THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, September 30, 1994 TAG: 9409280144
SECTION: CHESAPEAKE CLIPPER PAGE: 03 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JANELLE LA BOUVE, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Long : 110 lines
ASK MARY McDONALD of Chesapeake how she keeps so active at the age of 83 and she'll say, ``I'd rather wear out than rust out.''
McDonald's many years of service to her church and as a volunteer at Tidewater Detention Home and with Families United Against Drugs were recognized last week at a special service at Little Zion Baptist Church in Oak Grove.
Wearing pearls at the neck of her blue and gray floral print dress, McDonald was ushered into the church sanctuary on the arm of Herbert Stancil, deacon emeritus.
About 70 people of all ages sang her praises in speeches, songs and prayers.
McDonald's pride was evident as her great-grandson, Quinton Gatling, labored to pin a corsage of red and white carnations on her dress.
``We take great pride in honoring Mother Mary McDonald,'' said her pastor, the Rev. Stanley D. Shepherd. ``She has the kind of spirit that reaches out to people. . . . She deserves this service of honor.''
After she received a bouquet of red roses, there were plaudits by representatives from most of the organizations within the church and the community.
``She is loving, faithful, humble and full of the Holy Spirit,'' said Ethel Grandy before she planted one of many kisses on McDonald's cheek. ``Mother, you have given the world the best you have. Now the best is coming back to you.''
McDonald swayed to the music and whispered hallelujahs as Emily Sutton and the Rev. Dave Libengood, pastor of Immanuel Baptist Church, sang solos in her honor.
Deaconess Myrtle Rawles, a representative of the Missionary Circle, told the group how McDonald copes with arthritis in her legs.
``One Sunday morning she told me that she didn't feel so good,'' Rawles said. ``The next thing I knew, she was up in the choir singing like a teenager. She can't get around very well herself, but she never fails to call when other people are sick.''
Without shyness, four young people paid their tributes to Mother Mary.
``The gift of years is an invisible package that must be opened and enjoyed one day at a time,'' Paula Worlds said. ``She knows it's not where you've been but where you're going that counts.''
The Rev. J.C. Jones, senior chaplain for the City Jail and the Tidewater Detention Home, gave McDonald a certificate of appreciation, then read letters from female inmates.
One inmate wrote: ``I've seen an angel. I've seen Jesus. Thank you for the visits.''
Jones has worked with McDonald four years in the jail ministry.
``She's faithful,'' Jones said. ``She has infirmities, but she just keeps on going. She's pretty straightforward with the inmates. More than anything else, she inspires people. She speaks from wisdom, and she makes you feel good.''
``This lady is history because she is one who has built her life on the same solid rock on which this church was built,'' said Chesapeake Mayor William E. Ward, who presented McDonald a certificate of appreciation from the city. ``The virtues she teaches are missing in many of our families.''
``The world is a better place because of you,'' said Chesapeake Police Captain Donald Zeagler. ``There is an overwhelming cry in the community today that our young people are being lost to drugs. But Mary doesn't sit around and lament. She does something. She leads people by example.
``I've worked with her for the last three years in Families United Against Drugs,'' Zeagler said. ``She talks to people and tells them how to get off drugs with God's help. She has a real good rapport, even with young people. She tells them that God has taken her a long way and that he will take them a long way, too, if they'll let him.''
Zeagler said he especially enjoys her singing.
``When she sings a cappella, people get a lump in their throat,'' Zeagler said. ``I've never heard anybody put as much feeling into a song as she does.
``She touches people everywhere she goes,'' he said. ``My pastor has an expression that fits her, `If Mary can't light your fire, then your firewood's wet. It's no wonder that she has been looked up to as church mother.''
According to her pastor, McDonald earned the title of mother.
``She was chosen because of her lifestyle and the image she has presented over the years,'' said the Rev. Stanley D. Shepherd Sr.
McDonald has lived in the same house in Oak Groove since 1932. For 50 years, her church participation has included teaching Sunday School, testifying at midmorning and nighttime prayer meetings on Wednesday, singing in the choir and leading the deaconess board.
During the 45 years she worked as a professional cook, McDonald said yeast rolls were her specialty. In 1989, she retired after 37 years at Autumn Care of Chesapeake.
``When I got ready to retire, I said to Lord, `I'm not gonna sit down,' '' McDonald said. So when someone asked her to help in the jail ministry, McDonald jumped at the chance. On Mondays, she's at the jail singing, talking about the scriptures, or praying with female inmates.
``I really enjoy it,'' she said. ``When I come back, I feel like a brand new person. They tell me their problems.''
On a recent afternoon at her home, she sat with one aching leg propped up, her walker within reach. The television screen went dark as she pressed the button on the remote. Her brow was furrowed intently as she looked straight ahead and sang one of her favorites. The gospel song was her prayer for strength to do what needs to be done - one day at a time.
McDonald started singing as a child at Devine Baptist Church in Deep Creek. She's been active in choirs at her church since 1933 and still goes to choir practice. For the past 27 years, she has been an active member of Zion Gospel Chorus. ILLUSTRATION: Photo by C. BAXTER JOHNSON
Left to right, Herbert Stancil watches as Mary McDonald is honored
by Ethel Grandy and the rest of the congregation at Little Zion
Baptist Church in Oak Grove.
by CNB