Monthly Archives: January 2023
On November 12th, 2022, my nephew, Allen Beach and his wife, Gaby “left Wyoming in the rearview mirror” on their way to Eugene, Oregon. We were all sorry to see them go. They had been here for over two years, and it was really the first time they had been so near to this side of the family…since Allen was in middle school. So much has changed in the years since Allen was a kid. He graduated from high school and joined the Navy. His tour of duty would take him to Japan, where he met his beautiful wife, while both were corpsmen stationed there. They are so well suited for each other. They are both athletic people who love hiking and traveling. Which might also be part of the draw toward Oregon. Lots of beautiful places to hike…not to mention that Gaby is originally from Oregon, and they both knew deep down that they would most likely end up there.
Their college behind them, Gaby is a nurse, and Allen has a degree in Hospital Administration. Allen was hired by Wyoming Medical Center as the department manager over the Referral and Communications Departments. Later, he also became department manager over the EMS Department, but once again, things changed, and the hospital changed hands. Allen’s job was eliminated, so he and Gaby opted for the move to Oregon. Gaby found a job as a nurse for the Veterans Administration, and she likes it very much. Allen is looking at several options there, and while he is weighing the options, he is working on getting them settled in. For now, they have decided to lease an apartment. That will give them time to become acquainted with their new city and to decide in which part of town they would like to live.
Moving to Oregon is a new adventure for them, but not their first move. Their naval careers and college days have taken them to many different locations, including the time in Japan and also time at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland. They also took a trip to Bali, which was where Allen proposed to Gaby. I’m sure they will take lots of trips in the future, even if they don’t move again. Today is Allen’s birthday. Happy birthday Allen!! Have a great day!! We love you!!
As a kid, and especially as a teenager…those stupid ‘I know everything’ years, I like many kids thought my mother, Collene Spencer couldn’t possibly understand life as it was in my day. I think we all thought our parents were ‘older than dirt’ in our teen years. Then, we grow up and become parents, and suddenly, we find out how much our parents really did know. I found out that my mom was really a wise woman. Yes, she was wise in the ways of raising a family and managing a household, but my mom was also very wise in the ways of the Lord. I think if she had chosen to, she could have been an evangelist…not that she wasn’t really. What ’embarrassed’ me, was simply my mom telling anyone who would listen, about the Lord. When this happened in stores and such, I wanted to crawl under the floor. I kept thinking, “Mom, they don’t want to hear that…from you or anyone else!! Please leave them alone!!” Of course, I was wrong to do that. Mom saw what I didn’t…a person in need of the Lord. I can only imagine how many people she brought to Jesus…either that she knew of or that she never knew of. Knowing my mom, she immediately claimed Isaiah 55:11 over them, which says, “So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.”
Mom knew her Bible, and could be found reading it, listening to it, or listening to Bible teachings every day…pretty much all day. It was only after her passing on February 22, 2015, that I really knew that quietly, behind the scenes, my mom had been ‘secretly’ sharing the gospel with people, and many were saved because of her. She also had a way of being a type of counselor to people…not people with real big problems, necessarily, but just a person who could be counted on to listen when needed. That truly was my mom. She always had an ear to hear, and a caring heart. She was a person who always gave of herself and anything she had, if someone needed it. So many people have told me since her graduation to Heaven, that she was there for them with just the right words, when they needed them most. It was truly ‘Mom’s Secret Legacy’ and so welcomed by so many.
It was her secret, probably because she knew that her girls (I was probably the worst) would try to have her not do the work she felt led to do. She did of course, talk to all of her family, as well as her siblings and Dad’s 
siblings…whether we wanted her to or not. She wanted all of us to be in Heaven with he when our turn came…and how thankful we all are that she was that way. We all think of a legacy as something that just happens easily, but it isn’t it takes work, time, and sacrifice, and most people do it without even knowing that they are building a legacy. That was my mom, exactly!! Today would have been my mom’s 87th birthday…our New Year’s Baby!! Happy birthday in Heaven, Mom!! I know you and Dad are having the time of your lives!! We love and miss you both very much, and we can’t wait to see you again!!
