Serve by Design

We are celebrating our family role-model, hero, and teaching superstar! Yesterday, the Sherman-Williamsville cusd#15 formally expressed their appreciation to Monique. She has officially retired for the second time! The first was in 2013 after devoting 21 years to teaching at Sherman Elementary School. The second retirement occurred this fall as she wrapped up 12 years of substituting at the same school! Superintendent Tip Reedy assisted by Jenny Brennan, Taylor Payne, and others from the office staff formally recognized Monique’s years of service with a special thank-you note and gift bag at the district office in Williamsville. It was an opportunity to express appreciation and to take a picture of the event that was later posted on the school’s Facebook page. Monique was blessed by all the attention and especially all those who “liked” the post and/or made a comment! Teachers are a combination of natural aptitude and training. Monique has felt her calling to teach since the early ch...

During the last twenty and a half years, we have been blessed with twelve grandchildren. In the early days of our grandparenting, we began to accumulate various toys in one of our extra bedroom closets to stimulate these eager minds. We have cars and trucks, action figures, all sizes of building blocks, bags full of plastic Tinker Toys and containers loaded with every conceivable shape of Legos. Our grands have grown up using their imaginations to create and build things.  Our Proud Builder! Just this past Sunday, we had family over and after lunch they literally were “all over the house!” Some were in the back chilling with their cell phones while others were sprawling all over the family room floor. At least one was cocooned in a sofa blanket as the others relaxed in recliners half-way watching football on the television but mostly they were laughing, chatting about nonsense, but enjoying each other! It was family at its best! Our youngest grandson caught me heading down the ha...

The men’s ministry at Springfield First recently hosted a Saturday morning breakfast with guest speaker and retired Sacred Heart-Griffin Coach, Ken Leonard. Coach Leonard has distinguished himself in the forty-two seasons of his overall career. He has led his teams to 419 wins compared to 81 losses. This makes Coach Leonard the winningest coach in the history of Illinois sports! During his inspirational remarks, Leonard shared a three-step coaching philosophy that he follows, “ Tell your team players what you want. Then, show them what you want. Finally, involve them in practices or exercises that demonstrate what you want.” Involved and All Set! Image: istockphoto.com I grew up with a contrasting model at school that overly emphasized that first step of “tell.” This approach is what I prefer to describe as “Sit still while I instill!” We were expected to stay in our seats! There was no group work or active participation. We didn’t know enough and couldn’t be trusted enough to get u...

During our Texas vacation, I walked in the neighborhood each morning before sunrise. My usual workout at home involves the treadmill and recumbent bicycle. Since summers in the Lone Star State can be brutal, I prefer a somewhat “cooler” walk at 5:30am when the temperature is 80 degrees instead of 107 degrees after lunchtime! Every morning I enjoy meeting several residents walking along with their dogs on a leash. These various sized canines are eager to be outside, sniffing the smells and wagging their tails. Image credit: stock.adobe.com This week,   while driving home from the grocery store, we encountered a different approach to an afternoon stroll. It was something spectacular!   A young preteen was riding his bike uphill through the busy neighborhood intersection. What made this so unusual was that this young guy was also holding the left handlebar grip while gripping a remote control with the same hand. I don’t know how he did it, but he reached across the bars with his ...

In the days of Lent leading up to Easter, many of us may have made some renewed promises related to our spiritual growth. Now, I wonder how we are doing in keeping those promises. It is not easy to follow through when there are so many distractions. Clear, sunny days with warmer temperatures call us to get outdoors where sporting activities, family gatherings, and home projects get in the way of following through. Our progress report card may have various boxes to be checked: weekly church attendance. small group participation, and service in the community. Are we keeping current with daily Bible readings, making time for prayerful reflections, and for those who like to write, journaling our insights? I like to follow the advice of one of my seminary professors years ago who declared, “You haven’t really thought about something until you have written it down.” This adage has kept me thinking and writing! 😉 A Heart for God! Image credit: seekPNG.com This Easter season, our church pas...