Uncle Melvin, Aunt Lucille, Inez (Mom) and Cam (Dad) at a happy moment.

We always said if "anything had ever happened" to Mom and Dad, Aunt Lucille and Uncle Melvin would have taken me.  They and their children are in my blood and inhabit my soul.  Melvin passed his wonderful sense of humor on to his kids, especially Bonnie whose love for her dad was and is boundless. 

As a teenager Bonnie was "in love" with Elvis.  Melvin, a conductor for the Missouri Pacific, had told Bonnie he was going to be on his train.  Bonnie, full of enthusiasm and thrilled beyond belief, marshaled a huge crowd of her high school friends and were waiting at the train station in their little town of DeQuincy, Louisiana.  Of course, Melvin had been kidding and Bonnie was mortified and humiliated.  Her friends didn't really care, they had taken the afternoon off from school and had a blast.  The anticipation was worth the effort.