Our visit with Toni Brock was so much fun that we’re continuing the theme of talking to others who knew Grandma and Grandpa as Uncle Donald and Aunt Katherine. Uncle Executive Producer Andrew arranged this visit with Wayne Blanchard, who like Toni, comes into the picture via one of Grandma’s siblings, her brother Gene Thornton by marrying Gene’s daughter Ann. It’s also special to me because Wayne is my godfather and one of my dad’s favorite friends. He was also the best man at my parents' wedding. It meant a lot to hear stories about the two of them in their younger days and to confirm a few memories I had including the infamous ball and chain. Friends and family are beautiful indeed.

Do you have family stories to tell? Memories of Donald and Katherine? Stories about family gatherings? Whatever it may be, if it's related to the Still family, it would be good to hear.

Email Mark Still at [email protected] and we'll add it to the records!

So far, we’ve talked to the children of Donald and Katherine and their spouses but today is different. Today we hear from Toni Reilly Brock, and to her, they were Uncle Donald and Aunt Katherine, and clearly, Toni was Grandma’s favorite niece. I expected that Toni would have plenty of stories to tell so to be sure not to miss anything, I started recording before I even dialed Toni’s phone number and she did not disappoint. The occasional giggles in the background are my mom, Flo, and Andrew - fitting I suppose given how they’ve pretty much grown up together - just another beautiful party at Toni’s house

Do you have family stories to tell? Memories of Donald and Katherine? Stories about family gatherings? Whatever it may be, if it's related to the Still family, it would be good to hear.

Email Mark Still at [email protected] and we'll add it to the records!

When we first started recording episodes for the Beautiful Party, I thought it was important that we didn’t let the episodes get too long. Everyone had more to say and I told them not to worry, we could always record more later. Thanks to Andrew’s diligence, we recorded more episodes with Billy back then, and now, it’s time to return to Jerry, Theresa, Cecilia, and Andrew to pick up where they left off. You may be asking yourself why we’d try and do this with all of them at once. Wouldn’t that be difficult, perhaps even chaotic? Well, yes, it was and it was also amazing, so much so that I’ve included the full seven-and-a-half minutes of outtakes it took to get the 11-second intro recorded. A hilariously beautiful party indeed.

Do you have family stories to tell? Memories of Donald and Katherine? Stories about family gatherings? Whatever it may be, if it's related to the Still family, it would be good to hear.

Email Mark Still at [email protected] and we'll add it to the records!

I spent a lot of time with my Uncle Jerry growing up. It always seemed as if we so much closer in age and interests than he was to his oldest brothers so it was easy to see him as a cool Uncle. Of course, all that cool uncle stuff only gets you so far so I’m glad he found Jeanie. I’m excited to talk to Jeanie today and learn more about her life before choosing to marry into the Beautiful Party and what she thought about all of that as it was happening. I probably won’t ask her to spill any embarrassing Jerry stories …as long as she doesn’t ask me about any.

Jeanie and I chat about her life pre-marriage, her meeting Jerry at St. Pius, and their first date at the Lumber Yard Cafe on Dauphin Street. Jeanie shares her perspective on adapting to the vibrant Still family compared to her upbringing with three older sisters.

We discuss family gatherings, recalling a chaotic yet heartwarming first cabbage roll dinner and the challenges and joys of raising children. The conversation shifts to Grandpa's later years, intertwining old memories with new experiences post-Hurricane Katrina.

Jeanie fondly remembers family trips to Destin and annual gatherings where traditions were cherished, including the time Billy knocked on the door on her honeymoon night because he needed to use the DRE. Classic! 

Do you have family stories to tell? Memories of Donald and Katherine? Stories about family gatherings? Whatever it may be, if it's related to the Still family, it would be good to hear.

Email Mark Still at [email protected] and we'll add it to the records!

It's been a while, more than two years, since the last episode of The Beautiful Party. Luckily, our Executive Producer, Andrew Still, has kept the flame burning and we both agreed that the time has come to get back to hearing the stories we need to ensure future generations can hear.

We don't have it all ironed out just yet but we've recorded an episode with Jeanie Still that will be out soon and we plan to get Andrew, Theresa, Cecilia, and Jerry together in one room - have mercy on us all - to cover some topics we might have missed over the last couple of years and hear stories they didn't get a chance to tell in their initial episodes. 

So get ready, your phone may ring soon and we'll need to hear your stories.

Welcome back to The Beautiful Party! 

Do you have family stories to tell? Memories of Donald and Katherine? Stories about family gatherings? Whatever it may be, if it's related to the Still family, it would be good to hear.

Email Mark Still at [email protected] and we'll add it to the records!

We continue our chats with folks who choose to attend this beautiful party by marrying into the Still family and this episode gives us the opportunity to learn more about how Sandi and Andrew came to meet and marry. There are churches and beaches and proposals on ships, and more weddings than two people typically have with each other. It seems true that life is a journey and who you travel with is more important than where you're going.

What a beautiful party!

Do you have family stories to tell? Memories of Donald and Katherine? Stories about family gatherings? Whatever it may be, if it's related to the Still family, it would be good to hear.

Email Mark Still at [email protected] and we'll add it to the records!

As should be obvious by now, our family loves a good party. So it's no surprise that some momentous events either happen or get their start at large gatherings of family and friends. Such is the origin story for Mark and Theresa Cook. Decades after that fateful Halloween party, they certainly seem to have had more treats than tricks.  Boo!    

Do you have family stories to tell? Memories of Donald and Katherine? Stories about family gatherings? Whatever it may be, if it's related to the Still family, it would be good to hear.

Email Mark Still at [email protected] and we'll add it to the records!

Now that we've heard from all of the surviving children of Donald and Katherine and told a few extra stories, we turn our attention to the spouses of those children. These are the people who joined the party by choice and who brought the Stills into their own families. As the party grew in size so did the memories and the joy. 

It seems grandma and grandpa weren't the only party in town!

Do you have family stories to tell? Memories of Donald and Katherine? Stories about family gatherings? Whatever it may be, if it's related to the Still family, it would be good to hear.

Email Mark Still at [email protected] and we'll add it to the records!

Back in February of 2021 when we recorded the first episode with Billy, he had taken the time to make notes, lots of notes, on topics he wanted to talk about. 

After nearly an hour and 15 minutes of recording, I started trying to wrap that session up knowing that we had plenty to work with but Billy didn't want to stop because we hadn't gotten to everything on his list. I assured him we'd do more ... and we did ... but we did not get to everything on his list in the subsequent recordings. 

Luckily, Andrew has that list so we got together to work through the list and record those stories for Billy. We're in good hands as Billy and Andrew were seldomly apart growing up and, as Andrew makes clear, beautiful parties happened in all sorts of places back then. I think they still do.

Do you have family stories to tell? Memories of Donald and Katherine? Stories about family gatherings? Whatever it may be, if it's related to the Still family, it would be good to hear.

Email Mark Still at [email protected] and we'll add it to the records!

I think I finally figure out something to include for my dad, Ronnie. I sure miss him. 

Do you have family stories to tell? Memories of Donald and Katherine? Stories about family gatherings? Whatever it may be, if it's related to the Still family, it would be good to hear.

Email Mark Still at [email protected] and we'll add it to the records!