Remember traveling to the conventions

Strawberryfieldsforever

I remember years ago when my Mom and I would travel great distances to the week long conventions. We always had to travel with another sister whos husband was also "unbelieving". Anyway, her daughter and I would put the Watchtower and Awake mags in the back window to show everyone who we were. Wow! We got lots of response with that. Either we got the finger or the thumbs up from other JW"s. Do any of you remember doing that? I remember years later they said we couldn't do that anymore. Wonder why?

Sassy

I remember traveling in vehicle caravans on the way to conventions too. My mom and another sister with an unbelieving mate would usually ride together so there would be those two single sisters and 7 of us kids. It was usually fun though.. We never held up the magazines.. I guess we weren't that theocratic..

wannaexit

I remember those days very well.

We usually travelled together with another family and yes the watchtower and awake always in the back for all to see.

wannaexit

Nosferatu

I only did this once. Me and my mother travelled with a JW couple to Saskatoon for the convention since it wasn't held in our city at the time. The JW couple stayed in a nice hotel (they were rich) while me and my mother stayed with a JW couple (with 2 kids) that we didn't know. I still remember the youngest child's name, "Jedediah". Personally, I don't think the couple we stayed with liked us very much, but I had fun with the kids.

Room 215

Yep, I remember those conventions, and the caravans of JWs that traveled to and from them with WT magazines on prominent display, usually taped to the rear window. In those days, JWs were regarded much more as part of the radical fringe, and ``Jehovah's feisty warriors" were much more militant and more closely knit, than today's rather bland bunch.

They used to routinely burn up most if not all of their vacation time and budget on these conventions, traveling miles to get there, in attendance for up to 8 days, volunteering to work in food service, cleaning or some other department, only to turn around exhausted, drive back home and back to work for another year.

These days, it's a chore to get the dubbies to attend three days, and closer to home... ``they ain't making 'em like they used to!"

Elsewhere

would put the Watchtower and Awake mags in the back window to show everyone who we were

Lol... yeah... that's definitely more "theocratic" than the signs my sister and I would hold up in the back of the station wagon:

Help! Kidnapped!

Call Police!

I never understood why my parents would get so pissed when they discovered the signs.

Valis

Anyone go to the INTL convention in New Orleans? I think it was 76 or 78 maybe? We stayed in a dorm room, probably and very ironic it was Tulane...*LOL* The Epsicopalians were quite hospitable...*LOL* Funny enough that was a trip I have all kinds of memories of. I had a wooden boat I had bought when we went on the river boat...I loved the fountains and so forth...made for great sailing...and the restuarant w/the waitress served up me spaghetti w/a gigantic meatball in the middle...I remember sitting during the meeting, and coloring in the New Orleans coloring book...*LOL* Oh ya and the two old guys who slept in out dorm room...funny thing, they left all their books there...*LOL* I wonder why...My parents made us hold up books too...sheesh..

Sincerely,

District Overbeer

undercover

Does anyone remember going door to door begging for people(non-JWs) to donate or rent rooms for people traveling into the city for conventions? Then later, all local JWs were encouraged to share extra rooms with out-of-town attendees to the conventions. Then came the hotel/motel lists arranged by the WTS. Staying in a hotel NOT on the list was grieving the holy spirit somehow.

I remember going to the 8 day conventions with the WT and Awake mags in the back window of the car or taped up on the windows of station wagons. I remember some JWs had the tetragrammaton on their back windows, much like people put Ford, Chevy or Harley-Davidson stickers on their trucks now.

Undecided

I remember it well. We usually traveled by twos or sometimes three or more cars in a group. Back then there were two lane roads and to keep up with the one in front we had to learn to pass really well. I got it down to an art.

I met my first wife on the road to NY when we stopped to eat. After we got to the convention I ran into her in Yankee Stadium, what were the odds of that happening. She was from New Mexico at the time.

We saw lots of cars with the mags in the window. I really enjoyed those days, I wouldn't have seen all those places without those conventions. We had a loving family and it was really good to enjoy those days together. I will never forget my dad and mom and those years. Life was so different back in those days in the borg. but you know how I am, just remembering the good times.

Ken P.

Puternut

I remember the eight day conventions. The last one I went to was at Yankee Stadium. Don't remember the year, I was a little fella. All I remember is the billions of people, soup kitchens, rain, people in the hallways sleeping, mothers breast feeding the little ones. And way down below a brother giving a talk, that I could not understand, since the sound system was sucky. The echo and feedback were horrible.

Remember traveling to the conventions

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