In the early morning of Dec 12th, 2025, my dearest friend, Carol, changed her permanent address from Phoenix to... "Heaven Bound for Eternity" (no zip code required). Our friendship began in February of 1979 and is one of the greatest blessings of my life. In thinking about a way to explain who Carol is to me, I have chosen to use an acrostic to elaborate about her many attributes.
- C - compassionate, charismatic communicator, considerate, counselor, confidant
- A - adviser, adventuresome, always available, advocate
- R - relationship restorer, reader, real, redeemed, reborn
- O - orator, original, outgoing, open, organized
- L - loving, listener, learner, lovely, lady-like, loved laughter
Knowing Carol for all these years allowed me to see what a true example of a Christian should be like. She was my spiritual role model. Her counsel and Godly advice has carried me through many situations that have come my way. Always ready to listen and share, she lifted my spirits with her unbelievable gift of encouragement. She knew her Savior very well and was able to pass on insights from the Holy Spirit. I knew I could count on her honest assessment in any discussion we had. The scriptures tell us to "seek wise counsel" and that is what Carol gave to me. She taught me that true friends, "divide the sorrows and share the joys."
Both she and Richard have the gift of hospitality. As close friends, my husband and I shared many special and seasonal occasions in our homes. We were always made to feel welcome by their incredible gift of serving others. Both possess a humility that magnifies all their strengths. They showed us the model of a loving, Christian couple who followed the Lord faithfully in all aras of their lives. Whether it was in service, financial giving of tithes and offerings, prayer support, counsel, helping wherever needed, serving in leadership roles, offering their artistic talents, traveling to spread the Gospel and exemplifying the nature of a Christian marriage, they set the "gold standard".
Our friendship with Carol will continue through our friend, Richard, now. Carol was "one in a million" and I was blessed knowing her. I am certain where she lives now, for the scriptures say, for the believer, "to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord." I will see her again. She would want all of you to understand that faith in the sacrifice Jesus made at the cross for you, your repentance of sin and the belief in His resurrection, allows your name to be writen in the Lamb's Book of Life. Please do your own spiritual evaluation now to receive Christ as your Savior, if you haven't made that decision already. Then, you too, can change your permanent address to "Heaven Bound for Eternity" (no zip code required) when God calls you home.