SHouthernospitality

On a sunny June morning when Pepperell Kids gathered for their reunion at the home of Janet and George Crawford at Lake Martin, they reminisced about happy, carefree days growing up in an idyllic setting in Pepperell Mill Village. Their school, churches, grocery store, drug store, hair salon, barber, post office, service station, scout hut, ball park and clinic were all within walking distance.

Since 2005, the reunion has been held yearly except during Covid. At the first reunion, 32 people attended, and the numbers grew to 161 attending in 2013. Members took covered dishes the first four years, then it was decided to cater with barbecue. To be included in the group, members must have lived in the village or attended the original school. This year, over 50 members met to remember blissful childhood days.

George Crawford was in the third grade when his father was hired as traffic manager at Pepperell Mill in 1949. Since there was not a house available in the village, they lived in the POW camp for two weeks while looking for a place. After several months in a rental, a house in the vil- lage became available.

“It is really difficult to explain,” Crawford said. “It was basically like one big family. It didn’t matter where you were, if the family was eating, you were welcome to eat with them. If you got in trouble at a friend’s house, you got spanked. Then, they called your parents, and you got spanked again.”

Crawford feels those in the village became close knit because they were a small community with everything they needed close by. The only time he remembers going to downtown Opelika was on Saturday mornings to the movie theater. They had a Little League baseball team and a midget football

See CIPPERLY page A11