Maybe you’ve seen Sylvia around in the past, but if you’re relatively new to Crown of Life, you probably haven’t seen too much of her lately. Last year Sylvia moved out of her long time home in Eagan and moved into The Commons on Marice, a Community of Senior Living. She says, “this was something that was one of the better decisions I have ever made in my life.” her husband passed away in 2015. Moving to The Commons has opened Sylvia’s eyes to different ways she can serve the Lord and make an impact in people’s lives. That’s something she has been doing for many years.
Sylvia graduated with a B.A. in Elementary Education with a minor in music from California State University in Northridge. She was a TWA Air Hostess and a NWA Flight Attendant for many years, but remained involved in education as a substitute teacher. In 1973 she founded Tiny Tots and Little Tykes Pre-School and Child Care Center in her home. It was later housed in area churches, and for 21 years it was housed at St. Croix Lutheran in West St. Paul. Two years ago, the program was able to buy their own building across from Lowes in West St. Paul. For many years she poured her heart and soul into the children and families that came through Tiny Tots. In 2017 she officially retired from the Presidency of the Tiny Tots Board of Directors and now is an Honorary Lifetime Member of that board. Her many years of service there remain in her heart. Concerning those years she says, “Two of the greatest joys are seeing the former students return with their children to enroll in the program and also to see some of the children grow up and go to college and come back to teach at Tiny Tots. That just melts my heart and fills it with absolute joy. It makes it all worthwhile. Never would I have dreamt.”
Even though she has moved into The Commons and is retired, Sylvia’s heart for the Lord hasn’t slowed down. A year after she moved into The Commons, she heard they needed a local church to lead a Worship Service. Sylvia knew her pastors would be up for the task, but one hurdle remained…Who would play music for the weekly services? Sylvia thought to herself, “I have had more time to practice the piano since I moved here.” So… that’s exactly what she did. In her own words, “I practiced my little fingers off!” Now she plays piano for the weekly Tuesday service at The Commons and our three pastors from Crown of Life rotate leading the services. But that’s not all she does. She also volunteers and leads a Sunday afternoon Hymn Sing and Bible Story up on 4th floor in Memory Care at The Commons. “It’s probably the happiest hour of my week! I absolutely love these folks! In addition, I am currently playing piano and leading a 6 week Christmas Carol Sing-along on Thursday afternoons for The Commons residents. The group is really growing each week.”Sylvia is a great example of someone who has had many changes take place in the past several years, and yet has found different ways to serve the Lord. She never would have guessed the Lord had such amazing plans for her as she moved into The Commons last year. “I began praying each night, right away after I moved in, before I fell asleep…Dear Lord, Thank you for letting me live here. Make me a blessing each day to people’s lives here and help me try to stay well, myself! I just didn’t know what God had in store for me. I’ve learned in my old age, to trust in God’s plan and to have faith for what He wants us to do. I think, for me, the biggest lesson I have learned is that He has a plan for your time and your talents….even when you’re hardly aware of it yourself! I love Proverbs 16:9, ‘In His heart, a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps.’”
This team effort begins with pastors recording, staff coordinating, translating, duplicating, address and mailing cassettes. If a braille translation is requested, one volunteer (visually impaired) is dictated the material, types the translation into a computer which is then sent to a special printer that prints in braille. The stack of 
Pluralists also tend to claim that each religion sees only part of reality. The metaphor some Pluralists use to describe the different religions trying to grasp reality is the metaphor of a group of blind men feeling the different parts of an elephant. Each one describes it differently because each one is feeling a different part of the elephant. That’s what many Pluralists will claim about all the different religions. Each religion has only a partial grasp of the entire spiritual picture. The issue with this, however, is that the Pluralist is claiming to have the vision to see the entire picture of spiritual reality.
A great deal of my time in Mahahual was spent interviewing members of the church, many in their native Spanish. Working with Pastor to translate my questions, we asked them to share their story of faith. While I have some understanding of Spanish, I’m far from fluent. However, their physical responses bridged the language barrier in a way that mere words could not. Unbridled joy shown on their faces and through their body language as they spoke about the power of the Gospel coming into their lives. As someone blessed to be raised in a Christian household from birth, “hearing” this testimony was rare, raw and inspiring.
Sunday morning comes and Iglesia Cruz de Cristo is abuzz with activity. Children set up chairs. Volunteers from the States make new acquaintances. Kids pour in from the vans outside. The service begins and songs of praise echo into “Casitas” or “little houses” neighborhood where the church resides. Yallo, a man with a weathered face and eyes of deep compassion, stands to read a scripture lesson, sharing the Word with his fellow Mexicans. This is critical. The mission, built by the tireless efforts of Jerry Zimpelmann and countless volunteers, now needs the people it serves to take ownership, to make it their church, to spread the joy they’ve found whenever they go. Watching Yallo as he read, face beaming with pride, there is no doubt strong roots are taking hold.
Every year Darrell spends countless hours cultivating this massive garden. Why? It’s a passion. “Gardening for me is a good form of exercise. It brings me back to the basics of planting seeds and taking care of the new plants. Each seed or plant is like a little miracle.” The produce also gets put to good use. Darrell says, “A good amount of the garden produce is given to the food shelf in Crown of Life’s name. Of course, family, friends and neighbors also get to enjoy the blessings of the garden.” Darrell has made a name for himself at The Open Door, a food shelf dedicated to offering healthy food options to those in need. Several times/year The Open Door sends a thank you card to the members of Crown of Life for the donations of fresh produce.
