Volunteer Spotlight: Mike and Leda

edited by Ruth Hummel

This month’s spotlight focuses on Mike and Leda Owens. Mike is a volunteer for the Education Department and Leda is a volunteer in the gift shop. I want to thank Mike for enlightening us and sharing the interesting highlights of his life with Leda.

Meet Mike and Leda

Georgia has been my home since 2015, right after I met a beautiful lady from Lilburn. I was a widower living in Baton Rouge, Louisiana at the time when I met Leda while online. It was love at first sight, so I quit my job, packed up a U-Haul, and moved to the Atlanta area. For a year and a half, I was committed to convincing Leda to accept my serious proposal for matrimony, and fortunately for me, she accepted. Once we both retired, we began looking for ways to stay active and volunteering seemed to be the logical choice. How we ever concluded to volunteer at the Southeastern Railway Museum, neither my wife nor I could remember. We made an appointment with Sue in the summer of 2017 to come in for an interview. My wife, Leda, fit right in with the gift shop and she truly enjoys her work there. I started working with James in the education department and began helping with the Second Thursday program with the preschoolers. I have enjoyed every minute of it.

Besides the museum, Leda and I have been involved with the drama programs at the Bethesda Senior Center, leading the Gwinnett Silver Players Drama Club as well as being the Director of the More or Less Players at the Roswell Adult Recreation Center. We belong to the Lilburn Business Association. Leda is also very active with the Lilburn Arts Alliance. Since coming to Georgia, I became a member of the Scribblers Christian Writer’s Club and have published two books for young adult boys. Leda and I have collaborated on a third book called, The I Hate Vegetables Book of Poetry for Kids. I continue to write and hope to have another book published by Christmas.

For the last two years, Leda and I have entertained children and adults as Santa and Mrs. Claus at home visits, malls and special events as, well as participating in all the Breakfast and Lunch with Santa and Mrs. Claus events for the Southeastern Railway Museum this past holiday
season.

One activity Leda and I especially enjoy is square dancing, which we do 4-6 times a month. We serve as treasurers for the Silver Stars Square Dance Club. In our spare time, we have funwith our two poodles, Hershey and Rudy, and our Great Dane, Ella. We also enjoy participating in activities at our church, Parkview.