By Shari Peoples

Charlie Frank Hollis, my great grandfather, entered this world on February 27, 1900, in Carroll County Georgia. In 1918, he married Ina Ophelia Holloway, born December 12, 1900. Mama and Papa Hollis, as they were known by most of us, lived on a farm in the hills of Alabama. Papa Hollis was a Baptist minister who worked construction jobs along, and he was a gardener. His garden always had more than enough to share with a friend or neighbor. Their church was a bit of a journey, so meetings were not held every week. When the church came together, it was for a day of services with dinner in between. Mama Hollis died when I was only seven, so my memories of her are limited but I will never forget the flowers she grew. I have learned since that these are lantanas, but they will always be Mama Hollis flowers in my mind.

The greatest legacy my great grandparents left behind was the faith they lived out daily and instilled in their children and grandchildren. My grandmother, Jessie Ruth, was a testament to their faithfulness. She was born in 1922 and married Ross Howard Hilton Sr. in 1941. Grandmother Hilton was one of the greatest Sunday school teachers I have ever had the privilege to sit under. She taught Sunday School most of her adult life. According to the family stories, she and my grandfather went to high school together, but when he visited the Sunday School class she was teaching, he leaned over and told his buddy, “I’m going to marry that little redhead.” And she was little. At her tallest, Grandmother stood 4 foot 9 ½ inches tall. Granddaddy was 6 foot 3 inches. They made quite the pair!

My father, Ross Howard Hilton Jr. was born in May of 1944. It was a difficult time because my grandfather had been sent to fight in WWII, and my father was very sick. There were many years that my grandfather did not follow Christ. In spite of every hurdle, Grandmother never wavered in her Christian faith. She raised her children to honor God, taking them to church and having family prayer with them, all the while praying for my grandfather to find his way back to his faith, which he eventually did.

In 1962, Ross Jr., as he was most often referred to, married Dorothy Darius Garrett. They were the family rebels, and my parents. I’ve often heard my father speak about those days as times he was not proud of, when he was running from God and running from his mother’s prayers. What they found out was that it was better to let God catch you than to try and keep running. In December of 1972, God caught up with my parents, and something amazing happened. That call of ministry that had existed in my great grandfather, and my grandmother also found its way to both of them.

My father is a boat captain by trade, but God truly called him to be a “fisher of men.” In over fifty years of ministry, my parents have served as missionaries to Central America, pastors, and most recently prison chaplains. At 76 years old, my grandmother joined them in the prisons, where she taught weekly Bible studies for the next 10 years. The inmates loved to see Mrs. Jessie coming with all her visuals for illustrated lessons. My parents retired a few years ago after 25 years of chaplaincy. Now, they volunteer every week. At 79 (Mama) and 82 (Daddy), they still share the gospel wherever they go.

To bring this full circle, in 1990, I married Jerry Peoples, who was working under my father to get his ministerial credentials. That ministerial call passed to another generation, and we have worked together in ministry for our entire 36 years of marriage. Now I look at our children and see the rewards of God’s faithfulness in their lives. I have seen God’s hand on them in music and youth ministry and in teaching Sunday School. Then I look at my grandchildren and wonder about the plans He has for them.

In reflecting over my family history, I know that I have one of the greatest blessings there is, a godly heritage. The foundations were laid well over one hundred years ago. That heritage has given me heroes to look up to and want to emulate in my own life. My prayer is that my children and grandchildren can one day look over my life and find in me what I found in my great grandparents, my grandmother, and my parents.