That September, Barbara started her senior year at Weirsdale High School. She found it much easier than the year before now that she knew everyone but that was not all that hard there were only twelve seniors.  She had become quite popular being a cheerleader for the basketball team, but she also was in the Glee Club, Secretary of the Letterman’s Club and the Assistant Editor of the Wigwam (the school newspaper)  

She and Morris continued to date, mostly on weekends for Morris worked weekdays.  Morris parents still didn’t have a phone at their house, and she couldn’t call Morris at work so she would write him letters, most often in class at school. Even with the distraction of writing letters in class she did very well making all A’s and B’s. She also joined the Lake Weir Theatre Guild played the part of  Lorna Keith in the play “Were there’s a Will” by Charles George while her sister Sue played the part of Sylvia Terry,  

In her letters Barbara jokes about Morris meeting girls at the University and says if she were going there, she would take Chemistry every period so she could keep an eye on him.  Morris teases her back saying “a week is a long time without seeing your, so don’t forget me and stop flirting with boys at school.” He goes on to say, “I work upstairs and there isn’t but 2 girls there one is engaged and the looks worse than ____.”  

The school year started with Barbara starting the eighth grade at Murphy Junior High School which she had to take the streetcar to attend.  Feeling more comfortable at the new school, Barbara quickly made new friends some of which she kept in touch with her whole life.  Life was good. 

Flemington Church

Baptism at Lake

The fall of 1949 was an exciting time for the Flemington Baptist church with the new church building finally completed and on Sunday September 11th a dedication ceremony was held with services presided over by Reverend Fred Junior.  It was a grand event with most all members and many non-members alike attending.  There would be song, a sermon by Reverend Junior and a grand baptismal service in which sixteen people would be baptized including Barbara and her sisters Sue and Dixie and Fred’s son Dick.  With the old chapel not having a baptismal, they would wait until summer and have a baptism in a nearby lake but with the new church being completed it seems a backlog had grew waiting for the new church to be completed.  

The baptismal in the new church stood at the front behind and above the choir seating behind the paster.  When not in use it looked like a painting of the river Jordan recessed into the wall, but there were stairs leading to the brand new 24-guage water tank set just below the picture.  When it came time for the baptismal service, the boys went into one room and the girls into another where they changed out of their Sunday clothes and put on white robes.  When their name was called, the person would walk up a couple of steps on one side of the tank and then down steps into the water where Fred was waiting.  When it came Barbara’s turn, she took off her glasses and handed them to one of the women helping the girls and then waked up the steps and into the water which was a bit of a shock with the cold water. The reverend then asked if she accepted the Lord as her Savior, and after saying “I do.”, the Reverend said, “In the name of the father, son and holy ghost, I baptize thee.”, and placing his hand under the back of her neck, whispering to her, “hold your nose” as her father lowered her backwards, submersing her under the water.  Although she held her nose, she forgot to close her eyes and as went under the water she looked up with blurry eyes though the ripples in the water seeing her father looking down at her with the light overhead making a halo around his head.  As quickly as she went under the water she was brought back up and she walked up the steps on the opposite side and out of the water.  Wet and freezing the ladies gave her towels to dry her off with and she quickly changed back into her Sunday clothes although she was half blind a until she found her glasses.  The baptism was repeated sixteen times that day, never had there been such a glorias baptismal service.   For such a celebration there was a full dinner on the grounds afterwards where the people mingled into the afternoon.

First Baptism at Flemington Baptist Church
Back row: Fred Junior, Dick Junior 4th, Barbara, 6th, Dixie 7th, Sue 10th

Fred continued preaching though October and into November when gossip started going around the church about Fred’s son Dick, “Who was he? How come they hadn’t seen him before?” and such like.  Fred at first thought nothing of it telling the simple truth that it was his son from his first marriage.  While this was acceptable with the more progressive members of the church, the more conservative members of the church found it unacceptable that the paster was divorced and when they found out he was a converted Catholic too, well that was too much.  When Fred got word of this discussion among the congregation, he resigned not wishing to cause division in the church but saying he would reconsider his resignation if the church so desired. After much discission pro and con, the church committee accepted Reverend Junior’s resignation but asking him if he would continue preaching through the end of December.

Barbara

The year ended on a more humorous note when in December someone at school gave Sue a letter addressed to Barbara.  Upon receiving the letter, Sue found Barbara at lunch time, opened and read it out loud in front of everyone.  The letter was from a boy at the university who asked Barbara to go to the Fall Frolics and spend the whole weekend with him then go to Daytona Beach after the formal dance. He even had a hotel room.  Upon reading the letter, everyone, even Barbara, laughed about how crazy the boy must be.   Come to find out, Jimmy Mixson had told the boy about Barbara, who was quite exasperated with Jimmy about it until Jimmy explained it was for Barbara Eaton! 

Updated: 12-28-2021

1950 Spring