cabin for your comfort, open air upper deck for your viewing pleasure, and the coolest restrooms you will ever find on a boat! ( I do have to admit that they may be a little more modern than what they had back in the riverboat era.) The boat is fully decorated to reflect the old steamboat days and our girls even dress the part! Looking for a great place for a private party or wedding, well look no further! From corporate meetings, to birthday, anniversary, family reunions or whatever, we promise to make it a memorable and spectacular time! Our weddings are very unique, personalized and incredible! We also have all of the core decorations for your perfect day, and you can add your own personal touch too! You can even be married by the captain! The Betsy Ann is beautiful, (OK, we may be a little proud of her), the scenery is spectacular, and the memories will last a lifetime! We can’t wait to entertain you on the BETSY ANN RIVERBOAT!

More Pictures from Panama City Reunion

 

SIGMA Reunion at Panama City – Day 2

Early Photos of first day’s activities at Panama City Reunion

 

                       SIGMA Reunion for 2014

Memories of Previous SIGMA/ATO Reunions – 14 Years of Brotherhood in Pictures

Brothers many of you have seen or heard the info that we will be giving the Panama City Beach Bay Point Wyndham Resort a try for our 2014 Annual SIGMA Reunion.  This hotel and it’s surrounding accommodations come highly recommended to us by brother Larry Benton and we are looking forward to a “change” in scenery this next May!  I have added a link to this message, as well as an overall property view for your information.  It appears that there is a nice swimming pool, piers, and other items for public use, along with top notch golfing and unlimited access to the beach for those of you who are “sailors” and enjoy those activities. (See below)

http://www.baypointwyndham.com/

According to Larry and Moonpie, there have been a record number of brothers signing up for golf.  So much so, according to them, that if you don’t get your request in soon you may not be able to get a tee time.  Please make sure you contact Larry or Jerry as soon as you are sure you are going to attend.

Also, we understand that we can actually rent our boats that we normally had to venture down to Destin to do in the past right at the resort.  Captain Rick and 1st Mate Wayne will check it out and let you know what has changed this year with the Sailing Club. It should be much easier and we may be able to actually walk to the dock from the resort and not have to caravan to the launching point!

One last thing.  If you haven’t make a contribution to the Bruce Higdon Brotherhood Award fund yet and intend to do so this spring, you can make a notation on your check that you are doing so in the honor of Inez Fuqua (Dan’s Mother) or Jackie D. Davis, assuming you want that noted on your donation.  These donations go to the corpus of the fund and the scholarships are granted from the proceeds from the fund.  We have been able to scholarship several worthy ATO Active brothers in the past due to your generosity. Bruce and the entire SIGMA Club family thanks you for your kindness and continuing generosity to the fund.

If you haven’t made your reservations yet, don’t hesitate.  Call Melissa Montgomery at 850-236-6027 and secure you lodging today!

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As of the 3rd week of January brother Bruce Higdon tells us that 42 brothers have signed up for a room at the Annual SIGMA Reunion in Panama City, FL, for the first weekend in May of this year.  We will be honoring the memory of Jackie D. Davis, Mrs. Inez Fuqua, and all of those connected with SIGMA who have lost loved ones since our last meeting at Blue Water Bay last year.  What better way to honor the memory of Jackie D. than to plan to be at the SIGMA Reunion this year–no excuses, except in the case of an emergency.  If you normally plan the first weekend in May to hunt, go to the Kentucky Derby, go fishing, or simply do anything other than renew the 50+ year bond of brotherhood that we have all experienced and loved these past 5 decades please make a commitment to yourself and your brothers to attend this year in our new location in Panama City, FL.

As each year eclipses the previous one we find many times that one of our brothers has been called Home and will never be able to share our special brotherhood at the next reunion.  Those of us who were with Jackie D. at the SIGMA Reunion for the past couple of years will cherish those special times with a very special brother who no longer is available for us to share our thoughts and cares.

I, for one, will be there this year to insure no opportunity to visit briefly with a SIGMA Brother goes unappreciated.  I hope you plan to be there, too!

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The time is here…it is now time to make your reservations for the Panama City Beach Bay Point Wyndham Resort for our 2014 Annual SIGMA Reunion.  This hotel and it’s surrounding accommodations come highly recommended to us by brother Larry Benton and we are looking forward to a “change” in scenery this next May!  I have added a link to this message, as well as an overall property view for your information.  It appears that there is a nice swimming pool, piers, and other items for public use, along with top notch golfing and unlimited access to the beach for those of you who are “sailors” and enjoy those activities. (See below)

Bruce has sent us all a message about the reservation procedures, and some of us have already made our reservations and I know we are all looking forward to sharing that brotherhood again this May 2nd and 3rd.   For those of you who may not have seen the email from Bruce, or in case you have inadvertently lost or erased it, I have included it again below for your edification:

Brothers, even though it is a little early, I want to encourage you to register for our outing.  I have more responsibility to keep up with the number so I can be sure I am not charged for no shows.  Here are the details:

• For the two bedroom units (four occupants) the charge is $67.25 per person plus tax. For those that arrive Thursday, it will be three nights.  Best Deal
• For the one bedroom units (two occupants) the charge is $94.50 per person plus tax.
• If you want a single room for yourself, the hotel is adjacent to the condos and the charge is $159.00 per night plus tax.
• Golf and boating are separately arranged.  Benton is in charge of golf and arranging Tee Times.  I’m hoping Moon Pie can still arrange the Saturday Scramble.  Captains Bryant and Burdette are in charge of boating.
• The resort has granted permission for our Saturday evening cookout near the condos.

These units are much cleaner and nicer than BWB.  The two golf courses are also much better.  It is set up to encourage four to a condo to increase and enhance fellowship.  (Remember, this was not possible at BWB). All beds will be single.  Melissa Montgomery, the resort Sales Manager has kindly volunteered to be your contact.  In other words, you can call her, provide your credit card number, and she will relay the information to the registration desk and help me keep track of the arrangements.  Please follow the instructions below carefully:

• Select and arrange your room mates asap.
• Call Melissa Montgomery at 850-236-6027 and let her know it is the Higdon/Benton Group.  Then give her your roomie list and credit card number.
• Remember, each occupant will need to call and provide a credit card.
• Thursday golfers should attempt to have four to a condo on Thursday evening.  For example, if you only have three, you will have to split the additional $67.25 charge.
• After you have registered, send me an email with your rooming list.  I will be keeping count and comparing it with Melissa’s.
• More details about Tee Times, meals, and Boating Arrangements will follow.
• Rick Bryant and Wayne Burdette, if you don’t already have it, Melissa can give you contacts to arrange the boating.

Brothers, don’t miss this opportunity.  As I have stated many times (most recently after we lost Jack Davis) each chance to generate memories is precious!  If you have any questions, my cell is 85-380-6617.  BUIB, Bruce

PS, the link below provides photos and details about our destination.

www.baypointwyndham.com

   

Christmas Luncheon – December 7, 2023