By Julie Overholt
Hi ladies! Cabin fever yet?! ;) While
you have some extra time inside these days, I hope you enjoy reading another
interview from a fellow sister in Christ at SGC! I enjoyed sharing a warm drink
with Karen last week as I listened to her answers, and even felt like a
journalist with my pen quickly jotting notes as she spoke. It’s the little
things… :)
Karen Marvel and her husband Bill have
been attending Sugar Grove for the past 7-8 years. They made the decision to
begin looking for a new church after attending a very small church that wasn’t
experiencing much growth and had very little children’s ministry opportunities, which is one of Karen's passions. Their daughter Tammy and her family were already
attending Sugar Grove, and Bill and Karen found a new church home alongside of
them.
Karen recently resigned after serving on the WoW (Women of Worth) leadership team for the
past 3 years. (Karen, we thank you for all you have done to help provide
fellowship and community for the ladies at SGC!) She has also been serving at
the check-in kiosks for children’s ministry on Sunday morning and has been
supportive of her husband Bill as he has served as an elder. Karen is currently
co-leading the Monday night women’s Bible Study, and is also working with Pastor Matt as the Pre-K director for the children’s ministry department.
Karen grew up in Elkhart and attended
the same church as Bill when they were kids. Bill had several years where he
walked away from God and church, and it was during this time of absence that
Karen became good friends with his sister, who eventually introduced Karen to
Bill when she was 15 years old – a sophomore at the time, and Bill a senior.
Karen recalled the first time she saw Bill in church and commented to his
sister that there was a new, cute guy attending that day. It took a minute for
Bill’s sister to locate the person Karen was referring to before she said, “That’s my
brother!” :)
Bill was pretty shy and Karen remembers that at first he interrupted telephone
conversations between Karen and his sister as a way to talk to Karen.
They became high school sweethearts, marrying right out of high school, and on
February 16th will be celebrating 40 years of marriage! “My husband
is simply amazing, he really is," Karen told me with a contended sigh. “We have
learned it is so important to really make time for each other, which keeps our
marriage strong. We also really balance each other out very well.” Karen says
she has been asked if she regrets marrying young,
and her response has always been, “When you find the best, why keep looking?!”
When I asked Karen about her children and
grandchildren, she smiled and said she often wonders how to
answer that question. Something you may not know about Karen is that she and
her husband Bill have spent many years involved in foster care and still claim
quite a few as their own! They have two biological daughters, Tammy - who
attends SGC with her husband Aaron and their five children, and Missy – she and
her husband have two children. They also have one adopted daughter, Candy, who is married and
has three children. Their grandchildren range in age from 1 month old to 18
years of age. Bill and Karen have also fostered 24 children, including being
the full-time house parents at the Baptist Children’s Home for five years.
There were ten children at the home and they ended up taking five of them into
their own home to finish raising them. Karen told me with tears in her eyes,
“Tammy and Missy were 17 and 15 years old when we went to work at the
children’s home. They were ALWAYS so supportive – calling them siblings to this
day – and so loving. We are so blessed to have them as our daughters.” There
are eight of those they fostered that they are still in contact with and call
“their own.” “It has been such a blessing to be a part of so many kids’ lives
over the years. The majority of our foster kids accepted Christ, some went on
to attend college, and one is getting ready to go with her family on the
mission field! Our two daughters were only 17 months apart, and I remember
thinking that the baby and toddler stages would never end. But, they really do
go so fast…my encouragement for young mothers is to hang in there! It will
end.”
Karen has also been in the teaching
profession for 32 years. She has taught from preschool through first grade, including 10 years as a
Pre-K director. She is currently in her fourth year as the preschool teacher at
Clinton Christian School. “My passion is
definitely teaching. I have always said even if I wouldn’t get paid to teach, I
would still do it. I love it that much.” Karen said she is grateful still for
the friend that first voiced to her the gift for children’s ministry that she
saw in Karen, a defining moment in Karen's life. “Bill’s parents moved to the
Arizona climate for health reasons during our seventh year of marriage. We
moved down there as well, living there for seven years. I became good friends
with the pastor’s wife and worked as a teachers aide in her classroom. She was
the one who saw the gift in me and encouraged me to pursue it.” Children bring
the most laughter into Karen’s life as well. “People have told me I need to
write a book someday with all the stories I’ve accumulated!”
Karen was raised in a Christian home,
both of her parents being first-generation Christians. “A godly heritage began
all because a neighbor invited my parents and their four little children to
church!” She herself accepted Christ into her life at 5 years of age while
attending the neighborhood Child Evangelism 5- Day Club. Later, at age 15, she
confirmed her commitment to God while at a church youth conference. “I realized
at that time that not only had He died for my sins, but I understood the
importance of, and wanted Him to be the Lord of my life.”
When I asked Karen if
she has any verses that are particularly meaningful to her, she mentioned that
she has always struggled with anxiety. “I tend to take on the world’s problems.
I care so much for people, and it was a good reminder for me while going through
the discipleship class at church to hear that we do have a part, but God also
does His part, and others need to do their part as well. I’m not responsible for
their part. I remember my sister (a
mentor of mine) telling me once, 'I’m so glad my God is bigger than you.' It
was so good for me to hear. God continues to work on that area in my life and
I’m thankful for these verses that remind me to trust His direction and that He
will never leave me!”
Isaiah 43:5 Do not be afraid, for I am
with you; I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the
west.
Philippians 4:13 I can do everything
through Him who gives me strength.
Joshua 1:9 Have I not commanded you? Be
strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord
your God will be with you wherever you go.
Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord with
all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways
acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.
In her free time Karen enjoys reading
and spending time with her grandchildren. “Getting to be a mother and
grandmother is what I love most about being a woman. Seeing them walking in
Truth and growing is so rewarding!” Karen also enjoys celebrations! “I love all
of the holidays, birthdays included, and probably go overboard to celebrate! My
own mother enjoyed doing the same. I also celebrate back-to-school, and have
always written a note and sent a gift anytime my grandchildren go off to camp
as well. There’s always a reason to
celebrate.”
Three words that describe me:
Compassionate, merciful to a fault, and anxious.
Outgoing or shy? Naturally shy, but God
has put me into positions that have encouraged me to open up.
Coffee or tea? Tea
Tomboy or princess? Somewhere in the
middle
Oceanside or mountainside? Oceanside. I
LOVE the water. I’ve always said I should have been a mermaid!
Perfect meal/favorite food? For special
occasions Bill and I love going to Eddy’s Steakhouse in Granger.
Worst food ever? Fish. (bad aftertaste
for me!)
Morning person or night owl? Definitely
night owl. Bill is the morning person, so when the grandkids spend the night I
stay up late with them and sleep in while Bill gets up and makes them
breakfast.
I’d love to travel to: The Bahamas – or
somewhere tropical. (I actually don’t like to travel – it’s really out of my
comfort zone!)
Listen, read, or watch to learn? Watch.
I’m a very visual learner.
A favorite Bible character? David. A
man after God’s own heart. His life is a good reminder that even bad choices
can lead to repentance and a restored relationship. God looks at the heart.
3 Things that bring peace to your life
and/or help you relax? Reading, my toes in the warm sand at the beach, and
being by water.
Thank you so much, Karen, for your
service at SGC and for sharing your heart with us!
