September 22, 2025 • 18 mins
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hello Hope Podcast listeners.
We live in a fast-paced worldwhere new material and ideas are
thrown at you 24-7.
Some of you told us this andsaid I want to listen to
everything, but it's hard tocatch up.
Well, we're here to help.
We desire to be a place that isgrateful for and respectful of
your precious time, and so toserve you best, we will every so
often be resharing pastepisodes that we call Second
(00:22):
Listen, because we think theyare worth taking a second to
replay.
Even if you are an every weeklistener, we think having a
second listen to these episodeswill make an impact on your
weekend life, and if you haveheard this one but are behind on
new episodes, now is a greattime to catch up on any others
you have missed.
Thank you, and here we go.
Speaker 2 (00:43):
Welcome to the Meet Hope podcast, where we have
conversations about faith andhope.
Hope is one church made ofpeople living out their faith
through two expressions inperson and online.
We believe a hybrid faithexperience can lead to a growing
influence in our community andour world for the sake of others
.
Welcome to Hope in our worldfor the sake of others Welcome
(01:06):
to Hope.
Speaker 3 (01:09):
Hey, welcome everyone .
Thanks for listening to anotherepisode of the Meet Hope
podcast.
I'm Rick, one of the pastors atHope, and today we have an
interview with Bill and KellyWalenda.
Welcome, hi.
Hello, thank you so much forbeing here with us, and you guys
know that this is part of atwo-episode segment where we're
(01:29):
going to be looking at theworship plus two and really
focusing on the plus twos, andso this episode is about
volunteerism, and next episodewill be about small groups, and
so, before we begin, though, Iwant to ask both of you to just
share a little bit aboutyourselves, like you know, about
how long you've been married,about your family, maybe what
(01:50):
you do for a living, things likethat.
So who wants to go first?
Speaker 4 (01:53):
You guys going to arm wrestle or just no, no, I'm
going to enjoy letting Bill gofirst.
Speaker 5 (01:56):
Oh great.
Okay, so I'm Bill Walenda.
I own two the Little Gymfranchises, so gymnastics and
fitness classes for kids.
We've been coming to Hope forabout 17 to 18 years and we've
been married since 1991, throughthe math but we've been
(02:20):
together since 1983 in highschool, so almost 40 years.
So it'll be 40 years in October.
Speaker 3 (02:26):
Now you told me earlier a little bit of
information about how you guysfirst met.
Speaker 5 (02:32):
Correct.
We met when we were two yearsold.
Our parents played on, our dadsplayed on the same softball
team, and so we.
They came to a barbecue at myhouse and then we went to high
school together after that.
Speaker 3 (02:44):
So it was love at first sight.
At two years old it was.
Speaker 5 (02:46):
It was.
Speaker 4 (02:47):
It was.
Speaker 5 (02:48):
She was about the same size.
Speaker 4 (02:51):
Oh, wow.
And now it's a free for all.
And we do have three kids, allgrown Our youngest is finishing
up college and they've all beenhere to Hope and involved in one
way or another.
And so we've had thoseexperiences as parents of
children involved in the HopeYouth Ministry.
And I am personally, by way ofwork I'm an attorney, I work at
(03:13):
one of our larger health systemsand I also oversee our privacy
program.
Speaker 3 (03:17):
Great, okay, thanks for sharing that.
So how did you guys first startattending Hope?
Speaker 4 (03:22):
So we've told this story at various meetings and
the short of it is dear friendsof ours had come here to the
family Christmas service andthey knew that we were a bit
disenfranchised with where wehad been going and they said
you've got to go, and so wewaited till the next Christmas
and we went to that familyservice.
Took it very literally andthat's what prompted us and just
(03:46):
thoroughly enjoyed it.
Kids enjoyed it, we enjoyed itand we couldn't say enough
things about it.
And then I said well, let's seewhat hope is like when it's not
Christmas, and here we are.
Speaker 3 (03:57):
So this is an aside, but this is so.
So this is an example of invite.
So you can invite someone andit takes a year, it might,
before they will choose to takeyou up on that invitation.
That's good to know.
Speaker 4 (04:09):
But I'm glad we did.
Speaker 3 (04:10):
I'll have you back for that interview.
We'll talk about invitation.
So you started attending about17, 18 years ago.
When did you first startvolunteering at Hope?
Speaker 4 (04:21):
So I was probably the first one to volunteer the two
of us, I can't remember exactlywhen, but it was some years in,
as we were working and had kidsand built out of town a lot.
I do specifically rememberPastor Jeff's assistant, Joanne
at the time so we were comingfrequently enough recognized me
and just walked up to me andasked if I'd be interested in
(04:41):
volunteering once a month at thelobby as a lobby greeter.
Speaker 3 (04:43):
So you joined.
That was your first volunteerrole was a lobby greeter on a.
Sunday morning Once a month.
Once a month is how I started.
Okay, all right.
And Bill, how about you?
When did you first volunteer?
Speaker 5 (04:54):
It was probably a couple of years after that and
my first experience volunteeringwas when we used to do the
craft fair here and sponsored bythe men's group, and I was
asked to to volunteer.
We got here at six, 30 in themorning.
We were unloading cars and forfor the crafty people and
(05:17):
setting up their booths and theywere so, so, very just
impressed and thankful for allthe help.
So I kept doing it.
Speaker 3 (05:26):
Right, okay, so that was a kind of a once a year or
twice a year commitment.
When did you move to a likemore of a regular volunteering
role?
Speaker 5 (05:34):
So probably around eight, eight years ago or so, I
kind of felt the calling to towork food pantry and I knew we
had one.
So I contacted Tracy Davis whowas running it at the time.
We operated out of a littlestorage closet in the back.
We were serving about 40families a month and I said, hey
(05:56):
, I want to get involved in this.
So that's where I startedshopping and ordering the food
and accepting the deliveries andthings like that.
Speaker 3 (06:05):
Right, that's right.
And so then that was abouteight years ago.
You said Correct.
And then, around 2017, ourchurch here at Hope, we decided
to launch a second campus.
I know you guys remember that,but we launched that around the
end of 2017 into 20, I think itwas the end of 2017, 2018, 20.
(06:26):
At any rate, you guys were apart of that.
How did that happen?
Speaker 5 (06:29):
Well, Well, as you certainly know, Rick, you are
the king of volunteerism.
Speaker 4 (06:40):
So you asked me but Kelly go ahead.
Vicki came up to me.
Speaker 5 (06:46):
Vicki.
Speaker 4 (06:46):
Cruz, vicki Cruz, and she was then also on staff and
said you've heard that we'removing, or starting, rather, a
satellite campus in Mount Laurel.
Would you be willing to servethere as well?
And I said how often?
What do you need?
And that's when she said asoften as you can, and would you
be willing to be regularattenders, which is different
(07:08):
than right volunteering, asyou're pointing out.
So I said that soundsinteresting.
Well, let me go home and talkto Bill, which I then did do,
because Bill cannot explain howwe decided.
Speaker 5 (07:18):
So we live about two minutes from here and I thought,
sure we're going to get up atsix in the morning and go all
the way to Mount Laurel, set upand go to service and then clean
up and be back at noon.
Sure honey, that'd be great.
Speaker 4 (07:38):
But we were at a place, so for a lot of people
listening, they have young kids.
Our kids were older now and notcoming every Sunday and we had
the luxury and flexibility to dothat and off we went.
We started meeting you thereSunday morning.
Speaker 3 (07:49):
Yeah, yeah, and it was a fun time, wasn't it?
It was amazing Actually love it, miss it sometimes Fun time,
wasn't it?
Speaker 4 (07:52):
It was amazing Actually love it, miss it
sometimes.
Speaker 3 (07:53):
Yeah, so how did it so?
That experience really, I think, elevated your volunteer
experience, wouldn't you sayAbsolutely.
And so you moved from not onlyserving on a monthly basis in
the lobby, kelly, you wereserving then weekly setting up
on a regular basis as well, on asetup team, and Bill, you took
(08:14):
on the role of being a monthlyteam leader, right, and then you
also because we give outmultiple roles back then you
were doing, what other thingswere you doing?
Speaker 5 (08:24):
So I started as just a volunteer, you know, setting
up and cleaning up and thenmoved to a team leader.
So I was in charge of all thesetup and cleanup, where
everything went, how to set itup, and then after that I was
kind of dragged into the techbooth, which was super new for
me and a little scary, but I washappy to do it.
(08:45):
We needed the help and so I ranthe sound system.
I learned how to run the lightsNever actually did that in a
service, but I could and then Iwas asked to host, which for me
was a big stretch.
Speaker 3 (09:00):
And by hosting you mean up in front of everybody.
Speaker 5 (09:02):
On the stage leading, welcoming everybody that's the
easy part.
Saying the prayer for everybodyFor me, that's a big hard part
for me.
That really took me out of mycomfort zone.
And making the announcements.
Speaker 3 (09:17):
That's great and so that.
So I'm going to go back toKelly for a second.
So, kelly, tell us.
So how did your experience atMount Laurel lead to the next
step?
How did you start volunteering?
What's the newest area you'revolunteering?
Speaker 4 (09:33):
So the newest place I'm volunteering is on our lead
team and you know that'sobviously a big part of that is
Pastor Jeff and looking at thedynamic and what he knows.
But for me it went from doingsome things that come naturally
I'm an extrovert greeting people, welcoming people to what
wasn't in my comfort zone anddidn't know how I would play a
(09:55):
role there and took a leap offaith and appreciated that the
lead team, the management teamand the pastors here felt it
would be a good fit, and I'm inyear four of that.
Speaker 3 (10:08):
Okay, all right and Bill your roles now.
Since COVID, we've taken theMount Laurel campus and we
absorbed it into one campusagain, here at Voorhees, and
your roles have changed as well.
How are you serving here atHope?
Speaker 5 (10:21):
So I'm still serving at the food pantry.
I order all the food and acceptall the deliveries, which have
gone from about 2,000 pounds amonth to it's about 10,000
pounds or 12,000 pounds a month,that's a lot of grocery carts.
Speaker 3 (10:35):
That's a lot of grocery carts.
Speaker 5 (10:36):
That's a lot of grocery carts, a lot of grocery
bags, so I still do that, andthen I am the producer in the
main services on Sundays, yeah.
Speaker 3 (10:50):
So let me ask you.
So we're talking about Worship,Plus 2, and we're doing this,
you know so here, the first ofthe plus two is volunteerism.
The other plus is small groups,which will be next week.
But let me ask you both did youvolunteer first or be in a
small group first?
Speaker 4 (11:07):
I happen to have been in one small group before I
became a regular volunteer, andagain that was based on work
life, home life and when Billcould be around.
So the first one I did was asmall group in the chapel called
Chasing Daylight.
I loved it but couldn't make itwork.
And then volunteerism is reallywhere I connected.
Speaker 3 (11:25):
Okay.
Speaker 5 (11:26):
All right, and how about you?
Bill.
So I volunteered at the foodpantry.
But when Jeff started, he talksoften about the Bible study for
men who don't do Bible studyand I thought, hey, that's me.
I didn't know if you know, theacts were at the beginning of
the book or at the end of thebook, so I wasn't sure I wanted
(11:47):
to.
I was afraid to get in a smallgroup because I didn't think I
knew enough to even participate.
So this had my name right, allover it, right?
So I joined that one.
Speaker 3 (11:57):
Okay, all right.
So let me ask you this how didyour volunteerism at Hope impact
your spiritual growth, or didit impact your spiritual growth?
Speaker 4 (12:13):
It did, and thinking about this and getting ready for
today.
To be honest, I didn't think itwould.
I was volunteering because it'snice to give back, because
somebody specifically asked Notsure, right, if I would have
stepped up because that wasn'tmy journey, right asked not sure
right if I would have steppedup because that wasn't my
journey Right and didn't see orappreciate how it would make me
grow as a person and what I sawthe more I was here, the more I
(12:36):
spent time physically here, butmeeting people and what is the
cloth of hope just gave me thisgreat comfort and a desire to go
on my relationship with Jesus,and I wasn't raised to think of
it in terms of that and so thatfor me it's everything is
relational Relationship herewith the others in our community
and then to Jesus, and it justnaturally sparked it.
And then that led to morevolunteering, more reading of
(12:58):
books and then more small groups.
Speaker 3 (13:00):
Yeah, you both know that I say this often, that I
ask someone to volunteer for thechurch because I know when that
person gets connected to thebody of Christ by serving that,
whatever it is they're going todo, that their life is going to
have added meaning, they'regoing to grow in their faith,
and it's all because of thatconnection to the church.
Bill, you would agree with that, wouldn't you?
(13:21):
A?
Speaker 5 (13:21):
hundred percent yeah to the church Bill.
You would agree with that,wouldn't you?
A hundred percent yeah.
For me, when I volunteered, orstarted volunteering, I found
that you know, it changed mywhole life, quite frankly.
And I went from a life of, youknow, doing life for my benefit
to really a life of service, andI run my businesses that way.
(13:41):
I do everything in my life toto serve others and, um, you
know, for for me, that's that'swhat it's all about is we're
we're put here for a reason, andmy reason is to serve others.
Speaker 3 (13:55):
Wow, that's great.
That's great.
So and I know you've sharedthis a little bit but did you
have fears, worries, concerns,when you first started
volunteering?
Speaker 4 (14:08):
Yeah, I think it would be unnatural to not unless
you've done it somewhere else,in another church, maybe For me.
You know, bill was talkingabout how he's maybe physically
behind the scenes food pantrywhere I was being asked was to
be up front, and you're like wow, I'm welcoming people into
God's house, right?
So what does that mean?
But everybody who has comebefore us always helps you.
They put you at ease, they tellyou what to expect, and so you
(14:30):
can't be afraid of that.
You have to be willing torealize that you might make
mistakes, it might feel awkward,but the world isn't actually
looking at you the way you think.
They are and they're happy tobe welcomed.
And so the other thing that Iwould say is a fear is do I
really have to commit forever?
Speaker 3 (14:48):
Yeah, you're committed for life, so they ask
you to come right.
Speaker 4 (14:51):
One Sunday a month, and if you're really busy and
have a lot going on, that canseem overwhelming, but don't
please let that ever detersomebody, because you can try
something, you can shadow people, you can see what's a good fit.
None of this has to be aforever.
It's really finding the bestplace your gifts can be used.
Speaker 3 (15:09):
Yeah, and what would you say to someone about serving
or volunteering at Hope for thefirst time?
Speaker 5 (15:14):
I would say just do it, enjoy it and the you
shouldn't have a fear, becausewe're, they're just people,
right?
And that's that's somethingthat stopped me for a long time,
as I was thought everybody'sgoing to be thumping Bibles at
me and and hitting me over thehead with Jesus, and and it
(15:34):
doesn't.
They'll meet you wherever youare, wherever you are, and
whatever you can give people arehappy to to get that.
Speaker 3 (15:40):
Yeah that's great, yeah, and there's so many ways
to be connected and we reallywant to encourage everyone to
find one of those ways.
Find your passion.
Find a thing that works for you, built for you the food pantry.
I remember you coming andsaying I want to get involved
because that was a passion foryou.
And so, find your passion, useyour gifts.
If you are listening, you wantto know more information about
(16:02):
how to figure out your passionsand your gifts.
There's going to be a smallgroup that's going to be offered
beginning March 6th, calledHardwired, and you'll be able to
find out more information aboutthat, and I'm sure it'll be in
the show notes at the bottom ofthe episode, Because we all
agree it'll change your lifeAbsolutely.
Speaker 4 (16:18):
I agree 100%.
Speaker 3 (16:19):
So we want to encourage each of you to step
out.
Absolutely, I agree, 100%, yeah.
So we want to encourage each ofyou to step out.
Try, because who knows whereGod might take you.
I'm sure if we were to ask Billand Kelly from 17 years ago,
would you ever find yourselvesin front of a podcast microphone
talking about volunteerism.
Speaker 4 (16:35):
I would have laughed.
Speaker 3 (16:36):
Absolutely not.
Speaker 4 (16:37):
I would have laughed.
Speaker 3 (16:38):
Hey, so we end each of these episodes by asking the
question what is bringing youhope today?
So you both got to answer that.
Speaker 4 (16:46):
Yeah, that's a big loaded question.
What I will share is you domake relationships through
volunteering.
You will make them throughsmall groups and in those
relationships I've come to beable to rely and lean on people.
And I was going through sometough decision making at work
and people here at Hope reallycarried me through which of
course, includes my husband hereand through prayer, and in the
(17:08):
last three to four weeks I havebeen able to redefine my role,
have very healthy conversationswith leadership, which I am sure
I wouldn't have been able to dowithout my faith, and it gives
me hope that I can grow and Ican give back, whether it be at
work or at church.
Awesome, thank you.
Speaker 5 (17:26):
For me through volunteering and through living
a life of service.
I've I found that my team atwork all kind of are turning
that same way.
They're getting involved intheir churches, they're getting
involved in social activities.
They're they're really livingtheir lives of service.
So it's great to see from meand that just gives me hope for
(17:49):
the future.
Speaker 3 (17:50):
What a great influence you are on people, on
the people you work with.
Yeah, thanks, wow.
So hey, thank you both, billKelly, thank you.
Speaker 5 (17:59):
Thank you listeners.
Speaker 3 (18:00):
We're so glad that you joined us for today and
everyone, have a great day.
Speaker 2 (18:09):
Thanks for being a part of the Hope Community as we
continue our conversationsabout faith and hope.
If you don't already, pleasejoin us for worship on Sundays
or on demand.
You can learn more atmeethopeorg or find us on
socials at meethopechurch.
Hello Hope Podcast listeners.
We live in a fast-paced worldwhere new material and ideas are
thrown at you 24-7.
Some of you told us this andsaid I want to listen to
everything, but it's hard tocatch up.
Well, we're here to help.
We desire to be a place that isgrateful for and respectful of
your precious time, and so toserve you best, we will every so
often be resharing pastepisodes that we call Second
(00:22):
Listen, because we think theyare worth taking a second to
replay.
Even if you are an every weeklistener, we think having a
second listen to these episodeswill make an impact on your
weekend life, and if you haveheard this one but are behind on
new episodes, now is a greattime to catch up on any others
you have missed.
Thank you, and here we go.
Speaker 2 (00:43):
Welcome to the Meet Hope podcast, where we have
conversations about faith andhope.
Hope is one church made ofpeople living out their faith
through two expressions inperson and online.
We believe a hybrid faithexperience can lead to a growing
influence in our community andour world for the sake of others
.
Welcome to Hope in our worldfor the sake of others Welcome
(01:06):
to Hope.
Speaker 3 (01:09):
Hey, welcome everyone .
Thanks for listening to anotherepisode of the Meet Hope
podcast.
I'm Rick, one of the pastors atHope, and today we have an
interview with Bill and KellyWalenda.
Welcome, hi.
Hello, thank you so much forbeing here with us, and you guys
know that this is part of atwo-episode segment where we're
(01:29):
going to be looking at theworship plus two and really
focusing on the plus twos, andso this episode is about
volunteerism, and next episodewill be about small groups, and
so, before we begin, though, Iwant to ask both of you to just
share a little bit aboutyourselves, like you know, about
how long you've been married,about your family, maybe what
(01:50):
you do for a living, things likethat.
So who wants to go first?
Speaker 4 (01:53):
You guys going to arm wrestle or just no, no, I'm
going to enjoy letting Bill gofirst.
Speaker 5 (01:56):
Oh great.
Okay, so I'm Bill Walenda.
I own two the Little Gymfranchises, so gymnastics and
fitness classes for kids.
We've been coming to Hope forabout 17 to 18 years and we've
been married since 1991, throughthe math but we've been
(02:20):
together since 1983 in highschool, so almost 40 years.
So it'll be 40 years in October.
Speaker 3 (02:26):
Now you told me earlier a little bit of
information about how you guysfirst met.
Speaker 5 (02:32):
Correct.
We met when we were two yearsold.
Our parents played on, our dadsplayed on the same softball
team, and so we.
They came to a barbecue at myhouse and then we went to high
school together after that.
Speaker 3 (02:44):
So it was love at first sight.
At two years old it was.
Speaker 5 (02:46):
It was.
Speaker 4 (02:47):
It was.
Speaker 5 (02:48):
She was about the same size.
Speaker 4 (02:51):
Oh, wow.
And now it's a free for all.
And we do have three kids, allgrown Our youngest is finishing
up college and they've all beenhere to Hope and involved in one
way or another.
And so we've had thoseexperiences as parents of
children involved in the HopeYouth Ministry.
And I am personally, by way ofwork I'm an attorney, I work at
(03:13):
one of our larger health systemsand I also oversee our privacy
program.
Speaker 3 (03:17):
Great, okay, thanks for sharing that.
So how did you guys first startattending Hope?
Speaker 4 (03:22):
So we've told this story at various meetings and
the short of it is dear friendsof ours had come here to the
family Christmas service andthey knew that we were a bit
disenfranchised with where wehad been going and they said
you've got to go, and so wewaited till the next Christmas
and we went to that familyservice.
Took it very literally andthat's what prompted us and just
(03:46):
thoroughly enjoyed it.
Kids enjoyed it, we enjoyed itand we couldn't say enough
things about it.
And then I said well, let's seewhat hope is like when it's not
Christmas, and here we are.
Speaker 3 (03:57):
So this is an aside, but this is so.
So this is an example of invite.
So you can invite someone andit takes a year, it might,
before they will choose to takeyou up on that invitation.
That's good to know.
Speaker 4 (04:09):
But I'm glad we did.
Speaker 3 (04:10):
I'll have you back for that interview.
We'll talk about invitation.
So you started attending about17, 18 years ago.
When did you first startvolunteering at Hope?
Speaker 4 (04:21):
So I was probably the first one to volunteer the two
of us, I can't remember exactlywhen, but it was some years in,
as we were working and had kidsand built out of town a lot.
I do specifically rememberPastor Jeff's assistant, Joanne
at the time so we were comingfrequently enough recognized me
and just walked up to me andasked if I'd be interested in
(04:41):
volunteering once a month at thelobby as a lobby greeter.
Speaker 3 (04:43):
So you joined.
That was your first volunteerrole was a lobby greeter on a.
Sunday morning Once a month.
Once a month is how I started.
Okay, all right.
And Bill, how about you?
When did you first volunteer?
Speaker 5 (04:54):
It was probably a couple of years after that and
my first experience volunteeringwas when we used to do the
craft fair here and sponsored bythe men's group, and I was
asked to to volunteer.
We got here at six, 30 in themorning.
We were unloading cars and forfor the crafty people and
(05:17):
setting up their booths and theywere so, so, very just
impressed and thankful for allthe help.
So I kept doing it.
Speaker 3 (05:26):
Right, okay, so that was a kind of a once a year or
twice a year commitment.
When did you move to a likemore of a regular volunteering
role?
Speaker 5 (05:34):
So probably around eight, eight years ago or so, I
kind of felt the calling to towork food pantry and I knew we
had one.
So I contacted Tracy Davis whowas running it at the time.
We operated out of a littlestorage closet in the back.
We were serving about 40families a month and I said, hey
(05:56):
, I want to get involved in this.
So that's where I startedshopping and ordering the food
and accepting the deliveries andthings like that.
Speaker 3 (06:05):
Right, that's right.
And so then that was abouteight years ago.
You said Correct.
And then, around 2017, ourchurch here at Hope, we decided
to launch a second campus.
I know you guys remember that,but we launched that around the
end of 2017 into 20, I think itwas the end of 2017, 2018, 20.
(06:26):
At any rate, you guys were apart of that.
How did that happen?
Speaker 5 (06:29):
Well, Well, as you certainly know, Rick, you are
the king of volunteerism.
Speaker 4 (06:40):
So you asked me but Kelly go ahead.
Vicki came up to me.
Speaker 5 (06:46):
Vicki.
Speaker 4 (06:46):
Cruz, vicki Cruz, and she was then also on staff and
said you've heard that we'removing, or starting, rather, a
satellite campus in Mount Laurel.
Would you be willing to servethere as well?
And I said how often?
What do you need?
And that's when she said asoften as you can, and would you
be willing to be regularattenders, which is different
(07:08):
than right volunteering, asyou're pointing out.
So I said that soundsinteresting.
Well, let me go home and talkto Bill, which I then did do,
because Bill cannot explain howwe decided.
Speaker 5 (07:18):
So we live about two minutes from here and I thought,
sure we're going to get up atsix in the morning and go all
the way to Mount Laurel, set upand go to service and then clean
up and be back at noon.
Sure honey, that'd be great.
Speaker 4 (07:38):
But we were at a place, so for a lot of people
listening, they have young kids.
Our kids were older now and notcoming every Sunday and we had
the luxury and flexibility to dothat and off we went.
We started meeting you thereSunday morning.
Speaker 3 (07:49):
Yeah, yeah, and it was a fun time, wasn't it?
It was amazing Actually love it, miss it sometimes Fun time,
wasn't it?
Speaker 4 (07:52):
It was amazing Actually love it, miss it
sometimes.
Speaker 3 (07:53):
Yeah, so how did it so?
That experience really, I think, elevated your volunteer
experience, wouldn't you sayAbsolutely.
And so you moved from not onlyserving on a monthly basis in
the lobby, kelly, you wereserving then weekly setting up
on a regular basis as well, on asetup team, and Bill, you took
(08:14):
on the role of being a monthlyteam leader, right, and then you
also because we give outmultiple roles back then you
were doing, what other thingswere you doing?
Speaker 5 (08:24):
So I started as just a volunteer, you know, setting
up and cleaning up and thenmoved to a team leader.
So I was in charge of all thesetup and cleanup, where
everything went, how to set itup, and then after that I was
kind of dragged into the techbooth, which was super new for
me and a little scary, but I washappy to do it.
(08:45):
We needed the help and so I ranthe sound system.
I learned how to run the lightsNever actually did that in a
service, but I could and then Iwas asked to host, which for me
was a big stretch.
Speaker 3 (09:00):
And by hosting you mean up in front of everybody.
Speaker 5 (09:02):
On the stage leading, welcoming everybody that's the
easy part.
Saying the prayer for everybodyFor me, that's a big hard part
for me.
That really took me out of mycomfort zone.
And making the announcements.
Speaker 3 (09:17):
That's great and so that.
So I'm going to go back toKelly for a second.
So, kelly, tell us.
So how did your experience atMount Laurel lead to the next
step?
How did you start volunteering?
What's the newest area you'revolunteering?
Speaker 4 (09:33):
So the newest place I'm volunteering is on our lead
team and you know that'sobviously a big part of that is
Pastor Jeff and looking at thedynamic and what he knows.
But for me it went from doingsome things that come naturally
I'm an extrovert greeting people, welcoming people to what
wasn't in my comfort zone anddidn't know how I would play a
(09:55):
role there and took a leap offaith and appreciated that the
lead team, the management teamand the pastors here felt it
would be a good fit, and I'm inyear four of that.
Speaker 3 (10:08):
Okay, all right and Bill your roles now.
Since COVID, we've taken theMount Laurel campus and we
absorbed it into one campusagain, here at Voorhees, and
your roles have changed as well.
How are you serving here atHope?
Speaker 5 (10:21):
So I'm still serving at the food pantry.
I order all the food and acceptall the deliveries, which have
gone from about 2,000 pounds amonth to it's about 10,000
pounds or 12,000 pounds a month,that's a lot of grocery carts.
Speaker 3 (10:35):
That's a lot of grocery carts.
Speaker 5 (10:36):
That's a lot of grocery carts, a lot of grocery
bags, so I still do that, andthen I am the producer in the
main services on Sundays, yeah.
Speaker 3 (10:50):
So let me ask you.
So we're talking about Worship,Plus 2, and we're doing this,
you know so here, the first ofthe plus two is volunteerism.
The other plus is small groups,which will be next week.
But let me ask you both did youvolunteer first or be in a
small group first?
Speaker 4 (11:07):
I happen to have been in one small group before I
became a regular volunteer, andagain that was based on work
life, home life and when Billcould be around.
So the first one I did was asmall group in the chapel called
Chasing Daylight.
I loved it but couldn't make itwork.
And then volunteerism is reallywhere I connected.
Speaker 3 (11:25):
Okay.
Speaker 5 (11:26):
All right, and how about you?
Bill.
So I volunteered at the foodpantry.
But when Jeff started, he talksoften about the Bible study for
men who don't do Bible studyand I thought, hey, that's me.
I didn't know if you know, theacts were at the beginning of
the book or at the end of thebook, so I wasn't sure I wanted
(11:47):
to.
I was afraid to get in a smallgroup because I didn't think I
knew enough to even participate.
So this had my name right, allover it, right?
So I joined that one.
Speaker 3 (11:57):
Okay, all right.
So let me ask you this how didyour volunteerism at Hope impact
your spiritual growth, or didit impact your spiritual growth?
Speaker 4 (12:13):
It did, and thinking about this and getting ready for
today.
To be honest, I didn't think itwould.
I was volunteering because it'snice to give back, because
somebody specifically asked Notsure, right, if I would have
stepped up because that wasn'tmy journey, right asked not sure
right if I would have steppedup because that wasn't my
journey Right and didn't see orappreciate how it would make me
grow as a person and what I sawthe more I was here, the more I
(12:36):
spent time physically here, butmeeting people and what is the
cloth of hope just gave me thisgreat comfort and a desire to go
on my relationship with Jesus,and I wasn't raised to think of
it in terms of that and so thatfor me it's everything is
relational Relationship herewith the others in our community
and then to Jesus, and it justnaturally sparked it.
And then that led to morevolunteering, more reading of
(12:58):
books and then more small groups.
Speaker 3 (13:00):
Yeah, you both know that I say this often, that I
ask someone to volunteer for thechurch because I know when that
person gets connected to thebody of Christ by serving that,
whatever it is they're going todo, that their life is going to
have added meaning, they'regoing to grow in their faith,
and it's all because of thatconnection to the church.
Bill, you would agree with that, wouldn't you?
(13:21):
A?
Speaker 5 (13:21):
hundred percent yeah to the church Bill.
You would agree with that,wouldn't you?
A hundred percent yeah.
For me, when I volunteered, orstarted volunteering, I found
that you know, it changed mywhole life, quite frankly.
And I went from a life of, youknow, doing life for my benefit
to really a life of service, andI run my businesses that way.
(13:41):
I do everything in my life toto serve others and, um, you
know, for for me, that's that'swhat it's all about is we're
we're put here for a reason, andmy reason is to serve others.
Speaker 3 (13:55):
Wow, that's great.
That's great.
So and I know you've sharedthis a little bit but did you
have fears, worries, concerns,when you first started
volunteering?
Speaker 4 (14:08):
Yeah, I think it would be unnatural to not unless
you've done it somewhere else,in another church, maybe For me.
You know, bill was talkingabout how he's maybe physically
behind the scenes food pantrywhere I was being asked was to
be up front, and you're like wow, I'm welcoming people into
God's house, right?
So what does that mean?
But everybody who has comebefore us always helps you.
They put you at ease, they tellyou what to expect, and so you
(14:30):
can't be afraid of that.
You have to be willing torealize that you might make
mistakes, it might feel awkward,but the world isn't actually
looking at you the way you think.
They are and they're happy tobe welcomed.
And so the other thing that Iwould say is a fear is do I
really have to commit forever?
Speaker 3 (14:48):
Yeah, you're committed for life, so they ask
you to come right.
Speaker 4 (14:51):
One Sunday a month, and if you're really busy and
have a lot going on, that canseem overwhelming, but don't
please let that ever detersomebody, because you can try
something, you can shadow people, you can see what's a good fit.
None of this has to be aforever.
It's really finding the bestplace your gifts can be used.
Speaker 3 (15:09):
Yeah, and what would you say to someone about serving
or volunteering at Hope for thefirst time?
Speaker 5 (15:14):
I would say just do it, enjoy it and the you
shouldn't have a fear, becausewe're, they're just people,
right?
And that's that's somethingthat stopped me for a long time,
as I was thought everybody'sgoing to be thumping Bibles at
me and and hitting me over thehead with Jesus, and and it
(15:34):
doesn't.
They'll meet you wherever youare, wherever you are, and
whatever you can give people arehappy to to get that.
Speaker 3 (15:40):
Yeah that's great, yeah, and there's so many ways
to be connected and we reallywant to encourage everyone to
find one of those ways.
Find your passion.
Find a thing that works for you, built for you the food pantry.
I remember you coming andsaying I want to get involved
because that was a passion foryou.
And so, find your passion, useyour gifts.
If you are listening, you wantto know more information about
(16:02):
how to figure out your passionsand your gifts.
There's going to be a smallgroup that's going to be offered
beginning March 6th, calledHardwired, and you'll be able to
find out more information aboutthat, and I'm sure it'll be in
the show notes at the bottom ofthe episode, Because we all
agree it'll change your lifeAbsolutely.
Speaker 4 (16:18):
I agree 100%.
Speaker 3 (16:19):
So we want to encourage each of you to step
out.
Absolutely, I agree, 100%, yeah.
So we want to encourage each ofyou to step out.
Try, because who knows whereGod might take you.
I'm sure if we were to ask Billand Kelly from 17 years ago,
would you ever find yourselvesin front of a podcast microphone
talking about volunteerism.
Speaker 4 (16:35):
I would have laughed.
Speaker 3 (16:36):
Absolutely not.
Speaker 4 (16:37):
I would have laughed.
Speaker 3 (16:38):
Hey, so we end each of these episodes by asking the
question what is bringing youhope today?
So you both got to answer that.
Speaker 4 (16:46):
Yeah, that's a big loaded question.
What I will share is you domake relationships through
volunteering.
You will make them throughsmall groups and in those
relationships I've come to beable to rely and lean on people.
And I was going through sometough decision making at work
and people here at Hope reallycarried me through which of
course, includes my husband hereand through prayer, and in the
(17:08):
last three to four weeks I havebeen able to redefine my role,
have very healthy conversationswith leadership, which I am sure
I wouldn't have been able to dowithout my faith, and it gives
me hope that I can grow and Ican give back, whether it be at
work or at church.
Awesome, thank you.
Speaker 5 (17:26):
For me through volunteering and through living
a life of service.
I've I found that my team atwork all kind of are turning
that same way.
They're getting involved intheir churches, they're getting
involved in social activities.
They're they're really livingtheir lives of service.
So it's great to see from meand that just gives me hope for
(17:49):
the future.
Speaker 3 (17:50):
What a great influence you are on people, on
the people you work with.
Yeah, thanks, wow.
So hey, thank you both, billKelly, thank you.
Speaker 5 (17:59):
Thank you listeners.
Speaker 3 (18:00):
We're so glad that you joined us for today and
everyone, have a great day.
Speaker 2 (18:09):
Thanks for being a part of the Hope Community as we
continue our conversationsabout faith and hope.
If you don't already, pleasejoin us for worship on Sundays
or on demand.
You can learn more atmeethopeorg or find us on
socials at meethopechurch.
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