Dreams Come True
Mary Jo Allison Shoemake and James Kimbell (Jimmy) Gazzaway
Bertha E. Bell Allison and Willie Jordan Gazzaway were friends from their youth in Limestone County, Texas.� They were born the same year and grew up together in the Big Hill Community Southwest of Groesbeck and in Tehuacana, Texas. Each was the daughter of a Confederate Veteran and each married a man with a family.� Miss Bertha married Thomas Jefferson (TJ) Allison and Miss Willie married Luther G. Gazzaway.� At the age of 38 Mrs. Bertha Allison gave birth to a ten pound baby girl on January 23, 1925 and named her Mary Jo.� Mrs. Willie Gazzaway, on February 23, 1925, at the age of 38 gave birth to a ten pound baby boy and named him James Kimbell.
�Mary Jo's baby book has the following notation written by her Mother in third person as if Mary Jo were speaking.
"Well I just must tell you all some more about my third big trip on Sunday the 8th of March real early. We went to Thornton, Texas to spend the day with one of Mother's old chums, and this chum, Mrs. Gazzaway had a little boy just one month younger than myself. And his name is James Kimbell. He wasn't quite two weeks old. His Papa & my Mother weighted us both. He only weighed 10 lbs. same that he weighed when the old Stark brought him ...."
During the years following the two mother's stayed in contact with each other and visited when the opportunity presented itself. In the mid 20's times were good as Kimbell's Father and Mother owned and ran a Cafe in Thornton while Mary Jo's Father owned a grocery store and other property in Teague, Texas and her Mother raised Canary Birds, sold them and kept careful watch over Mary Jo and her older Brother Don and older Sister Lucy Bell.
Then the crash of the stock market came on Black Friday of October 1929 leaving many people in great distress. Kimbell's Father became ill and subquently died in March of 1931, leaving his family in dire straits during the Great Depression. Mr. Allison was able to provide for his family until his death in May of 1938. The time Mary Jo's Mother had spend with her Canary Birds and other indeavors paid off and she was able to provide for her family.
The two families stayed in touch by mail and occasionally the Allisons would visit the Gazzaways in Thornton. The Allisons had a car and could come to visit on weekends. The mothers planned in their hearts that Kimbell and Mary Jo would grow up and marry some day. Kimbell had a "crush" on Mary Jo and claimed her as his first girl friend. That "crush" was strong enough that in about 1938 or 1939 Kimbell rode his bicycle, which his sister Loraine had given him on December 19, 1936, from Thornton to Teague to see her.
Although they had pictures taken together and Kimbell went with Mary Jo and a friend of her's to a picture show in Teague Mary Jo considered the 34 mile one way ride on the bicycle a visit from an old friend to see the whole family. That conclusion remained in her mind for the next 62 years.
World War II came along and Kimbell made application for a Civil Service job that would be available on completion of a 6 month school at Duncan Field in San Antonio, Texas and at age 17 he took the opportunity and moved to San Antonio in June of 1942. He later moved his Mother there and then on to De Ridder, Louisiana in November of 1942 where he began work at the De Ridder Army Air Base Sub Depot working on the flight line preparing airplanes for ferry to Africa via South America.
There in De Ridder he met Lois Cooper and a courtship followed that lasted until their marriage in May of 1944 at Teague, Texas where Kimbell's Mother had moved to rent an apartment from Mary Jo's Mother. The dream the two mothers had failed to come true.
Mary Jo moved to Houston, Texas and took a job with Reed Roller Bit where she continued work until the war was over. She met Thomas William Shoemake at a Paul Jones dance and they married in December of 1945.
Kimbell and Lois moved to Teague after he was separated from the Army Air Corp in December of 1945 Their daughter, Loraine, was born there in 1953. Lois had lived with her mother in law at Mary Jo's Mother's home and worked for Mary Jo's half brother in the grocery store once owned by her Father while waiting for Kimbell to come home from the service.
Mary Jo and Tommy faired well in Houston and Pasadena and a son Clifton and a daughter Sharon were born in 1951 and 1953 respectively.
In the 1950's the Gazzaways moved to Houston and the Shoemakes stayed in touch. The children played together when their parents visited back and forth and in the summer months the girls would visit for a week or so at a time with each other.
The Gazzaways moved away to Conroe, Texas and eventually to Fairfield while the Shoemakes moved to Ivanhoe Lakes near Woodville, Texas. Both families owned recreational vehicles and from time to time would go places together; their last trip together being to the Black Hills of South Dakota in 1987.
Mary Jo and Tommy enjoyed 52 years together. He died on July 19, 1998. Kimbell (Now called Jim or Jimmy) and Lois spent 55 years together. She died on October 5, 1999.
As had been the normal for their entire lives Jimmy and Mary Jo stayed in touch by phone calling each other from time to time and each consoling the other over their loss. Then Mary Jo's son, Clifton, gave her a computer and suggested she spend some time with "Email". Again Mary Jo contacted Jimmy and a series of exchanges with Email began.
Loneliness began to deminish for both of them and a full blown "computer romance" became a reality. Wedding plans were made and on March 18, 2000 they were joined together in Holy Matrimony at Jimmy's daughter's home in Garland, Texas.
Jim Tenery, a Church of Christ Minister, from Garland performed the double ring ceremony. Mary Jo's son, Clifton, gave her in marriage. James Deane Ray stood with his father in law as best man and Mary Jo's daughter, Sharon, was her Matron of Honor.
The ceremony was simple with Mr. Tenery telling of a couple who when married were invited to ring the church bell to announce the event to the community. The bride was unable to ring the bell alone but with the help of the groom they rang the bell. Mr. Tenery's admonishion to Jimmy and Mary Jo was that if they "pulled together" they could always "ring the bell."
The weekly bulletin at Saturn Road Church of Christ for the week of March 12 had carried the following statement written by Jim Tenery.
"I have the honor this Saturday afternoon of conducting the wedding ceremony uniting Jimmy Gazzaway and Mary Jo Shoemake. You've read no notices, you've heard no bridal shower announcements. So, who are they? Jimmy is the father of our Loraine Ray. His wife (Loraine's Mother)and Mary Jo's husband each died after more than fifty years of marriage. There will be something especially beautiful about seeing these two hearts united as one. In fact I've broken my own "cardinal rule" about marriage pre-marital counseling before a wedding. With their track records, I figure the two of them could teach ME a thing or two about marriage, commitment, life and pulling TOGETHER!"
WILLIE AND BERTHA'S DREAM CAME TRUE.
