H.W.B.

These are the initials of our second baby boy, who will be named 

He has two namesakes, my Papa, Henry Elmer Barker, and my Granddaddy, Earl Woodrow Marshburn. 

Both men passed away when I was growing up (Papa when I was in fourth grade and Granddaddy when I was in tenth) but left behind godly legacies. We will be proud for our son to carry both names!

Papa was born in Scottsburg, VA, a beautiful bit of country next to my hometown. He actually went by the name "Elmer" and had two brothers and two sisters. Papa served as a soldier in WWII, and while over there, received a picture from some hometown girls (modestly) posing in the river. He spotted my grandmother (who I call Kacoo) and decided he would get to know her when he got back! They married and raised Dad and his two sisters, Jane and Rhonda. He was a hard-working tobacco farmer and was also a mail carrier for a while, later in life. All of my memories of Papa are from when he and Kacoo lived at the farmhouse. He attended Fork Baptist Church as long as I can remember, played the guitar and loved to play and sing gospel music, and was a hunter. He also brought me my first and only pair of chickens when I was in third grade (and I lived in town with no place to put chickens!!). : ) I saw them at a farm store we went to one day and could not resist these little darlings. He decided that I should have them, and it was a deal! 

I have memories of big family dinners at the farm and weekends where we would spend a lot of time out there- especially when my aunts, uncles, and cousins came to visit (and I remember his snoring when Katie and I would be in bed upstairs above him!). I remember his blue truck and his the green Freshen-Up gum he would give me. Somehow, I still remember the way he laughed, the way he said my grandmother's name Katherine, the way he smelled, and the way he tickled us. 

I love that he made his living from the land, and I love that he never knew a stranger and was friendly and 

good-natured. 

I really love the son he raised. 

And I love that he faithfully followed God and taught his children to do the same.

Granddaddy was born into a big family in Richlands, NC, and I know virtually nothing about his childhood except that he went to Adams Schoolhouse (and I only know this because a portrait of it always hung in Grandma and Granddaddy's house). He went to Wake Forest College here in Wake Forest, before the school moved to Winston-Salem and later became Wake Forest University. It's neat to think that during my time in college and seminary I walked some of the same sidewalks he did! He then attended Southern Seminary for his graduate work. He was a preacher hard at work in his life's calling when he spotted a picture of my grandmother in The Religious Herald and decided he would need to meet her! Ten years her senior, I think he impressed her with his car (Ha!), his distinguished demeanor, and his faithful walk with the Lord. They married and raised two girls, my mom and Aunt Sallie, and my mom has told me precious things about the way he was such a nurturing and doting daddy. Years later they ended up in Scottsburg, VA, where Granddaddy pastored Scottsburg Baptist Church and Mom and Dad's story begins.

Anyway, as far back as I can remember, he and Grandma lived in the house where my parents live now and attended Dan River Baptist Church, the church where I grew up. He drove an orange truck called "The Orange Blossom Special," watched wrestling on TV (and he and my brother would sometimes play wrestle in the floor!), and always called me a "Good Egg." 

What is particularly dear to me, though, is that he was even-tempered and wise, that he faithfully walked with and served the Lord for decades, and that when he forgot everything else at the end of his life, he still had the presence of mind to pray. His love for his Savior Jesus defined his life.

We pray baby Henry Woodrow will one day love the Lord just like his great grandfathers did!