I lived in the same house my whole childhood, moving was
never a topic that came up. Things were pretty routine day in and day out, don’t
get me wrong, life would happen and things would come up, but things still
managed to stay mostly the same.
Then came college, I can’t say I’ve really stayed in “one
place” since then. Location wise I haven’t moved a lot, but job wise one look
at my resume tightly squeezed onto a page with little margin and the tale is
told.
But there is one place I was at, a place that was both work
and home for over a year. In fact I was there longer than I was at Cal Poly. It
was a place of hard lessons and renewal, an imperfect place of quirks, a place
I left tired bec
Those who have worked there be it one summer, 20 summers, or
work there all the time, you know what I’m talking about. It gets under your
skin and into your blood. Any camper or conference attendee could tell you,
there’s something about it that makes you come back. It may not always a
perfect experience but the nostalgia lingers because at its core it is a good,
peaceful place where God resides.
Today part of that bedrock of the MH I know and loved was
shifted with the passing of Roger Williams. For those who have no idea who that is, he
was the director during my two year stint at the Herm. As auditorium host and later
IT/AV intern I had the privilege of working with him fairly often, especially
in the summer. He was a kind, wise, down to earth man who loved his God, his family, and horribly corny
jokes that drove me mad. I didn’t see him much in the last four years since I
returned to the Central Valley. But I followed his battle with cancer through
his wife Rachel’s Facebook posts and updates from friends that are still in the
area. (FYI never underestimate the Christian “grapevine”.)
When I was an intern when I’d turn on Conference Drive I’d inevitably
start singing the chorus of Jack Pearson’s “Mount Hermon Home”. For those who had the privilege to cross paths
with Roger a piece of that home has vanished to a more permanent residence.
To the Williams friends and family my thoughts and prayers
are with you. To my extended Mount Hermon family my thoughts and prayers are
with you as well.
If there’s anything I (or the hundreds of others who will be
offering the same thing), can do to help just give a holler.
