Two days from now, on July 9th, some forty-six members of our family will gather at Lake Junaluska for a reunion. The number is down quite a bit from that at our last gathering in 2017, but it will be grand to see the ones that can come. Thank the Lord, the Covid restrictions have been lifted just in time.
Junaluska is a Methodist retreat center located on a small lake about 23 miles west of Asheville, North Carolina, near the town of Waynesville. The lake was named for Chief Junaluska, a hero of the 1814 Battle of Horseshoe Bend and one of the founders of the eastern band of the Cherokee Nation. Most Cherokees were forced to relocate in Oklahoma in the 1830-1850s (The Trail of Tears), but Junaluska and others either returned to or remained in western North Carolina and took refuge in the Great Smoky Mountains. The state legislature granted the old chief citizenship and land, and the retreat center honors his memory.
The Terrace Hotel
At Junaluska
Family members will meet at the Terrace Hotel on the afternoon of July 9th for three days of fun and fellowship.
2017 Reunion
