In the Beginning...

Recently, right before Christmas, I finished reading the entire Bible for the third time in the last three years. I would love to share with you how reading God's Word has changed my life.

I grew up in a Christian home, but one in which the Bible was not read. My mom had mentioned a few times in her life that she had read the entire Bible for a class in college, and she was proud of that achievement.

We did attend church most of the time, so I grew up with the foundation of Christian worship in my life, which was very important to me. During college years away from home, however, I drifted away from church as so many do.

Thankfully I married into a strong Christian family, and that is when my spiritual life began to change! My husband, David, was raised in another mainline church, but his family said grace before meals, prayed together and read the Bible. In addition, there was someone wonderful in the family who's faith made a very deep impression on me: Gram Lamon, the matriarch of the family.

            Gram Lamon

Gram had been raised in Alabama as a Southern Baptist, and Gram Lamon knew the Bible backwards and forwards, really the first person I knew well that did.  My grandparents had all passed away when I was young as my parents had married later in life, so I was thrilled to be getting a grandmother as an adult who I could really enjoy.

Gram taught me how to cook 'southern style,' old-fashioned good home cooking with roast beef, mashed potatoes, fresh vegetables and some fabulous southern desserts like three-layer fresh coconut cake!

While I was learning all those things, and giving her her first great-grandchildren, I learned to love her quaint southern sayings like, "Oh, lawsie mercy!" One day I went to her apartment to visit, carrying a child on my hip, and when I went in I asked her what she had been doing. I saw her Bible open as usual on the little table next to her chair and she said, "Studying for my final exams." By this time Gram was in her 70's.

I decided to write a cookbook for the family, with all Gram's favorite recipes that we had all grown to love, and I put her favorite scripture passages in the book as well. All of this was having an impact on me as Gram showed me what a life of faith could be like.

By the time Gram passed away, she and her faith had made a life-long impression on me. Gram was beloved by so many people, and she was an awesome woman of God in her own quiet way. Gram died in her early 80's, having lived a full life: she raised three strapping sons, all pillars of the community, numerous grandchildren, and helped found a family construction company.

Years went by and my husband and I and our children faithfully attended church, with David and I each holding various volunteer and elected positions. We worshipped God and we loved God, but we still didn't know the Bible! How could people attend church for decades and not know the Bible, the very foundation of the church?

      Pastors Joy and Steve

One day, however, our lives changed, because our church did a great thing...we called two pastors (married to each other), who really know and love the Bible. I thank God for Pastors Joy and Steve every day. Without them I would never have begun my journey reading and studying the Bible, the greatest book ever written in the history of mankind, about the greatest person who has ever lived and walked on earth, Jesus Christ.

With Joy and Steve's encouragement three dear friends from our congregation, Brad, Martha, Nancy, and I took instruction and were ordained deacons in the church on September 11, 2007.

Reading the Bible for a few minutes everyday helps us develop a deeper relationship with God. Think of the Bible as a lifeline, especially for you, from God in heaven!

John 3:16-17 For God so loved the world, that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him.


Ancient Words~ Song by Michael W. Smith

A Tribute to Uncle John Lamon

Recently our family lost our patriarch, Uncle John. John was an exceptional man in so many ways, exemplified by his obituary below, written by his son, Steve. When John was in town, he always made it a point to stop by and visit sons and daughters, grandchildren, and nephews and nieces at their respective homes and workplaces. He was friendly to everyone, with a wonderful smile, and always a perfect gentleman! John was truly one-of-a-kind, an incredible role model for us all. His visits will be sorely missed.

Uncle John was the youngest of three brothers, sons of Lonnie and Ossie Lamon who came to this community from Alabama in 1925. Lonnie and his sons founded the family company, Lamon Construction Co., which is still family-owned and operated by Henry's son, Hank.

I was privileged to become a member of this large and loving family when I married Grady's eldest son, David, 35 years ago. From the beginning I was welcomed as if I had been born into the family.

At that time, 1974, Ossie "Gram" Lamon, was the matriarch of the family, and she became my grandmother as well. The loving example provided by Gram and her sons and their wives, Grady and Bette, Henry and Pat, and John and Marlene, has left a life-long impression on me. Service to God and country, founding a company well-respected in the area, devotion to family, friends and the community~ these are values that this family lives by.

Uncle John, we will miss you, never forget you, and love you always. Our loss is Heaven's gain!

John Albert Lamon  9/9/31 - 3/5/09

John Albert Lamon passed away at the age of 77 from heart failure on March 5, 2009 while on vacation with his wife Marlene in Las Vegas, Nevada. John was born on September 9, 1931 in Marysville, California. He attended Mary Covillaud Elementary School and Marysville High School, where he lettered in basketball and track, served in the ROTC and as Student Body President, and graduated as the class valedictorian in 1949. He also achieved the rank of Life Scout before venturing off to college.

From 1949 through 1953, John attended the University of California, Berkeley and graduated with honors from the school of civil engineering. He rowed on the Cal crew and was active in the men's residence hall known as Bowles Hall. While at Cal, John met and courted Marlene "Mike" Thompson of Salinas, California. John and Mike married in June, 1953. From 1953 through 1956, John served as an officer in the United States Navy, where he saw active duty in the Pacific at the end of the Korean War.

In 1957 John and Marlene moved to Marysville, where he joined his older brothers Grady and Henry in the local family business known as Lamon Construction Company. John and his brothers were active in the local Chamber of Commerce and business community until John retired in 1991. During that time John was a devoted and faithful member of the Marysville Rotary Club (with 35 years of perfect attendance), and was active in several community organizations, including the former Buttes Area Council of the Boy Scouts of America (which awarded him the distinguished "Silver Beaver" award), and on the Fremont-Rideout Hospital Board of Directors.

After retiring in 1991, John and Marlene traveled the world extensively, visiting every continent, and spent their "spare time" with a host of family and friends, often on their beloved island of Maui, Hawaii or on the pristine shores of Lake Tahoe at Incline Village. John was an avid sports fan, and he and Marlene endured 26 straight seasons as Sacramento Kings season ticket holders (all without a championship). He also supported the Cal Bears, the S.F. 49ers, and the S.F. Giants (who sadly failed to win a west coast World Series during his lifetime).

John and Marlene were married for over 55 years and their relationship remains an inspiration to all. They reared 4 children in the Marysville public schools and in the Marysville First Presbyterian Church, and all four thereafter obtained college degrees from California State colleges and universities. John is survived by is loving wife, Marlene; by his thankful children, daughter Karen Bowen (of Natomas); son John W. Lamon and daughter-in-law Lynn Lamon (of Pleasanton); daughter Diane Uutela and son-in-law Jerry Uutela (of Yuba City); and son Steven Lamon and daughter-in-law Colleen Lamon (of Yuba City); and by his grateful grandchildren: Jeremy Payne (and his wife Molly), Michael Payne (and his wife Ashley), Sara Bowen, Ryan Uutela, Katie Uutela, Tyler Lamon, Connor Lamon, and Neil Lamon.

John is remembered by family and friends as a truly warm and thoughtful husband, father, grandfather, and community leader, with a kindness, gentleness, and work ethic that are echoed in his children and grandchildren. His big smile, his generosity, and his loyal friendship are an enduring part of all of those whom were fortunate to have known him. He was a perfect gentleman, an active part of perhaps "the greatest" American generation so far, and truly one of a kind. Our deepest sadness at his passing is a reflection of the deep love which he shared with us all.

A memorial celebration of John's life is scheduled for Friday, March 13, 2009 at 3:00 pm at St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church on Franklin Blvd. in Yuba City. Given John's love of Maui, the family recommends casual Hawaiian style attire for the service. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests that donations be made in John's honor to one of his favorite charities, such as the Marysville Rotary Club Foundation, the Fremont-Rideout Hospital Foundation, or the Boy Scouts of America.

John and Marlene in Maui