Monongah Alumni love to get together.

Bill Meredith, Class of 1957, and John Olesky, Class of 1950, are no exception.

They have had EIGHT reunions in FOUR years.

Three times they met in the Sarasota, Florida home of Bill and wife Roleta Smith Meredith, with the Clarksburg Washington Irving graduate who runs the WI blog handling the fixings while Bill handled the chatter and smiles – 2012, 2013 and 2015. There was no 2014 reunion, which draws nearly a dozen Lions and mates each time, because Bill had a medical situation to deal with, which has worked out well.

Three times they met in Ohio restaurants, in Northfield Center at Babuska’s Kitchen, a Polish restaurant that later closed; and then the venue switched to Guido’s, a small but fantastic Italian restaurant in Ravenna, the county seat of Portage County. The Merediths have a home in Buckeye Lake, Ohio, and visit long-time family friend Dorothy Jones, who cared for Roleta’s father in his final years. Dorothy was part of the Guido’s reunions in 2014 and 2015.

Twice they met before a WVU football game. John’s sister, Jackie Olesky Straight, Class of 1955, of Rivesville, her daughter, Renee, and John’s daughter, Monnie Ann, of Brunswick, Ohio, were at the 2013 pre-game meal. It was just John, Bill, Roleta and John’s daughter, LaQuita, of Aurora, Ohio, at the 2014 pre-game get-together meal.

Meredith Brothers, Inc., a Columbus company, was founded in 1982 by Bill and Roleta. Other names they wanted for the company were taken, and brother Joe Meredith was with Bill at the Ohio Secretary of State’s Office when the firm incorporated, so they called it Meredith Brothers.  

But there has never been a brother in the company, just Bill, his wife and family. There are three generations of Merediths actively involved in the company today.

Meredith Brothers Inc. web site describes it as “the premier civil engineered solution company in the Midwest.” The product line includes materials and work on bridges, drainage, erosion control, paving and precast. MBI has been involved in an Akron Children’s Hospital update, green walls in Akron and Columbus, I-77 road resurfacing and Cleveland Progressive Field geosynthetics.

 

Bill is a WVU Engineer School graduate.

As for the other six children of Charlie and Jane Meredith, all Monongah High graduates:

Pat Meredith Wills, Class of 1950, is married to Fairmont West grad Don Wills and lives in Fairmont and St. Augustine Beach, Florida.

Marjorie Delores Meredith Holt, Class of 1947, was a C&P Telephone telephone operator in Fairmont who transferred to Indiana where she met and married Bill Holt and had four children with him. Delores passed away in 2005. Bill also is deceased.

Howard Joe Meredith, Class of 1945, who lived in Daytona Beach Shores till he passed away in December 2012.

Jack Meredith, Class of 1943, deceased.

Bonnie Meredith, deceased.

Marion Jean Meredith Riddle, Class of 1945, deceased.

Their Grandmother, Grace Grove Meredith, once owned Grove Cemetery, in East Monongah.

The farewell greeting at today’s Ravenna reunion was: “See you before the Mountaineer Field game and in Florida” We’re not finished with these get-togethers in Florida, Ohio and West Virginia.