National Sisters Day: The Weathersby girls

ALBANY — National Sisters Day is the first Sunday in August. This article is about the special love that the Weathersby girls have for each other.

Hilda and Keaton Weathersby are the sisters’ parents. They had nine children, and six of them were girls. The sisters love their brothers — Jimmy, Billy and Andy — but this article is about the special bond between sisters. Sisters share a close relationship by blood or friendship. We have both.

Helen was the first-born child. The siblings never got to know Helen because she passed away when she was 19 months old. Our oldest brother, Jimmy, was one month old when Helen died. She called him “Bubba.” Helen was a much-loved child and the first grandchild of the family.

Mary, the next-born sister, had Helen’s baby book in later years and made each of us a copy. It is very precious. Mary is the most glamorous of the sisters. She worked for a cable communications company before becoming a Naval wife to Don and mother to Donny and Anna. While living in Texas, she was offered a modeling contract but declined. She was so generous to all her sisters and brothers. She was also an artist.

Becki is next in line. She was the mysterious one with smoky eyes. She might be the smartest one of the sisters. She started working for a petroleum company when she was 16. She became the vice president of the company and worked there 50-plus years. She married Howard and became mama to Roxi.

After Becki, there’s Betty. Betty was first runner-up in the Miss Camilla Contest. We were so excited. She also later worked for Rockwell Corporation and was named Miss Aero Commander at the unveiling of a new airplane made there. Betty has the biggest heart and the most compassion. She is a giver and would later become a nurse. She moved to Texas to be with Mary and became a second mother to Donny and Anna. She also met her husband, Joe, there.

Then, there’s me, Donna. I am the funny one, free-spirited, and love to sing, dance and write. I was a legal secretary who later became a teacher and was able to put my energy into helping young children learn. I married Connell, and my son is Levi.

Peggy is the baby of the family. She can do anything and fix anything. She married Mickey and had Amity and Tripp. She helps run Mickey’s family-owned business and is a blessing to their family. She is also an artist and the most adventurous of us all.

Mary, Becki and Betty grew up together and would hang out as teenagers. Becki married early, and Mary and Betty shared an apartment. Before then, we actually slept in the same bedroom. It was large and had two double beds and a twin bed. How I loved it when they came home from their dates, listening to them talk and finally going to sleep with them there.

As teenagers, Peggy and I really didn’t hang out together. Sometimes we would fight, as sisters do sometimes. But that never changed the fact that we were sisters and loved one another.

At one point in our lives, our family lived in extreme poverty because daddy had a terrible accident. We all persevered with the help of God and mama. We all agree that we are better people for having to live in poor conditions and endure hardships. But things got better, and we all overcame that time in our lives. All the siblings were taught good work ethics, and life’s lessons taught us as well.

We sisters became best friends. As adults with families of our own, we always made it to special events. In summers, our favorite place to go to was the beach. We would laugh, catch up, and sit on the beach all day. In the late afternoons, we would gather all the chairs into a circle. This was our “Circle of Love.” Many precious memories and good times were held at the beach. We have not been able to go together for several years now, but we will always remember those times.

We had a birthday party for Mary (72), Becki (70), and Betty (68) at my house almost six years ago. It was a surprise party and as they came out to the party, Levi played “We Are Family” by Sister Sledge. We were all dancing to the words, “We are Family, I got all my sisters with me. We are family, get up everybody and sing.”

One year, Becki gave us a small wooden box with a latch. In the box, she had placed quotes that she had typed. They were all about sisters. They were all good, but this is my favorite one by an unknown author. It says, “Your sister will hold your hand for only a little while; but she will hold your heart for a lifetime.”

We lost Mary to Alzheimer’s Disease on Feb. 14, 2021. It was very hard for us to lose her. We hold on to our precious memories and her beautiful spirit.

Anna, Mary’s daughter, graduated with two bachelor of fine arts degrees: one in Metalsmithing and Jewelry and the other in Sculpture. She made each one of us a necklace. It was in a giftbox, and inside was a card that reads, “This was made with a new glass enamel technique using specialized vitreous glass enamel powder. The crystalline structure of each design is unique unto itself, and therefore, each piece made is one-of-a-kind. Each of these limited-editions, five-piece-only sets was created with the design on the cover of the box. And what does WG stand for? You all should know more than anyone — You’re a Weathersby Girl!”

It is a special treasure that we cherish.

What an honor to be a Weathersby Girl and to be sisters forever. Like the design that Anna made, we were all created to be one-of-a-kind by the hands of God. We were all given the gift of love.

Special Photo: Courtesy of Donna AndersonSpecial Photo Courtesy of Donna Anderson