Greetings from Petrey!

There is not a lot to report on this week, but sometimes "no news is good news," as the clich/ goes. At least Ivan the Terrible left town, and none of his "kinfolks" have visited either!

We will be giving a full report of the first meeting of the new Petrey Town Council, including the reception in honor of the new officers, in the next edition.

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The monthly Community Supper will be held Saturday at the Petrey Community Center. These suppers have been taking place on the second Saturday of the month for over a decade and the food is always mouth-wateringly delicious.

Petrey is noted for its excellent cooks. The potluck suppers draw people from Patsburg, Troy, Luverne and even Montgomery on occasion.

Speaking of the Community Center, this nice facility used to be a school. Jim Jackson said when he was a ninth grader at Petrey Junior High School it served 200 students in nine grades, having nine rooms plus an auditorium.

That was in the 1940s when Crenshaw County had a population of 33,000 (now 13,000 pop.) and all the rural schools were full, Jackson said.

Years later the school was reduced to six grades. After my husband Curtis finished the sixth grade in Petrey in 1951, he was bussed to Luverne High School.

Petrey students either went to Luverne or Highland Home after the sixth grade. Later the school was reduced to only three grades.

The school was finally closed and the schoolrooms were torn down, leaving only the auditorium standing. The lumber was used for schools in Helicon and Luverne. In 1956, a covered porch was added to the front of the auditorium, which had become city property.

The new Petrey Community Center was completed in August of 1956 at a cost of $4,365.35.

It was not until July of 1999, during the tenure of Mayor Ronald Petrey that the Petrey Community Center underwent a complete renovation. There was a big celebration, which also included a birthday party for 96-year-old Buford Green. Buford had lived in Petrey for 82 years and had served as a farmer, barber, school bus driver and mayor.

As most of you know, Buford and Ruth Green's son, James Buford, still lives in Petrey. He is a great chef among the outstanding chefs in Petrey and always brings a tasty dish to the monthly suppers.

Over the years the Community Center has been rented numerous times for reunions, meetings and other special occasions and can accommodate large groups of people. The lot on which the building sits has also been used for many activities in the past, including "country baseball."

Any readers who have not seen the Petrey Community Center nor enjoyed Petrey home cooking, your are invited to the Community Supper at 7 p.m. on Saturday.

Bring a dish.

All you "old timers," we are looking for you, too!

You are always a blessing.

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Curtis and Nancy Petrey attended the first program of the 2004-05 season presented by the Troy Arts Council & Troy University on Sept. 28 at the Crosby Theatre on the Troy University campus.

It was a musical comedy, Smoke On the Mountain, sponsored by Cracker Barrel and Old Country Stores. The Petrey's had some good laughs and enjoyed the Gospel and Bluegrass music with friends, Mack and Mary Gibson of Troy.

Little Sawyer Taylor, grandson of Janice Taylor, spent the night with his grandmother on September 29.

Leroy and Lucy Blackwell went on a week's camping trip to the Alabama River at Prairie Creek Campground.

They enjoyed the scenery and just relaxed.

Curtis Petrey attended the Tuscaloosa County High School football game Friday night to watch his nephew, Bradley Petrey, play. Bradley is an offensive guard. His team got the victory over Shades Valley of Birmingham and Bradley played a good game. He is the son of Joe and Cheryl Petrey and is a senior at Tuscaloosa County High. Curtis spent the night with the family.

Bobby and Sue Beasley and Nancy Petrey attended the Luverne High School football game Friday night and enjoyed seeing LHS soundly defeat G.W. Long High School.

Valeta Spradley attended a miscellaneous shower for Sommer Sims Watson at Joquin Baptist Church on Sunday afternoon.

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As I said, there was not much news to report this week, but that just gives an occasion to review the past. I hope you enjoyed the historical tidbits. Petrey is such a tiny town that a news reporter almost has to be a detective to find news!

Remember to call me at 335-6700 with any items of interest for the Petrey News.

God bless you all.

Let your light shine for Jesus!