Feeding the Community and the Soul: Ken & Letty's Abiding Story
Ken & Letty came to Abiding Presence at the invitation of their grandchildren. “The first thing we noticed was how friendly it was and we loved the atmosphere,” Letty said. “We started talking to people and we really liked the inclusiveness and the church community,” Ken recalled. “There was a clear effort to be diverse, cherish it, and advertise it along with a clarity of mission where everybody knows they are an example of diversity and different backgrounds,” he shared.
One of their favorite experiences is participating in Abiding Table in Bailey Hall. Letty shared, “I’m accepted here and taken in just like everyone else can be whoever they are, whatever background they come from, they are a person and you love them.” She also enjoys the food as an important part of that dedicated fellowship time and remarked, “Abiding Table is feeding the congregation in more ways than one.”
With a desire to give back to their community, Ken and Letty volunteer at the Abiding Presence Food Pantry. From packing snacks with their grandchildren on a Food Pantry Thursday to helping distribute food on a Saturday morning they have witnessed the incredible impact our food ministry has in the community. “We’re feeding families and their children and that means a lot,” Letty shared.
“Our grandchildren have experienced Summer Camp as both campers and staff and all of their experiences have been so special,” said Ken. “We’ve seen how the program gives them a shared goal, connects them to their peers and the church at an important time in their lives,” he said. “It gives them a purpose and strengthens their faith where they feel comfortable and confident inviting friends to a church that loves and accepts them for who they are and that’s how it should be,” Ken shared. “The Abiding Fellows and College-Age Internship is so much more than a summer job,” Ken & Letty both shared. “The vocation sessions where church members talk about careers and pathways gives them so much to think about and plan for that they don’t get anywhere else,” they recalled.
Ken & Letty have seen and experienced so many ways this church is living out its calling. “The pastors here are amazing, wonderful, thoughtful, empathetic, and committed to going the extra mile to reach people wherever they are in their faith journey and we want everyone to experience that like we have,” they shared.