A Class Act -- Great Aunt Martha

Martha W. James, 91, passed away early Friday morning, July 17, at Seton Medical Center in Austin. Weed-Corely-Fish Funeral Home of Austin was in charge of arrangements with burial in North Belton Cemetery.

Ms. James was born in Belton to Mr. and Mrs. Robert B. James Sr., in the family home on North Penelope Street. She graduated valedictorian from Belton High School and received her undergraduate degree from Mary-Hardin Baylor College in Belton. Afterward, she received her master’s degree from the University of Texas at Austin.

Ms. James continued her education at the University of Michigan, earning a bachelor’s degree in library science – a field of study that remained a source of delight and her passion for the remainder of her life.

Ms. James worked as a librarian in Detroit and Sacramento, California, before moving to Philadelphia where she worked as a reference librarian at the University of Pennsylvania until her retirement.

After retirement, Ms. James moved back to Austin and lived at the Westminster Manor where she expanded the library and volunteered her time. Retirement never dampened her spirit for learning, cultural expansion, music and the arts. Ms. James was a frequent patron of the arts traveling to Houston and downtown Austin for ballet, opera and symphony performances.

She attended services at Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd in Austin until her health deteriorated.

Ms. James is preceded in death by her parents, sisters Eleanor James and Kathrine James, and brother Robert (Bob) B. James Jr. She is survived by niece Maggie James of Morgan’s Point; nephew Jim James and wife, Sharon, of Temple; and great-nephew Mark James and wife Suzanne, and great-great nephew Luke James of Round Rock, and great-nephew David James of Cedar Park.

The family requests that memorials be made to the Bell Country Museum (201 N Main St. Belton, Texas 76513) or a local library of your choice.

Thailand Update

Where did the time go? It seems like just last week that Dawn and I were at Dominican Joe’s booking the REI Adventures vacation to Thailand. Now it’s less than two week away. I’ve cut and pasted our itinerary while there so anyone who’s interested can check out where we’ll be each day.

I’m planning to use Skype on the iPhone to contact family while there. If that doesn’t work out, I’ve heard lots of people say they’ll just buy a cheap mobile phone and add top-up credits for texting.

So here’s the plan: I fly to Los Angeles on Thursday morning. The Mark James Express has agreed to pick me up early that morning. (Thanks Mark!) Dawn and I rendezvous at LAX and fly to Tokyo later that day. There’s a four-hour layover in Tokyo before catching a flight to Bangkok. We’ll spend the night in Bangkok before boarding the Thai Railway for a 12-hour overnight ride to Chiang Mai. We’ll have about half a day for sightseeing in Bangkok before boarding the train. Once in Chiang Mai, we’ll meet our travel buddies for the next nine days. Our group leader/guide is named Mr. Pan. He’s a local Thailand native who’s been leading tours for 20-plus years. I can already tell I’m going to like this guy.

For the next nine days, the group of 10 will travel around the northern province with a mix of hiking, biking, boating and canoeing. Some of the schedule stops include an elephant sanctuary, a tea plantation, northern hill tribes and several Buddhist temples where we can interact with the monks.

After those nine days, Dawn and I will catch a flight from Chiang Mai to Phuket where we’ll take a ferry to Ko Phi Phi Island. This where the resort is located. We’ll remain for the rest of the trip. We’ll likely catch a ferry back to Phuket every now and then for excursions and “city life.”

I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t sad about my absence from Africa this year. It’s the first time in more than 2 ½ years I haven’t been planning for Zambia. I feel guilty for ditching my boys I’ve grown so close to these past two summers. My parents sponsor Isaac, one of the young boys in my group. In a recent letter he asked if Uncle David would be visiting him again this year. It broke my heart. But I know I’ll be over there again. I’m hoping for sooner rather than later.

View Thailand itinerary here.