Raise your hand if you think fraternities and sororities are only about drinking, hazing, and partying. Yes, I see you out there, yes, I see that hand. Once I would have raised mine too, until I learned about Intervarsity Christian Fellowship from my young friend Dusty Harrison. As a child, when Dusty showed up at my sister’s house in Winston-Salem, or in the church they both called home, I thought, what a cute kid, he’ll break hearts one day.  As Dusty has grown and matured he’s become more than the cute kid in the neighborhood, he’s working on college campuses to make a difference. Read More→

There’s a bigger ice cream buffet in heaven. Our Pastor Emeritus, Dr. Clint Richardson was called into the immediate presence of God Sunday afternoon, April 30th. Clint and my late husband, Bill were huge ice cream lovers. The bigger and more ridiculous the sundae was all the better to them.  Now I wish I had pictures of the two of them at some of our ice cream buffets. Read More→

As schools everywhere approach their summer break I reminisce about the faith of my first grade teacher. Early in my school career, I was inflicted with school phobia.  The first day of first grade at Calvin H. Wiley Elementary in Winston-Salem, NC was polio vaccine day.  Steam rose from the cement as the line of children snaked into the entrance of the elementary school auditorium.  Read More→

The school bus carried 45 noisy elementary children on a field trip while Nana (that’s me) chaperoned. Machines polished splinters from freshly cut lumber. A leaf blower sounded through the neighborhood. Read More→

Thirty-eight years ago I followed Steve Massey across the border of North Carolina into his home state of South Carolina. I knew with certainty that God wanted me here.  I’ve had an abundance of blessings. In my sixty-four years I have been surrounded by six church families. I don’t like the term denomination, that label should only belong to money. Read More→

As a very young child, Easter meant: baby chicks, patent leather shoes, an Easter basket and lots of candy. If you’ve been a subscriber to my site you know that I grew up in the small Protestant denomination called Moravian in Winston-Salem at Calvary Moravian Church.  My sister, our parents, and our grandparents were active in the church and even more during the Lenten season. Lent is a period of forty days, not including Sundays, when we reflect upon the journey of Christ to the cross. Read More→

Despite all the funny escapades and gifts of irreverence the Calvary Bunch gave to our church, we grew up with strong faith foundations. I have twenty-six years of Moravian Christmas memories. Five denominations later, I still recall those traditional Christmases. Read More→

St. John’s Lutheran Church

Walhalla, South Carolina

February 2, 1996

The words of the following eulogy are from Stephen Massey’s wife Ann. At the end of her

comments the family’s close friend Luther Gaillard shares his thoughts:

Steve Massey has fought a war with his body since March 19, 1985 when he was

diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. Two years before that time we knew something

was wrong within his body. Even though his mind was clear and quick, his body did not have

the same strength. Steve loved walking in the woods, campfires and hunting deer and

bear. He was the comic of the Commercial Marketing Department in Greenville. He

was a dedicated employee who, at one point, came in first on the Duke Power system

in a competitive marketing campaign. Read More→

As Steve debilitated further he became bedridden.  Lack of mobility enhanced blood clot production in his body. One of the clots passed through his lungs.  He lingered between life and death in the hospital for thirty-six hours before his condition stabilized. Read More→

The onset of a chronic disease tears at the fiber of a family.  Steve had always been the principal breadwinner. We were forced to trade places, and I wasn’t prepared to enter the corporate world. Before marriage, I had dropped out of three colleges.  Steve’s salary was sufficient for me to stay home with our children. Now, the hard boot of MS was kicking me back to school. Read More→