I led a memorial service in Taft ,Tuesday for a long-time friend, Les Roper. Les worked with the youth back in the early sixties when I came to Taft as minister of music-youth. He was a great friend and big help with kids. He was also a cowboy. Loved to ride and rope. (His name was Roper) He got to appear as a cowboy in "Lonesome Dove". Les could also play a merry tune on the piano. He had a winning smile and cowboy voice. We made an annual trip to the San Antonio rodeo each year I was there. That called for a stop at a cafe called "The Bean Pot". There would be cornbread, sweet onions...and beans! You could dip them from a giant pot in the middle of the place. Can't do that kind of stuff anymore. It sure was good, though.
Les and Mae had been married 64 years and ten months. They lived all over after Les retired. He operated golf courses and RV parks, and even ran a racehorse track over in Brady, Texas.
That makes four friends I have had funerals for in three weeks. Enough now.
