Happy BIRD-day!

[jinman]

Today was Bird's 70th birthday and we had a heck of a party for him.

What was best was that it was a total surprise. His daughters have been planning this for the last year and he didn't know about it. Behind the scenes, they contacted several of us who know Bird well and we passed the word around to those in the local area to come to his surprise party. Perhaps the most amazing thing is that nobody let the "cat out of the bag" and Bird didn't know about it.

The party was held at the VFW Hall in Denton, Texas. In the pictures that follow, that's why you will see so much military stuff. I'll try to let the pictures do most of the talking and others may have additional pictures and thoughts they would like to contribute.

A special thanks goes out to Muhammad for sending a brand new signed TBN ballcap and some TBN bumper stickers to hand out at the party.:0 Muhammad and Ibrahim signed the cap and then sent it to me. I took it to the party and all the attending TBNers signed the bill of the cap so Bird would have that as a keepsake. We are also giving him a framed picture of the group to hang in his garden to scare away the crows.

The first group of pictures shows Bird with his birthday cake. Thank goodness they didn't put 70 candles on that cake or we would have had to give Bird CPR. The cake had a picture of Bird and his prize pig and also a picture of him in his police uniform.

 

[wroughtn_harv]

I finally got the answer I'm sure everyone here on TBN has had on their minds. "Where in gawd's green acres would a man get a name like BIRD?"

He was named after his grandpa. So Bird is really Bird and not some bird.

 

[chipsndust]

Happy Birthday Bird!

 

[jinman]

Bird's daughter, Holly, MC'd the event and both of Bird's daughters hosted a buffet to die for. The first picture shows Holly at the microphone.

The second picture is inside the VFW hall with the whole crowd that included TBNers, police force friends, relatives, and other friends. We had a large group despite the rainy weather outside.

Bird was presented with many gifts. He seems to like his new hat and he posed with the TBNers to show it off. There was also a gift/birthday card table. TxDon and Kyle_in_Tx made sure that bird has plenty of peanuts for awhile. That's a 25 lb bag of peanuts that Don brought.

 

[Alan L.]

They really put together a great party, great food and great fellowship! Bird was surprised but certainly not speechless. Heard some really good stories today. Mrs. Alan L. and I are honored that we were included in this.

 

[jinman]

The gift that really stole the show was the Bird bobblehead doll. What a hoot! It looks just like Bird. Watching his face when he opened the box was worth paying for.

 

[RobS]

Hey, happy birthday Bird!

 

[jinman]

Finally, here's a gallery of the TBNers who attended with their wives. I'm gonna start with Bird and his lovely wife, Margaret.

Next is:
TxDon - Don and Karen
GSGanzer - Gordon and Shellie
AlanL - Alan and Theresa
Wroughtn_Harv - Harvey and Glenda
Z Rench - Terry and Wife
Kyle_in_Tx - Kyle and Elizabeth (daughter Finnly)
jinman - Jim and Kathy

Bgoodman - Bobby Goodman was there, but avoided the camera somehow.

 

[jinman]

It's about you, Bird; enjoy the moment. I know we all did.

 

[Bird]

Thanks to everyone. For those who don't know them, we have a great bunch of TBN guys and gals in this part of the country, and I'm proud to call them friends.

And as Jim said, there were also some relatives, former neighbors, and former co-workers there, including some I hadn't seen in more than 20 years.

 

[dfkrug]

What a nice surprise! Happy birthday, Bird!

 

[Hakim]

Happy Birthday Bird!

From all of us here at TBN, we wish you every conceivable happiness -- this year and many, many years into the future. We've always got your "seat" reserved at TBN.

Muhammad, & Ibrahim, Hakim & The Whole Chishti Family

 

['Bota Fan]

Thanks to everyone. For those who don't know them, we have a great bunch of TBN guys and gals in this part of the country, and I'm proud to call them friends.

And as Jim said, there were also some relatives, former neighbors, and former co-workers there, including some I hadn't seen in more than 20 years.

Always a gentleman. Happy birthday!

 

[dex3361]

Happy Birthday Bird and I pray that you will be blessed with many more.

 

[JDGREEN4ME]

Happy Birthday!

 

[EastTexFrank]

Happy birthday Bird. I tried so hard to make it but just couldn't swing it. I'm glad the surprise was maintained and that you had a great day. Congratulations Sir!!!

 

[Tig]

Happy birthday Bird!

 

[dcyrilc]

Happy Birthday, Bird.

 

[txdon]

We finally got home from the grand B-day party. And I can tell you that Bird's family is as special as he is. The video with his life time pictures made us all seem like part of his family. The wonderful meal and good friends made this a very special day for all of us.

We had a bit of excitement on the way home also. A Hummer was driving erratically behind us (we were in a Prius) on these dark Texas roads and it look like he was going to pass us on the outside lane as we were going across a bridge. In my side view mirror I saw him smash up against the bridge guard rail swerving in both lanes and still gaining on us. I did not feel like he could pass us without hitting us also so I accelerated to get out of danger. However he continued to swerve and gain on us. Karen was on the phone to 911 looking at the GPS giving our location as we were going 85 mph. The dispatcher Transfer our call to another agency as we were passing county lines. When he turned off the main road we informed the dispatcher and 10 minutes later she called back and reported that the officers had located the Hummer and the driver had denied everything. With other 911 calls about this same vehicle and the damage I think he will not be spending the night at home. I am so glad he did not have a head on collision with the other cars.

 

[RedDirt]

Happy birthday Bird. I always enjoy and value your comments here on TBN.

Ray