Students dedicate banner in Newtown Skating at Rockefeller Center

Flight 93 Memorial

Meeting Franco Harris

Ocean City, MD ferris wheel

Niagara Falls night display

Our new families get together

Lake Superior

Split Rock Lighthouse on Lake Superior lit in memory of SS Edmund Fitzgerald sinking

Dad and I at PNC Park

Radio City Music Hall night life

Brooklyn Bridge from South St. Seaport

Dad, Mom and I at Statue of Liberty

Moving from Raleigh to Emerald Isle

Sunset and Thanksgiving at our new home

A kiss in snow at Point State Park tree

Fireworks night after the Pirates game

Landscape shot of Pittsburgh at dusk during a baseball game

Rehearsal dinner included a surprise visit by the Pirate Parrot. Sara and Matt look on as we are announced as Mr. & Mrs. Meyer.

First Dance at the reception

Bridal party at the church and then looking over Pittsburgh

Just Married 12-07 jerseys

Dear Family, Friends, and Colleagues: Greetings! I hope the 2013 Christmas newsletter nds you all well and happy. This has been a year of major changes in our lives. While I normally write this newsletter chronologically, a major event such as getting married needs to come rst. Rheta and I were married on December 7th at St. Mary of the Mount Church in Pittsburgh. It was denitely a beautiful service. My friends from childhood, Matt Miller, Darin Bernardi, and Carl Bozick were in the wedding party, along with Jeff Smale, a good friend I met when I rst moved to North Carolina. Brian Barbisch sang a beautiful rendition of Bless the Lord Oh My Soul and my former neighbor Krista Kaley sang May Love Be Ours while we lit our unity candle. My sister, Sara, was the maid of honor, and a good friend Christy Petty served as a bridesmaid. Rhetas cousins, Sarah and Jessie Burton were the other bridesmaids. Our good friends Greg Fishel and Leroy Straley, along with my Uncle Bob James were the readers. Fr. Walt Rzydon was our ofciating priest. The reception was held at Fairview Fire Hall, just minutes from where I grew up. They do an outstanding job of making the hall look amazing and preparing delicious food. We had a blast introducing so many people to the Pittsburgh tradition of a cookie table. I surprised Rheta by having Allegheny County Police Sergeant Ricky Manning, who performs with the Pittsburgh Symphony, sing a few songs, including I Would Walk 500 miles since Rheta and me grew up 500 miles apart. Even the weather was great on Saturday after a sleety Friday and a very snowy Sunday! Of course, our rst married day was spent watching the Pittsburgh Steelers in the snow at Heinz Field! You can see more pictures and get recipes for all the cookies at www.mikeandrhetaswedding.com. Another signicant change is we have left Wake Forest after 13 years. There are times in your life when you realize that a change is necessary. I discovered that my position in Wake Forest was no longer the best t for my career and it was time to make a change. Rheta and I each found jobs in Onslow County, North Carolina, which is home to Camp Lejeune Marine Base. I am the school counselor at Southwest Middle School in Jacksonville, while Rheta is a 7th Grade Language Arts teacher at Swansboro Middle School. We both really like our new schools, which are smaller and have a bit more personal touch to them. We are extremely happy with a rental home we found on Emerald Isle, an island in Carteret County. Our home is literally a three minute walk to the ocean and right on the Bogue Sound. You can see the ocean from the front deck and the sound from the back. We love living in what is called the Crystal Coast. It is quiet here now, but will get quite crowded in the summer! One down side of the move is the sense of loss I feel of no longer running the SOS Club and Dance Marathon. This has become a huge part of my life and led to so many friendships. The idea began when a few middle school students wanted to help people just days after September 11, 2001. I seriously thought the project would be a one year gig as a schools response to the terrorist attacks. However, when so many kids wanted to get involved the following year, I decided to do it again. Over 12 years, three schools raised a total of $106,371.16 for Duke and North Carolina Childrens Hospital, Special Olympics, and Wounded Warrior Project. While the money raised is incredible, the lessons learned will last forever. Seeing middle school students develop a sense of ownership over something they helped create has always been rewarding. Meeting families who have been treated at the hospitals has taught me a lot about human strength and to recognize the difference between a problem and an inconvenience. When you meet people who have had to endure the sickness of a child, you realize how many people would love to swap places with you. So while the students tell me how much they learned about life in SOS, I can honestly say that I have learned a lot from them because we made a difference together. It will never be forgotten. The good news is a Raleigh charity called Music 4 Hope will be taking over the Dance Marathon to ensure that our project continues! This past spring, I took several students to New York City for a service trip. Two students organized a Crutches 4 Africa program in which they collected used crutches. The Rotary Club in NYC transports the crutches to Rotary Clubs in Africa. Since we had to deliver the hundreds of crutches, we made a trip out of it. While there, the students volunteered on Easter Sunday at the Xavier Soup Kitchen in Greenwich Village. They helped prepare and serve thousands of meals to the underprivileged. We also went to Staten Island where we helped stock shelves at a hurricane relief shelter. Lastly, we drove to Newtown, Connecticut and presented the town with a banner of hope designed by the art teacher, Jose Cruz. It meant a lot to visit the town that suffered so much pain because we were one school that delivered our message of support in person. SOS had two major honors this year. In February, we were key note speakers at the Pennsylvania Middle School Conference at Penn State. The kids got to present middle school Dance Marathon to an audience very familiar with the THON concept! On the way home, we made another stop at the Flight 93 Memorial, marking the 4th time SOS has visited there. In November, we were featured presenters at the American Middle Level Educators Conferences in Minneapolis. These were tremendous opportunities to share what we have done with other schools. The kids of course enjoyed the Mall of America and I took an extra day to sightsee in northern Minnesota and Lake Superior. On the family front, Sara lives in New Hope, about 45 minutes north of Philadelphia. She continues to work for Donaldson, but is also taking a skin care class as she is looking to make a career change in the next year or so. Mom continues to work for McKesson and has been to Las Vegas more in a year than even the most diehard gamblers as her big account is located there. Dad enjoys retired life, yet still sees clients once per week and volunteers at the American Red Cross. The two dogs, Ollie and Tilly, are staying with my parents now and Tommy, our family cat is still plugging along on three legs. Our family trip was to New York City. With the wedding on the horizon and the recent move, we decided to stay close to home. We had a blast checking out the many sights of New York, took in the Motown Broadway Play, and Rheta even found her bridesmaid dresses at the big Macys! We were honored to see the memorial for the World Trade Center and look forward to returning when the museum is completed. I also took Rheta to see Niagara Falls and we enjoyed two days there. It was my rst time being there in the summer! Our new address is: Mike and Rheta Meyer; 2502-B Emerald Drive; Emerald Isle, NC 28594. Our e-mails remain the same at mrm212@psualum.com and rhetaburton@yahoo.com. All the best this holiday season and please stay in touch in 2014. Better yet, let us know if you ever wish to visit us at the beach!