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00:00 Millions of our brothers and sisters around the world 00:03 can recount the blessings they’ve gained 00:05 by remaining loyal to Jehovah and his organization. 00:09 And we’re privileged to have two such examples here with us today: 00:13 Brother and Sister William and Sandra Malenfant. 00:16 Brother Malenfant is a helper to the Teaching Committee, 00:19 and Sister Malenfant’s current assignment is in the Service Department. 00:23 And we’re looking forward to hearing about their rich spiritual history. 00:27 So, Bill and Sandra, we’re so happy 00:29 that we could have you here in the studio with us, 00:32 and we do look forward to learning more about you. 00:34 Maybe we would like to go back. 00:36 How did you get on the road that has led you 00:39 to so many years of faithful, loyal service to Jehovah? 00:43 It was back in 1954. 00:45 My mother had contact on and off with the Witnesses for years. 00:49 I was about 20 years old, 00:51 and she was invited to a public talk 00:54 at the Oakland Central Congregation in California. 00:56 She asked me, “Would you accompany me?” 00:58 And I said: “Yeah. Sure, I’ll be happy to go.” 01:01 Well, I recognized a young man I knew from high school at the meeting, 01:05 and he approached me after and told me I needed a Bible study. 01:09 I really didn’t want a Bible study, but he insisted, 01:12 and so I said, “Well, you can come by.” 01:14 Would you believe it? 01:16 I started a Bible study in the “Let God Be True” book. 01:20 Four months later, I was baptized. 01:22 It was exactly what I was looking for, but I didn’t realize it. 01:26 Excellent! 01:27 Now, I understand that you were also very involved with sports. 01:31 Yes, I was playing ball for a basketball team in Alameda, 01:36 and I enjoyed very much playing ball. 01:39 But then, a decision came up as to what I was going to do 01:42 because the evenings when the team played was the same time 01:46 that we had the Service Meeting and the Theocratic Ministry School. 01:49 So I had to make a decision. 01:51 And my decision was: Forget the sports, 01:53 and let’s go to the meetings and enjoy being built up spiritually. 01:57 Good choice. Thank you. 01:58 And, Sandra, your start on the road to a career serving Jehovah? 02:03 I suppose you could say that it actually started before I was born. 02:07 Before I was born, my parents started on this search for the truth. 02:11 It happened because they had lost a little girl in death, 02:15 and they went from church to church looking for some kind of comfort. 02:19 And, of course, the clergy had no comfort for them. 02:21 They just said, “Well, God wanted another angel in heaven.” 02:25 And that angered my father. He thought: ‘No. 02:28 ‘If God wants another angel, he can make one. 02:31 He wouldn’t take my little girl!’ 02:33 So it just happened 02:35 that one evening they were listening to the radio 02:38 —long before TV, of course— 02:40 and they heard a Jehovah’s Witness give a talk. 02:44 And the title of that talk was “Where Are the Dead?” 02:47 Imagine! 02:48 He gave all the Scriptural proof about the condition of the dead 02:51 and the hope for the resurrection. 02:54 And my father immediately said, “This is the truth!” 02:57 So they wrote to the radio station; 03:01 got a copy of the booklet of the talk; 03:04 and then, also, they started receiving 03:07 the subscription to The Watchtower. 03:09 But it wasn’t until I was born and three years old 03:12 that the Witnesses finally made contact with us. 03:14 Interesting. 03:15 In fact, it was interesting. 03:17 It was a real cold winter day, and even though I was only three years old, 03:20 I remember this family coming in. 03:22 And they stayed hours. 03:25 I even hid in the closet and went to sleep. 03:27 But, you know, it was just— 03:30 It was that contact with the visible organization 03:32 that my family needed. 03:34 Because they knew much of the truth. 03:36 They’d been reading The Watchtower for a long time. 03:38 So my elder sisters, they got baptized right away and started pioneering. 03:43 For my brother and I —we were a lot smaller, of course— 03:47 we just went along with our parents and came right into the truth. 03:51 In fact, I remember, it was just a couple of years later 03:54 that we were all going to go to the big convention 03:58 in 1950 at Yankee Stadium. 04:02 But I knew there was going to be a big baptism there, 04:05 but I wanted to go as a baptized Jehovah’s Witness. 04:08 So my father— Everybody made arrangements, 04:11 and my father baptized me 04:13 in our pond on our farm 04:15 with another young sister. 04:16 Is that right? 04:17 So that was my beginning. 04:19 You know, Ron, there’s a point I’d like to recall also. 04:22 Sandra was at a special convention back in 1941. 04:27 That’s true, even before that. 04:30 That was probably my first, you know, big event theocratically. 04:34 Our family—my brother was four years older than I, 04:38 along with my parents— we went to the St. Louis convention 04:43 where Brother Rutherford gave his famous talk on children. 04:48 And they separated— The lower level 04:50 of this place that they rented, this stadium, 04:53 was dedicated to just the young children, 04:55 well, from 5 to 18 years of age. 04:58 And it was just fantastic, you know, with this man. 05:02 When you’re small, this man would look so big and huge, 05:05 and he had this great big voice. 05:07 And I’ll never forget when he looked out on the audience, and he said: 05:12 “Behold, more than 15,000 new witnesses to the Kingdom!” 05:17 So it was very emotional. 05:19 Oh, you still remember it like it happened yesterday. 05:20 Oh, yes! 05:21 Right, how exciting! 05:23 So, what motivated you to make a choice 05:25 to get into the full-time service and give your life to Jehovah? 05:29 Well, what motivated me 05:31 was when I attended a convention, also in ’56. 05:35 I got baptized in ’54. 05:37 But in ’56, I went to a district convention in Albany, California, 05:41 and there was a pioneer booth. 05:43 Because in those days they had a booth set up at the district conventions, 05:46 and various brothers and sisters would man the booth 05:48 and answer your questions about pioneer service. 05:51 So I approached the booth, and an older sister there looked at me 05:54 and said: “You’re young and strong. 05:56 Why aren’t you a pioneer?” 05:58 I felt, ‘Well, yes. Why not?’ 06:00 So I started pioneering in 1956. 06:03 That’s what motivated me. 06:05 And I was— Really, I look back at that; 06:07 it was one of the best decisions I made in my life. 06:09 Excellent! 06:10 Yeah, so you have been making wise decisions from your youth up. 06:13 Sandra, how about you? 06:15 Motivated to get into full-time service. 06:17 Well, for pioneer service, you know, it was—it was like a given. 06:21 Young people were just encouraged to pioneer. 06:24 And you knew that when you graduated from high school, 06:27 you started out pioneering. 06:29 And most of the young people were doing that. 06:31 You know, after a year or two, maybe they would get married and start a family. 06:35 But those years in pioneering —starting out their life that way— 06:39 gave them a wonderful basis for loyal service the rest of their life. 06:44 And not only that, I remember that in those days 06:48 the traveling overseer would stay in the homes 06:51 of the brothers when he served the congregation. 06:53 And we always played host 06:55 to the circuit overseer and his wife when they came. 06:58 And for my brother and I, they were role models. 07:01 My sisters, as I told you, were out pioneering in another assignment. 07:05 But for us, these brothers were so full of zeal, 07:08 and they were like heroes to us. 07:11 In particular, I remember when I was, I think, about 12 years old. 07:15 This couple came around on the circuit, Percy and Ilma Iszlaub, 07:19 they were from Australia and, of course, we loved their accent too. 07:23 And they had just graduated from Gilead, 07:26 and they were assigned to Japan, 07:28 but they had to wait a number of months to get their visa. 07:31 They served in our congregation, 07:33 and it was really them that instilled in me 07:36 the desire to become a missionary. 07:38 Beautiful. 07:40 So you were pioneering. 07:42 How did your paths eventually meet? 07:44 It was at a circuit assembly 07:46 in Oakland, California, 1956. 07:50 Very interesting things took place. 07:53 I had the job of dismantling the stage. 07:56 I had not yet met Sandra. 07:58 She was out visiting her sister who lived in the same area where I was. 08:03 And I was carrying this large piece of plywood off the stage, 08:06 and I ran right into Sandra and knocked her flat! 08:09 Well, I took advantage of the opportunity. 08:11 I thought, ‘Well, that’s not the best way to introduce yourself.’ 08:15 But I said, “By the way, would you like to accompany me 08:18 to a get-together some of the friends are having?” 08:20 And she accepted. And . . . 08:22 Very good, Bill. 08:23 Well, yes, and I followed through on it. 08:25 We had a lot of association, 08:27 and after a number of months, we got married. 08:30 And both of us were pioneering 08:32 —very happy in our ministry serving Jehovah. 08:34 You really swept her off her feet. Literally. 08:36 I fell for him. 08:38 Very good. 08:38 So, shortly after you were married, 08:41 I understand that you received some direction. 08:43 Yes, the circuit overseer visited our congregation. 08:46 We were only married about a month, I think, when he came through. 08:49 I think so. 08:50 And he told us that the organization was looking for pioneers 08:54 who’d be willing to serve as special pioneers and go wherever, 08:57 where the need was great in the United States particularly. 09:00 So we told him: “Sure. We’d be delighted to do it.” 09:04 And four months after our marriage, 09:07 we received an assignment as special pioneers to Decorah, Iowa. 09:11 Now, that was a very interesting place 09:13 because there were only eight publishers in the congregation. 09:16 But we arrived and started with the meetings 09:19 there at the Kingdom Hall. 09:21 And the Kingdom Hall was up above Hunt’s Variety Store 09:23 in downtown Decorah, and we lived in a room behind it. 09:27 Well, sometimes, especially during the wintertime 09:30 because it could be very cold, there’d be no one at the meeting. 09:33 After all, there were only eight publishers. 09:35 But I was insisting that: 09:37 “No, I’m going to give my public talk, whether anyone is here or not.” 09:41 So I’d tell Sandra, “You sit there, and I’ll give my public talk.” 09:44 A one hour talk, and then I’d conduct the Watchtower Study 09:48 and have her answer every question. 09:50 Well, you know, you’re on your own like that 09:52 —not a lot of brothers around— 09:54 so you look for encouragement and company. 09:56 And we would travel down to Strawberry Point, Iowa, 09:59 to where Charles and Shirley Sinutko lived 10:03 in a log cabin —one-room log cabin. 10:06 And we’d go visit with them in order to have some mutual encouragement. 10:09 Yeah, because they were special pioneering also. 10:12 OK. Well, you were both special. 10:14 It’s a nice picture of you in that log cabin too 10:16 as you were special pioneering. 10:18 So you’re busy in that work. 10:20 What special invitation did you receive? 10:22 Well, we received the invitation to attend Gilead 10:26 —the 34th class of Gilead School— 10:29 and that was a wonderful thing after two and half years of pioneering, 10:32 special pioneering in Iowa. 10:34 Our instructors were Albert Schroeder, Maxwell Friend, 10:38 Bob Porter, and Jack Redford. 10:41 And we had a delightful time at Gilead, as you can imagine. 10:46 And we were assigned to Lebanon, 10:48 but we were unable to enter Lebanon because we couldn’t get the visa. 10:53 So, then, the organization asked us, 10:55 “Well, will you take an assignment to Morocco?” 10:57 We were ready to go anywhere. 10:59 We were pioneering with the Canarsie Congregation 11:01 just waiting to go out into the field. 11:04 So that’s how we took a boat from New York City 11:06 —five days across the Atlantic— to Casablanca. 11:09 Very nice. 11:11 Well, what was it like to be in the missionary service in Morocco? 11:14 It was very interesting. 11:17 We really enjoyed it. But, you know, we only spoke English. 11:19 So in Morocco, we had to learn French. 11:22 And the first month of our missionary service in Morocco, 11:26 for 30 days we studied the language 11 hours a day. 11:30 Well, that could get pretty tiring for 11 hours a day, 11:33 so we’d go to the French movies and count that as language time. 11:36 And then, we were moved to Tangier. 11:39 And there was a Spanish congregation in Tangier, 11:41 so we had to learn the Spanish language too. 11:44 But that was really a rich blessing 11:47 for the two of us to be exposed to that culture 11:49 and to have that privilege of serving there. 11:52 But you know what I really enjoyed? 11:54 We had a variety of people we preached to. 11:57 We had a very large Jewish population, 12:00 and they were almost all Orthodox. 12:02 But, you know, they were very forthright, 12:05 and they were open and quite curious. 12:08 You know, like they’d come up to us sometimes and say: 12:11 “Well, you’re Christian, aren’t you? 12:13 Why do you accept Jesus as the Messiah?” 12:15 So we had to get familiar with a lot of scriptures, you know, 12:19 that dealt with the prophecies the Messiah would fulfill, in the Hebrew Scriptures. 12:23 And really, it was a delight. 12:25 Sandra, do you remember, there were a lot of French people in Morocco? 12:29 Because it used to be a colony under France, 12:32 so that’s why the French language was so important. 12:35 And then we had Spanish people and many other nationalities there. 12:39 So you had four years of serving in Morocco 12:42 —faithfully, loyally meeting all those of different languages 12:45 and learning the language yourself. 12:47 So after four years, I understand that you came back to visit your family. 12:52 What events were challenging thereafter? 12:55 I think Sandra can relate that. 12:57 Well, it was usually permitted 13:00 that after you were in your assignment four years, 13:02 then you were allowed to come home 13:04 and at least have a vacation and visit your family. 13:06 And so we made arrangements to come back. 13:09 We got some tickets on a Yugoslav freighter; 13:13 took us two weeks to get back to New York. 13:16 But we got back. 13:17 We visited our family, and while there, 13:21 I had a medical examination and found out that I had a serious health problem. 13:26 Of course, we didn’t have the funds to cover that. 13:28 So Bill wrote to the Society, and we made arrangements. 13:32 They said, “Well, just take care of your situation, 13:35 and let us know when you’re free.” 13:37 So he got a job to take care 13:39 of our medical needs as well as living conditions. 13:42 But you know, we just felt like we were failures. 13:46 I’d always wanted to be a missionary, 13:49 and there we were four years into our assignment, 13:51 and we come back and poof! 13:54 We’re just there. 13:55 But, you know, Jehovah knew we were discouraged. 13:58 He knew we felt distraught about this. 14:00 So he knew just what we needed, and he gave it to us. 14:04 As I got to feeling better and we got more free 14:08 in our use of time, we started pioneering. 14:11 And Jehovah blessed our ministry just incredibly. 14:15 There were times, in this supposedly “unproductive territory” 14:20 that we had up to 25 people attending the meetings. 14:23 Many of them got baptized, and they’re our fast friends to this day. 14:27 That’s incredible! 14:28 So Jehovah knows what you need, and he provides it. 14:30 That is beautiful! 14:33 What temptation did you have to resist 14:35 when you came back and were going through these difficulties? 14:38 Well, I think it’s a temptation that confronts 14:41 a lot of brothers and sisters who return because of health reasons, 14:45 and some just end up settling down because of their circumstances. 14:49 But the temptation there was: ‘Well, you’re home. 14:52 ‘You’ve already done your service in Morocco for a number of years. 14:56 ‘You’ve been in the full-time ministry. 14:57 Just settle down now. Buy a house.’ 15:00 But really, that wasn’t our desire. 15:03 So as soon as Sandra got on her feet 15:05 and was feeling well enough, we got pioneering. 15:08 And then I wrote headquarters, and I said: ‘Here we are. 15:10 ‘We’re ready to take on whatever. 15:12 What would you like us to do?’ 15:14 You know, I’d like to say here, Ron, 15:16 that I really appreciate Bill as my spiritual head 15:21 because even though these things presented themselves 15:24 in the course of our theocratic history, 15:27 he was always quick to accept the responsibility of what we felt 15:32 was our spiritual, familial, and moral responsibility 15:36 but as soon as these obligations were taken care of, 15:39 he was very quick to get us back on the road 15:41 to meet our spiritual goals that we had. 15:44 And I really do appreciate that. 15:46 Good example. Thank you. 15:47 So you made yourself available to the organization. 15:50 Where did they send you next? 15:52 A wonderful assignment. 15:54 We were sent as special pioneers to Washington D.C., 15:58 to help start a Spanish congregation. 16:02 And that was indeed a very rich blessing. 16:05 We were there a year and a half 16:08 until that little congregation was solid and was formed. 16:12 And then we received another blessing. 16:14 We were appointed to the circuit work. 16:17 So I had the Spanish circuit in Florida 16:19 from Key West to Orlando —one circuit in the whole state. 16:24 Then we came to New York City —lived in the Bronx. 16:27 I had a circuit, and we did district work in the Spanish field. 16:31 Then, to Texas 16:33 —to what they call the Valley of Texas, the Rio Grande Valley— 16:35 for a couple of years in the circuit. 16:37 Then the district in Spanish 16:40 from Houston, Texas, to Yuba City, California. 16:43 And we loved every minute of it. 16:45 Well, that’s definitely the traveling work. 16:47 I know you were in that work for nearly ten years, 16:50 so I’m sure you really benefited 16:52 a lot of brothers and sisters along the way. 16:54 Then 1977 rolls around and you receive another invitation. 16:57 Yes, indeed! 16:58 We were doing preconvention work 17:01 in the L.A. area at the Leimert Assembly Hall, 17:04 and we received a letter inviting us to come to Bethel. 17:09 That was a very, very special privilege: to be invited to Bethel. 17:13 I went into the Service Department, 17:15 because at that time they invited a number of traveling overseers 17:18 to come in and work in the Service Department, 17:21 and Sandra went into housekeeping. 17:23 And we were both delighted to come to Bethel. 17:26 Well, sort of. 17:28 I really loved the ministry; 17:31 I loved, especially, the district work 17:34 —being with the circuit overseer and his wife 17:36 every week and out in service. 17:38 So I wasn’t too anxious for this Bethel thing. 17:42 But, you know. Jehovah, again, knows what you need. 17:46 We came here, and we started adjusting to Bethel life. 17:50 And it really proved out to be a real blessing 17:54 because we got the close association 17:57 with so many other loyal Witnesses of Jehovah. 18:00 Yes. And then for the rest of us 18:03 that have been able to work with you over the decades, 18:05 we appreciate your loyal example and working with you. 18:07 But, I understand that shortly after you arrived to Bethel, 18:10 you also received some challenging family difficulties 18:14 that you needed to deal with. 18:16 Yes, Sandra had an older sister who needed help. 18:19 Yeah. We were still adjusting, like I said. 18:22 And we heard that one of my older sisters, 18:26 who had spent most of her life in the pioneer service, 18:29 she had now entered the terminal stages in her long fight with cancer, 18:33 and she needed some homecare. 18:37 And the brothers in the organization were very kind to me, 18:42 and they allowed me some free time to go 18:44 and care for that responsibility. 18:46 Then, it was just a few years later 18:48 that my mother was facing a similar situation. 18:51 And this time, again, the brothers allowed 18:55 both Bill and me to be free to go back there. 18:58 My mother was now aged 89. 19:01 She had health situations and she lived alone, so she needed care. 19:05 And again they allowed us this time; we went back. 19:08 And just as in the case with my sister, 19:11 I was able to keep my mother home just until she died. 19:16 And, you know, we appreciate so much being granted that free time. 19:20 Even though when we left, 19:22 we didn’t know if it might mean the end of our Bethel career. 19:26 But again we felt the need to fulfill that responsibility. 19:30 And, you know, Ron, it was-it was a bittersweet experience. 19:34 This is Satan’s wicked world; death is our enemy. 19:38 And it hurts to see a loved one suffer. 19:41 But, you know, there’s the sweet side of it too, 19:45 because we had shared some wonderful moments 19:48 together with my family and experiences, shared experiences. 19:52 And we felt good that we had been able 19:55 to help these people that had been mentors for us. 19:59 Yes. So loyalty to your family and loyalty to Jehovah. 20:02 Exactly. 20:03 So you returned back to Bethel. 20:05 You were busy in your assignments. 20:07 And, as you mentioned, you worked with many loyal ones at Bethel. 20:10 Could you share one such experience of a loyal sister? 20:13 Oh yes. 20:14 I was assigned to the Alterations Department, 20:16 the Sewing Department. 20:18 And recently before that, 20:21 Sister Gertrude and her husband, Martin Poetzinger, 20:24 had been called into Bethel, and he was a member of the Governing Body. 20:27 And she had been trained under a tailor, so she was excellent in alterations. 20:32 But most valuable were our spiritual conversations. 20:36 I learned so much from that sister. 20:38 Once, we were talking —a group of us— 20:41 about what our relationship to Jehovah really means. 20:45 And Gertrude gave us her idea, 20:48 her understanding, of her relationship with Jehovah. 20:51 She said, “You know, sometimes in life a situation presents itself, 20:56 “and it’s so personal and so touching 21:00 that you don’t tell anybody about it —except Jehovah, of course.” 21:04 And she said: “So you pray to Jehovah, and you pray to Jehovah. 21:09 And then pass a little time, and you feel he’s answered your prayer.” 21:13 She said: “You know, that is like a little thread 21:15 “that unites you with Jehovah. 21:18 “Now, this is the only person in the universe 21:22 “that shares this experience with you. 21:24 “So it’s very personal. 21:26 “OK. Time goes by; 21:28 “another situation presents itself, and you pray again. 21:32 “Well, here is another thread. 21:34 “And over a period of time, you’ve got a bunch of threads 21:37 connecting you with Jehovah.” 21:40 And she said, “And those threads are all knitted together, 21:44 and they form a cord that unites you with Jehovah.” 21:48 And then she’d say, “And don’t you ever do anything 21:51 to endanger that relationship.” 21:54 But, to me, it just— It really hit my heart. 21:56 I thought, ‘This is so true.’ 21:59 Our relationship with Jehovah and our loyalty to him 22:02 has to be the first important thing in our life. 22:05 Well, thank you for sharing that. 22:07 That has affected all of our hearts. Appreciate that. 22:10 So, Bill, you have received many privileges of service 22:13 before Bethel and your 40 years since you’ve been at Bethel. 22:17 One of the privileges that you have had is traveling to different branches 22:21 as a headquarters representative, or a zone overseer. 22:24 What are some memories you have of all those various visits? 22:28 It’s a very rich privilege to do it, Ron, 22:31 to serve at that time as a zone overseer. 22:34 The brothers receive you so well. 22:36 Basically, the zone overseer, or now the branch representative, 22:39 he goes to be of encouragement to brothers. 22:41 And he visits the branch; meets with all the Bethelites whenever possible; 22:45 tries to talk to all of them, giving encouragement; 22:48 meets with all of the missionaries in the country. 22:50 And you’re received so warmly. 22:53 I remember when Sandra and I visited Tahiti. 22:57 We flew into Tahiti —Papeete, Tahiti— 23:00 and it was three in the morning when we arrived. 23:04 The brothers were absolutely wonderful. 23:06 There were about 35 brothers waiting for us there, 23:09 piling flower leis upon us, giving us a kiss on each cheek. 23:13 But the warmth of the brothers and the joy of being 23:17 with the Bethel family was something. 23:19 Well, the one sister didn’t find any room 23:21 left on your cheeks, remember, she kissed you . . . 23:23 No. So I got a kiss on the top of the head. 23:25 But the joy of the brothers was just wonderful, 23:27 and we’ve had the great privilege of visiting a number of branches. 23:31 And I understand that you traveled to Bolivia, 23:33 and you had a nice experience in Bolivia. 23:36 I just loved this work because I got to play missionary when I was out there. 23:40 And, of course, my heart was always in the missionary field. 23:43 But I remember when we went to Bolivia; since it was a smaller branch, 23:47 I was allowed to go out and work in service with the missionaries. 23:51 And they came, and they picked me up at eight o’clock in the morning. 23:53 And they said, “We are going to take you out to a Mennonite colony.” 23:57 And so I left at eight, and I didn’t get back until eleven o’clock at night. 24:01 And I was a little bit disturbed about that hour. 24:04 That late for her getting back. 24:05 Well, you see, it’s a Mennonite community. 24:07 They don’t have electricity, and we didn’t have cell phones at that time, 24:11 so he had no idea what was happening to me. 24:14 But we studied all day with this family, 24:17 and eventually, by the way, they all came in to the truth. 24:21 And their experience came out in 2005, 24:25 September 1 issue of The Watchtower, 24:28 about this family of Mennonites that came into the truth. 24:31 And now the work is spreading like wildfire among the Mennonites. 24:35 But, anyway, toward the end of the day, it was getting near dusk 24:40 and the missionary (just to tease me) said to the family, 24:44 “Well, it’s time to milk the cows now. 24:47 So bring up the meanest one you’ve got, and ask Sandra to milk her.” 24:51 So, of course, he didn’t know I was raised on a farm. 24:54 Hmm. OK. 24:55 So it had rained all day, and it was muddy and nasty out there. 24:59 But I had my high heels on, silk blouse, earrings, but we went out to the barn. 25:05 And they gave me a bucket, and I was able to milk the cow. 25:09 What a nice experience. 25:09 And she wasn’t mean at all. 25:10 Well, I’m sure you have many more experiences 25:13 to let us know about, but we appreciate you sharing those. 25:16 The Governing Body has made significant adjustments 25:20 in the work that is taking place at Bethel and the field, 25:24 and it has affected many long-time faithful brothers 25:27 —loyal brothers in the traveling work, 25:30 overseers in the congregation, overseers at Bethel. 25:34 Bill, what do you think about some of these changes 25:38 that the Governing Body has made recently? 25:40 I think they’re very wise decisions. 25:42 They know what is needed; 25:44 they appreciate the older men who have served for years. 25:47 We know that the older brothers in circuit work, district work, 25:51 wherever, they’re “worthy of double honor” because of the way 25:54 they’ve given of themselves to the work. 25:57 But we have to recognize, too, there comes a time 26:00 when we want the younger men to come along, 26:03 to accept responsibility. 26:05 And, really, when we were young, 26:07 we received responsibilities with very little background and training. 26:12 Now we’ve got all these schools for Kingdom Evangelizers 26:15 and the Kingdom Ministry School. 26:18 So many opportunities for younger ones to be trained. 26:21 And so I think it’s a wonderful arrangement. 26:24 Many thousands of young men are doing so well, 26:27 ready to accept responsibility. 26:29 It’s a blessing for the entire organization. 26:32 Well, thank you for sharing that. 26:34 That’ll benefit many brothers. 26:36 So we look at this couple before us, 26:38 and we see some who have made wise choices along the way. 26:42 So we look back at over 60 years of faithful, loyal service. 26:45 As you look back at decisions 26:47 you made in life, any regrets? 26:51 Oh, absolutely none! 26:54 We consider that whatever 26:56 we have given up or done it’s been our gift to Jehovah. 27:01 You know, when I was a little girl, I remember I used to go out on our farm 27:05 and, especially when there was a full moon, I used to pray to Jehovah. 27:09 And I’d say, “Just let me use up my life in your service.” 27:13 You know, he’s answered that prayer because my life, 27:17 the majority of it, is used up and he’s let me do it in his service. 27:21 Sort of makes me think of one of my favorite scriptures, 27:24 Jeremiah 29:11. 27:26 It’s where Jehovah, referring to his faithful, loyal ones, says: 27:31 ‘I well know the thoughts I am thinking toward you, 27:35 not of calamity but of peace and a future and a hope.’ 27:40 Now the calamities that we face in life, 27:44 that doesn’t come from Jehovah; that comes from Satan’s wicked old world. 27:48 But Jehovah promises us peace, a future, and a hope. 27:53 Now, how could you not be loyal to such a God? 27:57 Beautiful. 27:58 Bill, how do you view sacrifices that you have made along the way? 28:01 Well, as you know, a sacrifice 28:03 can be something you give up to serve God, perhaps. 28:07 Or a sacrifice can be what you give to Jehovah, 28:10 like David said in Psalm 54. 28:12 “I will sacrifice to you willingly.” 28:14 And that’s how I view sacrifice. 28:18 We’re happy to give of ourselves to Jehovah God—to serve him. 28:22 And I want to add, too, Sandra has been 28:24 a wonderful partner with me —willing to go anywhere, 28:28 put up with all kinds of circumstances and difficulties, 28:31 never complaining about the travel 28:33 or whatever circumstances we found ourselves in, 28:37 living very close to the earth for a number of years as special pioneers. 28:42 But Jehovah has been with us. 28:45 A scripture that I— There are a number 28:47 of good Scriptures, obviously, that we all love. 28:49 But one in particular that stays in my mind 28:52 is Romans 14:7,8: 28:55 ‘We live, we live to Jehovah. 28:58 ‘We die, we die to Jehovah. 29:02 So whether we live or we die, we belong to Jehovah.’ 29:05 And we’ve made that decision, not just because he’s the Creator. 29:08 We’ve made the decision to give ourselves to Jehovah God. 29:12 So, absolutely, we’ve had the best life possible. 29:17 We have no regrets at all 29:20 about what we’ve done with our life, giving Jehovah the first place. 29:24 Bill and Sandra, it’s been a real privilege 29:27 to hear more about you, and I know there are more stories to tell. 29:30 How can you boil down 60-plus years of loyal service to Jehovah? 29:34 But you have given us great insights. 29:36 Thank you for sharing those gems with us.
00:00 Millions of our brothers and sisters around the world 00:03 can recount the blessings they’ve gained 00:05 by remaining loyal to Jehovah and his organization. 00:09 And we’re privileged to have two such examples here with us today: 00:13 Brother and Sister William and Sandra Malenfant. 00:16 Brother Malenfant is a helper to the Teaching Committee, 00:19 and Sister Malenfant’s current assignment is in the Service Department. 00:23 And we’re looking forward to hearing about their rich spiritual history. 00:27 So, Bill and Sandra, we’re so happy 00:29 that we could have you here in the studio with us, 00:32 and we do look forward to learning more about you. 00:34 Maybe we would like to go back. 00:36 How did you get on the road that has led you 00:39 to so many years of faithful, loyal service to Jehovah? 00:43 It was back in 1954. 00:45 My mother had contact on and off with the Witnesses for years. 00:49 I was about 20 years old, 00:51 and she was invited to a public talk 00:54 at the Oakland Central Congregation in California. 00:56 She asked me, “Would you accompany me?” 00:58 And I said: “Yeah. Sure, I’ll be happy to go.” 01:01 Well, I recognized a young man I knew from high school at the meeting, 01:05 and he approached me after and told me I needed a Bible study. 01:09 I really didn’t want a Bible study, but he insisted, 01:12 and so I said, “Well, you can come by.” 01:14 Would you believe it? 01:16 I started a Bible study in the “Let God Be True” book. 01:20 Four months later, I was baptized. 01:22 It was exactly what I was looking for, but I didn’t realize it. 01:26 Excellent! 01:27 Now, I understand that you were also very involved with sports. 01:31 Yes, I was playing ball for a basketball team in Alameda, 01:36 and I enjoyed very much playing ball. 01:39 But then, a decision came up as to what I was going to do 01:42 because the evenings when the team played was the same time 01:46 that we had the Service Meeting and the Theocratic Ministry School. 01:49 So I had to make a decision. 01:51 And my decision was: Forget the sports, 01:53 and let’s go to the meetings and enjoy being built up spiritually. 01:57 Good choice. Thank you. 01:58 And, Sandra, your start on the road to a career serving Jehovah? 02:03 I suppose you could say that it actually started before I was born. 02:07 Before I was born, my parents started on this search for the truth. 02:11 It happened because they had lost a little girl in death, 02:15 and they went from church to church looking for some kind of comfort. 02:19 And, of course, the clergy had no comfort for them. 02:21 They just said, “Well, God wanted another angel in heaven.” 02:25 And that angered my father. He thought: ‘No. 02:28 ‘If God wants another angel, he can make one. 02:31 He wouldn’t take my little girl!’ 02:33 So it just happened 02:35 that one evening they were listening to the radio 02:38 —long before TV, of course— 02:40 and they heard a Jehovah’s Witness give a talk. 02:44 And the title of that talk was “Where Are the Dead?” 02:47 Imagine! 02:48 He gave all the Scriptural proof about the condition of the dead 02:51 and the hope for the resurrection. 02:54 And my father immediately said, “This is the truth!” 02:57 So they wrote to the radio station; 03:01 got a copy of the booklet of the talk; 03:04 and then, also, they started receiving 03:07 the subscription to The Watchtower. 03:09 But it wasn’t until I was born and three years old 03:12 that the Witnesses finally made contact with us. 03:14 Interesting. 03:15 In fact, it was interesting. 03:17 It was a real cold winter day, and even though I was only three years old, 03:20 I remember this family coming in. 03:22 And they stayed hours. 03:25 I even hid in the closet and went to sleep. 03:27 But, you know, it was just— 03:30 It was that contact with the visible organization 03:32 that my family needed. 03:34 Because they knew much of the truth. 03:36 They’d been reading The Watchtower for a long time. 03:38 So my elder sisters, they got baptized right away and started pioneering. 03:43 For my brother and I —we were a lot smaller, of course— 03:47 we just went along with our parents and came right into the truth. 03:51 In fact, I remember, it was just a couple of years later 03:54 that we were all going to go to the big convention 03:58 in 1950 at Yankee Stadium. 04:02 But I knew there was going to be a big baptism there, 04:05 but I wanted to go as a baptized Jehovah’s Witness. 04:08 So my father— Everybody made arrangements, 04:11 and my father baptized me 04:13 in our pond on our farm 04:15 with another young sister. 04:16 Is that right? 04:17 So that was my beginning. 04:19 You know, Ron, there’s a point I’d like to recall also. 04:22 Sandra was at a special convention back in 1941. 04:27 That’s true, even before that. 04:30 That was probably my first, you know, big event theocratically. 04:34 Our family—my brother was four years older than I, 04:38 along with my parents— we went to the St. Louis convention 04:43 where Brother Rutherford gave his famous talk on children. 04:48 And they separated— The lower level 04:50 of this place that they rented, this stadium, 04:53 was dedicated to just the young children, 04:55 well, from 5 to 18 years of age. 04:58 And it was just fantastic, you know, with this man. 05:02 When you’re small, this man would look so big and huge, 05:05 and he had this great big voice. 05:07 And I’ll never forget when he looked out on the audience, and he said: 05:12 “Behold, more than 15,000 new witnesses to the Kingdom!” 05:17 So it was very emotional. 05:19 Oh, you still remember it like it happened yesterday. 05:20 Oh, yes! 05:21 Right, how exciting! 05:23 So, what motivated you to make a choice 05:25 to get into the full-time service and give your life to Jehovah? 05:29 Well, what motivated me 05:31 was when I attended a convention, also in ’56. 05:35 I got baptized in ’54. 05:37 But in ’56, I went to a district convention in Albany, California, 05:41 and there was a pioneer booth. 05:43 Because in those days they had a booth set up at the district conventions, 05:46 and various brothers and sisters would man the booth 05:48 and answer your questions about pioneer service. 05:51 So I approached the booth, and an older sister there looked at me 05:54 and said: “You’re young and strong. 05:56 Why aren’t you a pioneer?” 05:58 I felt, ‘Well, yes. Why not?’ 06:00 So I started pioneering in 1956. 06:03 That’s what motivated me. 06:05 And I was— Really, I look back at that; 06:07 it was one of the best decisions I made in my life. 06:09 Excellent! 06:10 Yeah, so you have been making wise decisions from your youth up. 06:13 Sandra, how about you? 06:15 Motivated to get into full-time service. 06:17 Well, for pioneer service, you know, it was—it was like a given. 06:21 Young people were just encouraged to pioneer. 06:24 And you knew that when you graduated from high school, 06:27 you started out pioneering. 06:29 And most of the young people were doing that. 06:31 You know, after a year or two, maybe they would get married and start a family. 06:35 But those years in pioneering —starting out their life that way— 06:39 gave them a wonderful basis for loyal service the rest of their life. 06:44 And not only that, I remember that in those days 06:48 the traveling overseer would stay in the homes 06:51 of the brothers when he served the congregation. 06:53 And we always played host 06:55 to the circuit overseer and his wife when they came. 06:58 And for my brother and I, they were role models. 07:01 My sisters, as I told you, were out pioneering in another assignment. 07:05 But for us, these brothers were so full of zeal, 07:08 and they were like heroes to us. 07:11 In particular, I remember when I was, I think, about 12 years old. 07:15 This couple came around on the circuit, Percy and Ilma Iszlaub, 07:19 they were from Australia and, of course, we loved their accent too. 07:23 And they had just graduated from Gilead, 07:26 and they were assigned to Japan, 07:28 but they had to wait a number of months to get their visa. 07:31 They served in our congregation, 07:33 and it was really them that instilled in me 07:36 the desire to become a missionary. 07:38 Beautiful. 07:40 So you were pioneering. 07:42 How did your paths eventually meet? 07:44 It was at a circuit assembly 07:46 in Oakland, California, 1956. 07:50 Very interesting things took place. 07:53 I had the job of dismantling the stage. 07:56 I had not yet met Sandra. 07:58 She was out visiting her sister who lived in the same area where I was. 08:03 And I was carrying this large piece of plywood off the stage, 08:06 and I ran right into Sandra and knocked her flat! 08:09 Well, I took advantage of the opportunity. 08:11 I thought, ‘Well, that’s not the best way to introduce yourself.’ 08:15 But I said, “By the way, would you like to accompany me 08:18 to a get-together some of the friends are having?” 08:20 And she accepted. And . . . 08:22 Very good, Bill. 08:23 Well, yes, and I followed through on it. 08:25 We had a lot of association, 08:27 and after a number of months, we got married. 08:30 And both of us were pioneering 08:32 —very happy in our ministry serving Jehovah. 08:34 You really swept her off her feet. Literally. 08:36 I fell for him. 08:38 Very good. 08:38 So, shortly after you were married, 08:41 I understand that you received some direction. 08:43 Yes, the circuit overseer visited our congregation. 08:46 We were only married about a month, I think, when he came through. 08:49 I think so. 08:50 And he told us that the organization was looking for pioneers 08:54 who’d be willing to serve as special pioneers and go wherever, 08:57 where the need was great in the United States particularly. 09:00 So we told him: “Sure. We’d be delighted to do it.” 09:04 And four months after our marriage, 09:07 we received an assignment as special pioneers to Decorah, Iowa. 09:11 Now, that was a very interesting place 09:13 because there were only eight publishers in the congregation. 09:16 But we arrived and started with the meetings 09:19 there at the Kingdom Hall. 09:21 And the Kingdom Hall was up above Hunt’s Variety Store 09:23 in downtown Decorah, and we lived in a room behind it. 09:27 Well, sometimes, especially during the wintertime 09:30 because it could be very cold, there’d be no one at the meeting. 09:33 After all, there were only eight publishers. 09:35 But I was insisting that: 09:37 “No, I’m going to give my public talk, whether anyone is here or not.” 09:41 So I’d tell Sandra, “You sit there, and I’ll give my public talk.” 09:44 A one hour talk, and then I’d conduct the Watchtower Study 09:48 and have her answer every question. 09:50 Well, you know, you’re on your own like that 09:52 —not a lot of brothers around— 09:54 so you look for encouragement and company. 09:56 And we would travel down to Strawberry Point, Iowa, 09:59 to where Charles and Shirley Sinutko lived 10:03 in a log cabin —one-room log cabin. 10:06 And we’d go visit with them in order to have some mutual encouragement. 10:09 Yeah, because they were special pioneering also. 10:12 OK. Well, you were both special. 10:14 It’s a nice picture of you in that log cabin too 10:16 as you were special pioneering. 10:18 So you’re busy in that work. 10:20 What special invitation did you receive? 10:22 Well, we received the invitation to attend Gilead 10:26 —the 34th class of Gilead School— 10:29 and that was a wonderful thing after two and half years of pioneering, 10:32 special pioneering in Iowa. 10:34 Our instructors were Albert Schroeder, Maxwell Friend, 10:38 Bob Porter, and Jack Redford. 10:41 And we had a delightful time at Gilead, as you can imagine. 10:46 And we were assigned to Lebanon, 10:48 but we were unable to enter Lebanon because we couldn’t get the visa. 10:53 So, then, the organization asked us, 10:55 “Well, will you take an assignment to Morocco?” 10:57 We were ready to go anywhere. 10:59 We were pioneering with the Canarsie Congregation 11:01 just waiting to go out into the field. 11:04 So that’s how we took a boat from New York City 11:06 —five days across the Atlantic— to Casablanca. 11:09 Very nice. 11:11 Well, what was it like to be in the missionary service in Morocco? 11:14 It was very interesting. 11:17 We really enjoyed it. But, you know, we only spoke English. 11:19 So in Morocco, we had to learn French. 11:22 And the first month of our missionary service in Morocco, 11:26 for 30 days we studied the language 11 hours a day. 11:30 Well, that could get pretty tiring for 11 hours a day, 11:33 so we’d go to the French movies and count that as language time. 11:36 And then, we were moved to Tangier. 11:39 And there was a Spanish congregation in Tangier, 11:41 so we had to learn the Spanish language too. 11:44 But that was really a rich blessing 11:47 for the two of us to be exposed to that culture 11:49 and to have that privilege of serving there. 11:52 But you know what I really enjoyed? 11:54 We had a variety of people we preached to. 11:57 We had a very large Jewish population, 12:00 and they were almost all Orthodox. 12:02 But, you know, they were very forthright, 12:05 and they were open and quite curious. 12:08 You know, like they’d come up to us sometimes and say: 12:11 “Well, you’re Christian, aren’t you? 12:13 Why do you accept Jesus as the Messiah?” 12:15 So we had to get familiar with a lot of scriptures, you know, 12:19 that dealt with the prophecies the Messiah would fulfill, in the Hebrew Scriptures. 12:23 And really, it was a delight. 12:25 Sandra, do you remember, there were a lot of French people in Morocco? 12:29 Because it used to be a colony under France, 12:32 so that’s why the French language was so important. 12:35 And then we had Spanish people and many other nationalities there. 12:39 So you had four years of serving in Morocco 12:42 —faithfully, loyally meeting all those of different languages 12:45 and learning the language yourself. 12:47 So after four years, I understand that you came back to visit your family. 12:52 What events were challenging thereafter? 12:55 I think Sandra can relate that. 12:57 Well, it was usually permitted 13:00 that after you were in your assignment four years, 13:02 then you were allowed to come home 13:04 and at least have a vacation and visit your family. 13:06 And so we made arrangements to come back. 13:09 We got some tickets on a Yugoslav freighter; 13:13 took us two weeks to get back to New York. 13:16 But we got back. 13:17 We visited our family, and while there, 13:21 I had a medical examination and found out that I had a serious health problem. 13:26 Of course, we didn’t have the funds to cover that. 13:28 So Bill wrote to the Society, and we made arrangements. 13:32 They said, “Well, just take care of your situation, 13:35 and let us know when you’re free.” 13:37 So he got a job to take care 13:39 of our medical needs as well as living conditions. 13:42 But you know, we just felt like we were failures. 13:46 I’d always wanted to be a missionary, 13:49 and there we were four years into our assignment, 13:51 and we come back and poof! 13:54 We’re just there. 13:55 But, you know, Jehovah knew we were discouraged. 13:58 He knew we felt distraught about this. 14:00 So he knew just what we needed, and he gave it to us. 14:04 As I got to feeling better and we got more free 14:08 in our use of time, we started pioneering. 14:11 And Jehovah blessed our ministry just incredibly. 14:15 There were times, in this supposedly “unproductive territory” 14:20 that we had up to 25 people attending the meetings. 14:23 Many of them got baptized, and they’re our fast friends to this day. 14:27 That’s incredible! 14:28 So Jehovah knows what you need, and he provides it. 14:30 That is beautiful! 14:33 What temptation did you have to resist 14:35 when you came back and were going through these difficulties? 14:38 Well, I think it’s a temptation that confronts 14:41 a lot of brothers and sisters who return because of health reasons, 14:45 and some just end up settling down because of their circumstances. 14:49 But the temptation there was: ‘Well, you’re home. 14:52 ‘You’ve already done your service in Morocco for a number of years. 14:56 ‘You’ve been in the full-time ministry. 14:57 Just settle down now. Buy a house.’ 15:00 But really, that wasn’t our desire. 15:03 So as soon as Sandra got on her feet 15:05 and was feeling well enough, we got pioneering. 15:08 And then I wrote headquarters, and I said: ‘Here we are. 15:10 ‘We’re ready to take on whatever. 15:12 What would you like us to do?’ 15:14 You know, I’d like to say here, Ron, 15:16 that I really appreciate Bill as my spiritual head 15:21 because even though these things presented themselves 15:24 in the course of our theocratic history, 15:27 he was always quick to accept the responsibility of what we felt 15:32 was our spiritual, familial, and moral responsibility 15:36 but as soon as these obligations were taken care of, 15:39 he was very quick to get us back on the road 15:41 to meet our spiritual goals that we had. 15:44 And I really do appreciate that. 15:46 Good example. Thank you. 15:47 So you made yourself available to the organization. 15:50 Where did they send you next? 15:52 A wonderful assignment. 15:54 We were sent as special pioneers to Washington D.C., 15:58 to help start a Spanish congregation. 16:02 And that was indeed a very rich blessing. 16:05 We were there a year and a half 16:08 until that little congregation was solid and was formed. 16:12 And then we received another blessing. 16:14 We were appointed to the circuit work. 16:17 So I had the Spanish circuit in Florida 16:19 from Key West to Orlando —one circuit in the whole state. 16:24 Then we came to New York City —lived in the Bronx. 16:27 I had a circuit, and we did district work in the Spanish field. 16:31 Then, to Texas 16:33 —to what they call the Valley of Texas, the Rio Grande Valley— 16:35 for a couple of years in the circuit. 16:37 Then the district in Spanish 16:40 from Houston, Texas, to Yuba City, California. 16:43 And we loved every minute of it. 16:45 Well, that’s definitely the traveling work. 16:47 I know you were in that work for nearly ten years, 16:50 so I’m sure you really benefited 16:52 a lot of brothers and sisters along the way. 16:54 Then 1977 rolls around and you receive another invitation. 16:57 Yes, indeed! 16:58 We were doing preconvention work 17:01 in the L.A. area at the Leimert Assembly Hall, 17:04 and we received a letter inviting us to come to Bethel. 17:09 That was a very, very special privilege: to be invited to Bethel. 17:13 I went into the Service Department, 17:15 because at that time they invited a number of traveling overseers 17:18 to come in and work in the Service Department, 17:21 and Sandra went into housekeeping. 17:23 And we were both delighted to come to Bethel. 17:26 Well, sort of. 17:28 I really loved the ministry; 17:31 I loved, especially, the district work 17:34 —being with the circuit overseer and his wife 17:36 every week and out in service. 17:38 So I wasn’t too anxious for this Bethel thing. 17:42 But, you know. Jehovah, again, knows what you need. 17:46 We came here, and we started adjusting to Bethel life. 17:50 And it really proved out to be a real blessing 17:54 because we got the close association 17:57 with so many other loyal Witnesses of Jehovah. 18:00 Yes. And then for the rest of us 18:03 that have been able to work with you over the decades, 18:05 we appreciate your loyal example and working with you. 18:07 But, I understand that shortly after you arrived to Bethel, 18:10 you also received some challenging family difficulties 18:14 that you needed to deal with. 18:16 Yes, Sandra had an older sister who needed help. 18:19 Yeah. We were still adjusting, like I said. 18:22 And we heard that one of my older sisters, 18:26 who had spent most of her life in the pioneer service, 18:29 she had now entered the terminal stages in her long fight with cancer, 18:33 and she needed some homecare. 18:37 And the brothers in the organization were very kind to me, 18:42 and they allowed me some free time to go 18:44 and care for that responsibility. 18:46 Then, it was just a few years later 18:48 that my mother was facing a similar situation. 18:51 And this time, again, the brothers allowed 18:55 both Bill and me to be free to go back there. 18:58 My mother was now aged 89. 19:01 She had health situations and she lived alone, so she needed care. 19:05 And again they allowed us this time; we went back. 19:08 And just as in the case with my sister, 19:11 I was able to keep my mother home just until she died. 19:16 And, you know, we appreciate so much being granted that free time. 19:20 Even though when we left, 19:22 we didn’t know if it might mean the end of our Bethel career. 19:26 But again we felt the need to fulfill that responsibility. 19:30 And, you know, Ron, it was-it was a bittersweet experience. 19:34 This is Satan’s wicked world; death is our enemy. 19:38 And it hurts to see a loved one suffer. 19:41 But, you know, there’s the sweet side of it too, 19:45 because we had shared some wonderful moments 19:48 together with my family and experiences, shared experiences. 19:52 And we felt good that we had been able 19:55 to help these people that had been mentors for us. 19:59 Yes. So loyalty to your family and loyalty to Jehovah. 20:02 Exactly. 20:03 So you returned back to Bethel. 20:05 You were busy in your assignments. 20:07 And, as you mentioned, you worked with many loyal ones at Bethel. 20:10 Could you share one such experience of a loyal sister? 20:13 Oh yes. 20:14 I was assigned to the Alterations Department, 20:16 the Sewing Department. 20:18 And recently before that, 20:21 Sister Gertrude and her husband, Martin Poetzinger, 20:24 had been called into Bethel, and he was a member of the Governing Body. 20:27 And she had been trained under a tailor, so she was excellent in alterations. 20:32 But most valuable were our spiritual conversations. 20:36 I learned so much from that sister. 20:38 Once, we were talking —a group of us— 20:41 about what our relationship to Jehovah really means. 20:45 And Gertrude gave us her idea, 20:48 her understanding, of her relationship with Jehovah. 20:51 She said, “You know, sometimes in life a situation presents itself, 20:56 “and it’s so personal and so touching 21:00 that you don’t tell anybody about it —except Jehovah, of course.” 21:04 And she said: “So you pray to Jehovah, and you pray to Jehovah. 21:09 And then pass a little time, and you feel he’s answered your prayer.” 21:13 She said: “You know, that is like a little thread 21:15 “that unites you with Jehovah. 21:18 “Now, this is the only person in the universe 21:22 “that shares this experience with you. 21:24 “So it’s very personal. 21:26 “OK. Time goes by; 21:28 “another situation presents itself, and you pray again. 21:32 “Well, here is another thread. 21:34 “And over a period of time, you’ve got a bunch of threads 21:37 connecting you with Jehovah.” 21:40 And she said, “And those threads are all knitted together, 21:44 and they form a cord that unites you with Jehovah.” 21:48 And then she’d say, “And don’t you ever do anything 21:51 to endanger that relationship.” 21:54 But, to me, it just— It really hit my heart. 21:56 I thought, ‘This is so true.’ 21:59 Our relationship with Jehovah and our loyalty to him 22:02 has to be the first important thing in our life. 22:05 Well, thank you for sharing that. 22:07 That has affected all of our hearts. Appreciate that. 22:10 So, Bill, you have received many privileges of service 22:13 before Bethel and your 40 years since you’ve been at Bethel. 22:17 One of the privileges that you have had is traveling to different branches 22:21 as a headquarters representative, or a zone overseer. 22:24 What are some memories you have of all those various visits? 22:28 It’s a very rich privilege to do it, Ron, 22:31 to serve at that time as a zone overseer. 22:34 The brothers receive you so well. 22:36 Basically, the zone overseer, or now the branch representative, 22:39 he goes to be of encouragement to brothers. 22:41 And he visits the branch; meets with all the Bethelites whenever possible; 22:45 tries to talk to all of them, giving encouragement; 22:48 meets with all of the missionaries in the country. 22:50 And you’re received so warmly. 22:53 I remember when Sandra and I visited Tahiti. 22:57 We flew into Tahiti —Papeete, Tahiti— 23:00 and it was three in the morning when we arrived. 23:04 The brothers were absolutely wonderful. 23:06 There were about 35 brothers waiting for us there, 23:09 piling flower leis upon us, giving us a kiss on each cheek. 23:13 But the warmth of the brothers and the joy of being 23:17 with the Bethel family was something. 23:19 Well, the one sister didn’t find any room 23:21 left on your cheeks, remember, she kissed you . . . 23:23 No. So I got a kiss on the top of the head. 23:25 But the joy of the brothers was just wonderful, 23:27 and we’ve had the great privilege of visiting a number of branches. 23:31 And I understand that you traveled to Bolivia, 23:33 and you had a nice experience in Bolivia. 23:36 I just loved this work because I got to play missionary when I was out there. 23:40 And, of course, my heart was always in the missionary field. 23:43 But I remember when we went to Bolivia; since it was a smaller branch, 23:47 I was allowed to go out and work in service with the missionaries. 23:51 And they came, and they picked me up at eight o’clock in the morning. 23:53 And they said, “We are going to take you out to a Mennonite colony.” 23:57 And so I left at eight, and I didn’t get back until eleven o’clock at night. 24:01 And I was a little bit disturbed about that hour. 24:04 That late for her getting back. 24:05 Well, you see, it’s a Mennonite community. 24:07 They don’t have electricity, and we didn’t have cell phones at that time, 24:11 so he had no idea what was happening to me. 24:14 But we studied all day with this family, 24:17 and eventually, by the way, they all came in to the truth. 24:21 And their experience came out in 2005, 24:25 September 1 issue of The Watchtower, 24:28 about this family of Mennonites that came into the truth. 24:31 And now the work is spreading like wildfire among the Mennonites. 24:35 But, anyway, toward the end of the day, it was getting near dusk 24:40 and the missionary (just to tease me) said to the family, 24:44 “Well, it’s time to milk the cows now. 24:47 So bring up the meanest one you’ve got, and ask Sandra to milk her.” 24:51 So, of course, he didn’t know I was raised on a farm. 24:54 Hmm. OK. 24:55 So it had rained all day, and it was muddy and nasty out there. 24:59 But I had my high heels on, silk blouse, earrings, but we went out to the barn. 25:05 And they gave me a bucket, and I was able to milk the cow. 25:09 What a nice experience. 25:09 And she wasn’t mean at all. 25:10 Well, I’m sure you have many more experiences 25:13 to let us know about, but we appreciate you sharing those. 25:16 The Governing Body has made significant adjustments 25:20 in the work that is taking place at Bethel and the field, 25:24 and it has affected many long-time faithful brothers 25:27 —loyal brothers in the traveling work, 25:30 overseers in the congregation, overseers at Bethel. 25:34 Bill, what do you think about some of these changes 25:38 that the Governing Body has made recently? 25:40 I think they’re very wise decisions. 25:42 They know what is needed; 25:44 they appreciate the older men who have served for years. 25:47 We know that the older brothers in circuit work, district work, 25:51 wherever, they’re “worthy of double honor” because of the way 25:54 they’ve given of themselves to the work. 25:57 But we have to recognize, too, there comes a time 26:00 when we want the younger men to come along, 26:03 to accept responsibility. 26:05 And, really, when we were young, 26:07 we received responsibilities with very little background and training. 26:12 Now we’ve got all these schools for Kingdom Evangelizers 26:15 and the Kingdom Ministry School. 26:18 So many opportunities for younger ones to be trained. 26:21 And so I think it’s a wonderful arrangement. 26:24 Many thousands of young men are doing so well, 26:27 ready to accept responsibility. 26:29 It’s a blessing for the entire organization. 26:32 Well, thank you for sharing that. 26:34 That’ll benefit many brothers. 26:36 So we look at this couple before us, 26:38 and we see some who have made wise choices along the way. 26:42 So we look back at over 60 years of faithful, loyal service. 26:45 As you look back at decisions 26:47 you made in life, any regrets? 26:51 Oh, absolutely none! 26:54 We consider that whatever 26:56 we have given up or done it’s been our gift to Jehovah. 27:01 You know, when I was a little girl, I remember I used to go out on our farm 27:05 and, especially when there was a full moon, I used to pray to Jehovah. 27:09 And I’d say, “Just let me use up my life in your service.” 27:13 You know, he’s answered that prayer because my life, 27:17 the majority of it, is used up and he’s let me do it in his service. 27:21 Sort of makes me think of one of my favorite scriptures, 27:24 Jeremiah 29:11. 27:26 It’s where Jehovah, referring to his faithful, loyal ones, says: 27:31 ‘I well know the thoughts I am thinking toward you, 27:35 not of calamity but of peace and a future and a hope.’ 27:40 Now the calamities that we face in life, 27:44 that doesn’t come from Jehovah; that comes from Satan’s wicked old world. 27:48 But Jehovah promises us peace, a future, and a hope. 27:53 Now, how could you not be loyal to such a God? 27:57 Beautiful. 27:58 Bill, how do you view sacrifices that you have made along the way? 28:01 Well, as you know, a sacrifice 28:03 can be something you give up to serve God, perhaps. 28:07 Or a sacrifice can be what you give to Jehovah, 28:10 like David said in Psalm 54. 28:12 “I will sacrifice to you willingly.” 28:14 And that’s how I view sacrifice. 28:18 We’re happy to give of ourselves to Jehovah God—to serve him. 28:22 And I want to add, too, Sandra has been 28:24 a wonderful partner with me —willing to go anywhere, 28:28 put up with all kinds of circumstances and difficulties, 28:31 never complaining about the travel 28:33 or whatever circumstances we found ourselves in, 28:37 living very close to the earth for a number of years as special pioneers. 28:42 But Jehovah has been with us. 28:45 A scripture that I— There are a number 28:47 of good Scriptures, obviously, that we all love. 28:49 But one in particular that stays in my mind 28:52 is Romans 14:7,8: 28:55 ‘We live, we live to Jehovah. 28:58 ‘We die, we die to Jehovah. 29:02 So whether we live or we die, we belong to Jehovah.’ 29:05 And we’ve made that decision, not just because he’s the Creator. 29:08 We’ve made the decision to give ourselves to Jehovah God. 29:12 So, absolutely, we’ve had the best life possible. 29:17 We have no regrets at all 29:20 about what we’ve done with our life, giving Jehovah the first place. 29:24 Bill and Sandra, it’s been a real privilege 29:27 to hear more about you, and I know there are more stories to tell. 29:30 How can you boil down 60-plus years of loyal service to Jehovah? 29:34 But you have given us great insights. 29:36 Thank you for sharing those gems with us.
