I grew up the second of four children, with an older sister and a younger brother and sister. During the first three years of my life our home was the parsonage of a country church near Hanford, CA, surrounded by the fertile farmlands of the San Joaquin Valley.
During my elementary and middle school years, we lived in Fresno, where my dad pastored the Evangelical Free Church. When I was 16, we moved to Fremont, CA, where I later graduated from high school in 1972.
I wanted to go to a Christian college with a strong nursing program and a good choir. Biola fit the bill. The nursing program was excellent and I especially enjoyed my two years of singing in the Biola Chorale. That's where I met an interesting, ministry-minded young man named Chuck.
Chuck and I were friends for three years during college and then just before our senior year, our relation began to deepen. We graduated and were married the next June.
We moved to Ft. Worth, TX, where Chuck attended Southwestern Seminary and I worked as an RN at All Saints Episcopal Hospital. The next year we moved to Arlington, TX, Chuck transferred to Dallas Seminary and I worked at Grand Prairie Convalescent Center and later for Home Health Services of Tarrant County.
During those seminary years, we were also part of a wonderful church in Arlington - Pantego Bible Church - where Chuck served as Jr. High Director. We enjoyed this ministry with a great volunteer staff team and about 200 junior highers.
In 1980, Chuck graduated from seminary and our first son, Peter, was born. A few months later, we moved to Corvallis, OR where Chuck became the Youth Pastor at First Baptist Church. I changed careers and became a full-time mom for Peter, followed by Scotty in 1982, Phillip in 1983 and Karen in 1985.
In 1984, we moved to Salem where Chuck accepted the pastorate at Kingwood Bible Church. We have such fond memories of the dear people at Corvallis First Baptist and at Kingwood. As it turned out, the Lord led us back to First Baptist, where Chuck became Senior Pastor in 1988.
Besides raising our kids, I watched other children in our home and taught Sunday School for 2 and 3 year olds. I helped with Women's Ministries at church and sometimes sang solos, which were wonderfully enhanced by Chuck's piano accompaniment. One project that I enjoyed during those years was writing a children's Christmas musical, which was performed by the Sunshine Singers children's choir.
Many changes occurred for our family in 1993-1994. We moved about 10 miles west to Philomath. I went back to school for a 9-week nursing refresher course. Chuck resigned from the pastorate at First Baptist and founded Bridge Builders International. I went to work as a private duty nurse in a public school classroom, caring for a dear little girl with severe disabilities.
In recent years I have enjoyed serving on the Board of Love In the Name of Christ (Love INC) of Benton County, which links volunteers from about 30 local churches with people in need in the community.
Some places and experiences that are highlighted in my memory are:
Mount Hermon Christian Conference Center - where I went to camp every summer while growing up and served on staff one summer during college.
The Appalachian Mountains of Kentucky - where I volunteered one summer, assisting two amazing career missionary women.
A Family Road Trip around the U.S. - including Yellowstone, Mt. Rushmore, Niagara Falls, Washington DC, the '96 Olympics in Atlanta, Disneyworld, and an Oakland A's game.
A Family Christmas in Hawaii - staying with friends and family in their island paradise.
Extended Family Reunions - re-uniting with about 80 wonderful aunts, uncles and cousins every three years in Oklahoma, Colorado, Arizona, California or Oregon.
Mexico Mission Trips - cooking for Peter and his HUB youth group as they built houses for impoverished families in Tijuana.
25th Anniversary in Europe - a beautiful trip following one of Chuck's stays in Latvia, including a delightful time with friends in a storybook village in the Swiss Alps.
Over the years I wrote several articles that were published in The Christian Leader, Teachers in Focus and in a Mennonite devotional book called Rejoice. Since 1998, I have also done some writing as part of the Bridge Builders staff. Through Bridge Builders, I received training in writing and submitting grant proposals, which is one of my main responsibilities with BBI at this time.
I'm grateful for each season of life and I know that God has something of purpose for us to do each day that we are on this earth - even if it's a smile, a small act of kindness or a word of encouragement. Sometimes these little things can be used by God to make a real difference in another person's life. I know because I have often been on the receiving end of another person's kindness.
Last revised January, 2005
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