HogLeg

I'd like to meet:

Stephen was a good-hearted, good-natured, easy-going man who loved family gatherings in Slidell, Houston, and Shiner. Stephen was a native Houstonian who lived in Slidell, Louisiana since the tender age of 11, further formulating his free-spirited fun-loving demeanor in a Cajun cultural setting. He was a phenominal athlete and obtained a baseball scholarship to St. Petersberg in Florida. Stephen resided in Picayune, Mississippi with his wife and son. Stephen's son was his pride and joy; virtually a spitting image of Stephen.

Stephen was the founder and owner of a successful business which he developed over the course of 12 years. His customers became his friends and bragged of Stephen's caring demeanor, service oriented mindset, and strong work ethic. Stephen had a zest for life and for hanging out just having fun. He had a passion for both professional and college football and absolutely loved the Saints through thick and thin (the Texans were his 2nd team). He liked to talk about the lines, parleys, and wagering with the boys and was always game for a round of Texas Hold 'em. Stephen loved coming to Houston for FeedYard Saloon tailgating and Texans games.

The FeedYard Saloon Four Horsemen Trailer Pit has been dedicated in honor of Stephen and his life. Stephen will be forever in our hearts ... his spirit within us each and every day ... vivid memories of Stephen with us each tailgate. Proceeds from the FeedYard Saloon will be used to establish a 529 College Fund for Stephen's son.

From early times Saint Stephen was venerated as patron of horses. A poem of the tenth century pictures him as the owner of a horse and dramatically relates how Christ Himself miraculously cured the animal for His beloved Disciple.

It was a general practice among the farmers in Europe to decorate their horses on Stephen's Day, and bring them to the house of God to be blessed by the priest and afterward ridden three times around the church, a custom still observed in many rural sections. Later in the day the whole family takes a ride in a wagon or sleigh (Saint Stephen's ride). The "Staffan Riders" parade through the towns of Sweden on December 26, singing their ancient carols in honor of the "Saint of Horses."

Horses' food, mostly hay and oats, is blessed on Stephen's Day. Inspired by pre-Christmas fertility rites, people threw kernels of these blessed oats at one another and at their domestic animals. In sections of Poland they even toss oats at the priest after Mass.

In the past centuries water and salt were blessed on this day and kept by farmers to be fed to their horses in case of sickness. Women also baked special breads in the form of horseshoes which were eaten on December 26.

USEFUL LINKS:

http://www.feedyardsaloon.com
http://www.catholic.org/politics/
http://www.catholicvote.com/
http://prayers.viarosa.com/
http://www.theinterviewwithgod.com/viewmovie.html
http://www.ewtn.com/Devotionals/prayers/index.htm
http://www.houstontexans.com/
http://www.medjugorje.org/rosary.htm
http://houston.astros.mlb.com
http://www.justcatholic.com/
http://www.americancatholic.org
http://houston.citysearch.com
http://traffic.houstontranstar.org
http://www.webmd.com

"The most beautiful credo is that which comes from your lips in darkness, in sacrifice, in pain, in surpreme effort of an unbending will for good. It is this which like a strong bolt of lightning penetrates the darkness of the soul; it is this which in a flash of the tempest lifts you and leads you to God." ~ St. Padre Pio of Pietrelcina 1887-1968