I only met Amy twice: once a few years ago and when she visited our church a couple weeks ago. A dedicated wife and mother, Amy passed away Wednesday. She was thirty years old. Amy's husband, Chad, is a minister near Falmouth, Kentucky. I'm really not close friends with him [Aaron and him grew up together], but I've known him for about seven years now. When I first met him, he wasn't even in the ministry; he was working for his dad's printing company. But he answered a call to the Antioch Mills Christian Church as their youth minister, later becoming their preacher.
I've written about it before, but the ministry is a different profession; it's unlike any other job I know. Because of that, there's a certain camaraderie among ministers. That's why, despite Kelly being in the hospital, I knew I had to go to the visitation tonight.
Their church, where the visitation was held, is in the middle of nowhere; it's small town. There was a police officer directing traffic because the crowd was so large. We waited in line two hours just to get to see the family. There were hundreds of people there. It was an amazing sight; an incredible testimony to Amy's life.
Chad said in Amy's obituary that, "she was a joy to be around. She was generous and always giving. It didn't matter if it was money or cooking a meal for somebody or just teaching a [church] class, it was always about other people. Just to walk with her made you want to give and give and give."
Amy played piano at the church. This past Sunday, two days before her death and weakened by her illness, she forced herself to get out of bed and play for the morning worship service.
But perhaps more meaningful than all of this were the words of a guy I stood next to in line named Charlie. Charlie was an older gentleman who lived his entire life in the Falmouth area. I struck up a conversation with him and discovered he attended Antioch Mills. He had nothing but great words about the Doerrs and the church. "Those people have made a huge difference around here," Charlie told me. And as his voice began to quiver he added, "everybody loved her. This is the biggest viewing I've seen in this county in all my life." You never know how your life has affected others. A simple conversation with Charlie showed me that Amy touched lives everywhere she went, even the life of a rugged old country boy.
Thank God for people like Amy who fight the good fight and finish the race strong. If my daughter can be half the woman that she was, she'll do well for herself.
Keep Chad and their daughter Emrie in your prayers.