For a little more than two years, my wife Darla and I have been serving as layworkers in a small inner-city church (Memorial Baptist) in New York City's borough of Brooklyn. We've done a little bit of everything, and it has been good for us to do so (especially as newlyweds).
Darla has had a good job as an administrative assistant at Pfizer Pharmaceuticals in Manhattan. The Lord saw fit not to provide a job for me, so I began a freelance marketing/advertising/public relations company out of our apartment.
Now, after two years in NYC, the Lord is guiding us on to the next stage of life. A week ago, I accepted a position as Sports Editor at a newspaper in Virginia. In this position, I will be responsible for the sports writing and photography and for the layout of the sports section. I will also report a few times a month on agriculture topics. This will be a great combination of my interests/skills.
My beat will cover mostly local high school sports (football and baseball are probably the most popular). In the summer, area towns field teams in a developmental baseball league. The teams consist of college baseball players keeping up their skills in the summer. Many of the players get drafted out of these leagues into the minor leagues. I'll cover those games, too.
I'll go to games many evenings, but it looks like Wed and Sun evenings will be free. Since I'll go to games, I won't be working 9-5. My schedule will be somewhat flexible, and I will be able to continue my freelancing!
The paper (Page News and Courier) covers Page County, VA and is based in the beautiful Shenandoah Valley town of Luray. Luray is best known for the Shenandoah National Park with its Skyline Drive and for Luray Caverns, the largest caverns in the eastern U.S. The best part of the location is that it is only 15 miles (approximately) from my grandmother, who at 94 still is on her own. She gets along fine, but we'll be glad to be nearby.
I anticipate learning a lot in this new position. However, I also feel that I will be able to contribute a lot to the paper. The general editor is a friendly guy who I think will be good to work under.
My first day will be Wednesday, Aug 6. Darla will likely stay in NYC for another two weeks, and then it looks like we'll actually move mid-August. We appreciate your prayers as we pack, leave the church people we've worked with, move, and set up our new lives. Lord willing, I will procure housing later this week.
Unfortunately, Pfizer's closest location is in the Washington, DC suburbs two hours away. So Darla will be looking for a good job in our new area. Hopefully there will be something that can fully use her abilities.
If you're ever traveling I-81 through the northern part of the Shenandoah Valley, you should stop in and see us.
(Also, if you received an e-mail about this blog entry, and you do not wish to receive future e-mails, e-mail John.)
Posted by JRC at July 21, 2003 10:39 AM