Quiet Faithfulness in Kids Ministry
Mona’s Retirement

When I thought about Mona’s retirement this past December, I didn’t picture a big party. There wasn’t an official event or a big program. What came to mind instead was a quiet, steady presence in our church nursery and our twos and threes room that has stretched over more than forty years.

Week after week, Mona showed up. She served babies and toddlers long before I was on staff, and even before I was born. She cared for children in two of our kids’ spaces for over four decades. In some families she has now loved three generations — parents, their children, and even their grandchildren. That kind of consistency is rare. It gave our kids a stable, safe place to land and gave parents confidence that Miss Mona would be there, ready to welcome their little ones.

When I think about those forty-plus years, the word that keeps coming to mind is “faithful.” In the Bible, Moses’ life is often described in three stretches of forty years. We tend to think of him as a giant of the faith, someone larger than life. But in her own quiet way, Mona has lived out that same kind of long obedience. She has dedicated the last forty years to serving families and children, often without attention or fanfare.

Her faithfulness showed up in simple ways. Mona didn’t miss. Yes, she took a vacation here and there or traveled to see her kids, but she wasn’t the kind of volunteer who signed up and then disappeared. Even while supporting her husband as he served on the elder board, managing her home, and being a wife and mother, she kept showing up for our youngest attenders.

One of my favorite memories of Mona makes me smile every time I tell it. Not long after I started working at the church, Pastor Mike had a Sunday when he wasn’t preaching but was still in town. On those rare mornings he always says, “Put me where you need me.” That particular Sunday, Mona needed an assistant in her room, so I put Mike with her. The next week Mona came back to me and said, “Don’t you ever do that again.” She explained that he had the kids all riled up, playing and ignoring the routines she had in place. I loved that she was not afraid to speak honestly, even to the senior pastor. It captured her so well: as soft as goose down, but as strong as a steel wool brush when it came to protecting her kids and her room.

Mona’s ministry hasn’t been limited to Sundays, either. She is part of our Monday prayer group that faithfully prays for the church every week. I know that when I drop in and ask them to pray about something, they will carry it before the Lord. That same steady heart that kept her in the nursery has also kept her on her knees for our church family.

As Mona steps back from this formal role, I am simply thankful. I’m thankful for her ministry, for the way she carried herself, and for the countless children and families who were loved so well by Miss Mona. Her story is a reminder that God often does His deepest work through people who just keep showing up, year after year, with open hands and a faithful heart.

Todd Hixenbaugh
Pastor of Children’s Ministries