Remembering Wanda Wolfe

Thursday's funeral for Wanda was a very hard day for me personally, as well as for many who are part of High Mill. It is hard to say good bye to someone who so faithfully gave her life to serve so many. Wanda was an extraordinary young lady who, for approximately 20 years, was as she put it, "My Armor Bearer." Simply, whenever I was in need of prayer and support, Wanda always seemed to know. With that big smile and outstretched arms, she always seemed to make things better.

Wanda was not without her own pain and struggles, but they never superseded her desire to put someone else first. Somehow, seeing her occupy her favorite seat in church, always seemed to make me more assured that church was going to be great that particular Sunday, because Wanda was there, praying and always playing her tambourine.

As I think back over the years and all the people and experiences that have added to my life, none are more memorable than those which have shaped my destiny and have made me the person that I am today. Wanda was one of those people, and I would not be the person that I am today, if Wanda had not been praying for me.

How can one define "friendship?" For me , I have to go no father than what was modeled to me through Wanda's example of "servant love." The words which come to mind are loyalty, unconditional love, commitment, faithfulness, and encouragement. My office is filled with cards, scriptures, poems, pictures, and other "labors of love," which Wanda blessed me with; often when I needed them the most.

Proverbs 18:24 sums up what a true friend looks like with these words, "There is a friend who sticks closer than a brother." Wanda's love for me and you far superseded what this earthly life could offer, because her love came straight from the throne of God.

Seasons of time will come and go, and soon for most people, Wanda's name will be left for the ages and soon forgotten. But for those of us whose lives were touched, for one brief moment in time by her giving heart and spirit, we will never forget, because we have been forever changed.