Phil Ayers was a Hometown Hero! He was honored in the South Whidbey Record in October 2011. In that article I was quoted as saying, “Everything that Phil does is under the radar. He quietly and humbly serves the most vulnerable in our community.” He was an active member of our visitation team. Phil would take care of shut-ins, drive them to doctor appointments, run errands, get their mail, call them on the phone, and do chores for them. He did all of this— not for money— but as a part of his baptismal ministry, as a follower of Jesus Christ.
Phil and Amy were married on June 10th, 1967 at Bethel Evangelical Free Church in Appleton, Minnesota. For the past 15 years, they have occupied their assigned seats in the back row, (next to the choir) every Sunday morning at the 8:00 service. Amy was married to a Hometown Hero. And as she cared for Phil the past couple of years, as he slipped further and further into dementia, she became a TLC Hero. Amy is a wonderful example for all of us. She is a woman of faith who took her marriage vows to heart and cared for Phil in sickness and in health.
This Thursday, June the 9th at 1:00, we will gather at TLC to give thanks for the life, faith, and service of Phil Ayers. Join us if you can and say a prayer of thanksgiving to the God who shared this dear man with us. Also say a prayer for Amy as she spends the final day of their 49th year of marriage saying goodbye to her beloved husband.
Speaking of Hometown Heroes, there would be no Hometown Heroes without Susan Knickerbocker. This ray of sunshine, in a sometimes dark world, has been Susan’s gift and passion for decades. Susan has lifted up our Whidbey Island neighbors, profiling them as Hometown Heroes. In the process she has lifted up the rest of us. Our lives and our community are better and richer because of Susan’s labor of love.
Again I would like to express my deep appreciation to all of you for your ministries, in your place, in your families, and in a world that desperately needs the tender touch of the followers of Jesus Christ.
Love, Pastor Jim
