REATHERFORD TO CELEBRATE 100 YEARS
By Lynette George, Herald Democrat

Van Alstyne - Esther Oleta Carney Fulenwider Reatherford will celebrate her 100th birthday on May 24 with at party at the Van Alstyne Senior Center.  A barbecue lunch and birthday cake will be served from noon until approximately 2 p.m.  The gathering is open to all family members and friends and birthday cards, but no gifts, are requested.  Hosting the event are Reatherford's 8 remaining children.
Reatherford, the oldest child of Bill and Julie Carney was a toddler when the family moved from Arkansas to Grayson County via covered wagon.  They first settled on a sharecropper farm Collinsville and, later, lived on serveral farms before moving into Van Alstyne in 1937.  After graduation, Reatherford married Emmitt Fulenwider and the couple had 11 children.
In 1965 Reatherford married Jack Reatherford and the couple lived between Sherman and Denison until permanently moving to the Luella community.  Prior to Jack Reatherford's death in 2006, the couple was active in local veterans' organizations.  Jack served as the senior officer of the Sherman American Legion and calling the regular Bingo games and Esther serving as vice-president.  They often represented the organization at the state convention.
Reatherford's children include: Mary Reed and husband, Bob, of Pilot Point; Eddie Lee Purdom and husband, Paul, of Van Alstyne; Gale Cox and husband, Bill, of Tom Bean; Alford Fulenwider and wife, Carol, of Pagosa Springs, Colorado; and Dale Fulenwider and Lewis Fulenwider, who both reside with Reatherford in Van Alstyne.  Three sons are deceased - an infant son, Roy Fulenwider and Carl Fulenwider.  Reatherford also has a number of grandchildren and great-grandchildren, as well as one remaining sister.