DATE: Sunday, June 29, 1997                 TAG: 9706290105

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B1   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY DIANE WASHINGTON, STAFF WRITER 

DATELINE: NORFOLK                           LENGTH:   60 lines

75TH REUNION IN A ROW BRINGS FAMILY ``HOME''

- JOHN BAYNES JR., REUNION COORDINATOR

``It's about love, unity and family commitment,'' Scotty Randolph, of Athens, Ga., said Saturday as he joined kin for his family's annual reunion - its 75th in a row.

The Tanner-Young-Yarbrough family gathered in Norfolk this year in honor of Lawson Tanner, the family's oldest known ancestor, who was born into slavery in 1830 near Belmont, Ga. Tanner moved to Norfolk around 1917 and began the reunion as an annual Christmas dinner held in Gainesville, Ga.

``I remember my grandfather getting ready for the reunions,'' said Odessa Young. ``I must have been around 13 or so and all we had were trees in the front yard. We would rotate each year from house to house. And Granddaddy built chairs for folks to sit on in the yard from sugar cane, one by one,'' Young said with a smile. ``It was nothing fancy like today.''

The Tanners and Youngs became relatives with the second generation of Tanners. The Yarbroughs joined the family with the first generation of Youngs.

The three families later decided to expand the one-day celebration, turning it into a weekend fete over the fourth weekend in June.

``In the 1960s we knew that one day a year just wasn't enough,'' Young said. ``It's the beauty of togetherness, and love and the benefits from both that we have had. The Lord has let me live this long and I can see the fifth generation,'' she said. ``That's important.''

John Baynes Jr., the family reunion coordinator for Virginia Beach, said the reunions are an important aspect of remembering the family's history.

``We have never missed a year,'' Baynes said. ``We're proud of that. It's the basis of sustaining our heritage.''

Although the family reunites faithfully, the number of participants has had its up and downs. ``Everybody can't always make it,'' Odessa Young said.

The family history committee started moving the reunion to different cities to keep family interest, organizers said. This year the reunion drew a crowd of about 150 relatives.

``We saw a decline in participation about seven years ago,'' Mildred Young Brown said. ``We decided to try something different and it regenerated a whole new feeling. It seemed like people came out the woodwork.''

Family members traveled from as far as California and New York to attend. Young said that for many, having the reunion in Norfolk was a homecoming.

``I've only visited Virginia once before,'' Young said. ``But our family tree starts us here and I feel like we've been here before through his (Tanner's) spirit.''

While in Norfolk the families visited the Norfolk Naval Base and other tourist attractions.

This year's reunion theme, ``The things that build strong families: heritage, unity, and love,'' was delivered by Wanda Baynes, who lives in Cleveland.

``If families aren't strong, the country's not strong,'' she said. ``Strong family is the basis of civilization.''

Although the Tanner-Young-Yarbrough reunion has changed in many ways, one thing about the annual celebration remained the same.

``One thing that never changed in all those years is fun,'' John Baynes Jr. said. ``We've always managed to have fun.''

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