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THE JOY OF SERVING

On entering the apartment of Joan Gilliland, you immediately see a beautiful Christmas scene of a snow village of sixty houses, all with lights displayed in a custom-made cabinet. According to Joan, the houses represent only one-half of the original number. In another room, you will see the same number of beautiful porcelain birds. Joan is a collector, but she has also served most of her life as the wife of a pastor of various Methodist churches.

According to Joan, being a pastor’s wife was very fulfilling. The needs of each pastorate were diverse and required different skills. For example, when they served near a naval base, they were occasionally awakened in the middle of the night to perform marriage ceremonies for couples being separated by deployment orders. Joan says the greatest disadvantage of being a pastor’s wife was always living in a “fishbowl” and never in a house of her own.

Joan’s gift of service was embedded in her early life. Born in Atlanta, Georgia in 1933, Mary Joan Worley was the oldest of five siblings, the youngest being fifteen years younger. “As the oldest,” says Joan, “I became a second mother in our household. There was certainly never a dull moment!” With good parents and stable home life, Joan’s childhood was a happy one. “Christmas time was joyous. We had Santa, a decorated tree, and gifts. Of course, our gifts were nothing like the ones children receive today,” she recalls.

Joan’s family moved to a suburb of Atlanta when she was twelve years old; she graduated from high school in 1950 at the age of sixteen. She decided to attend business school, and her first employment was as an administrative assistant in the district office of F. W. Woolworth Company.

A student of Emory University School of Theology, Willis Gilliland was assigned to pastor the Methodist church that Joan and her family attended. “When we got home from church, following Willis’ first service, I was smitten,” Joan admits. “I announced to my family, I have met the man I am going to marry.” The courtship began. When Willis graduated in 1956, their relationship became long-distance when Willis was appointed to Hampton Memorial Methodist Church in Millington, Tennessee. Actually, according to Joan, “He was assigned to an empty lot with instructions to ‘plant’ a church!” Joan and Willis married one year later in 1957, and their daughter, Carla, was born a year later. While in Millington, Joan was employed as an assistant to the Administrative Office of the Naval Air Technical Center. They served three other churches in West Tennessee: Bolivar, Covington, and Dyersburg. Their last appointment was in Brownsville, Tennessee, where Willis was appointed District Superintendent in 1992. Sadly, after only one year in Brownsville, Willis died of a heart attack and Joan moved back to Dyersburg.

Joan always found employment wherever the family lived, as the extra income was necessary to supplement a pastor’s salary. While serving in Bolivar, Joan was employed by the Hardeman County Board of Education between periods of serving as church secretary. Soon after their move to Covington, their church began a school for three and four-year-olds in conjunction with a local Presbyterian church. After seven years, Joan continued to fill a “temporary” teaching position. When the family moved to Dyersburg, Joan was asked to fill a teaching position for a preschool class. Due to an error in the registration process, Joan found herself with a class of TWENTY four-year-olds! She continued with teaching for three years and then accepted a position as an administrative assistant to the Dyer County Superintendent of Schools. Joan also served on the Dyer County Lifeline Board of Directors and was the Memphis Conference Secretary for the United Methodist Women.

While living in Dyersburg, their daughter was married. “It was a high point in our lives,” says Joan, “when her daddy officiated at the ceremony.” In 1985, when Joan learned her first granddaughter was to be born, she learned to smock. She perfected her skill and made a beautiful and treasured christening gown that has been worn by both grandchildren and great-granddaughters. Many smocked dresses were made by Joan for her granddaughter and continue to be worn by her great-granddaughters.

When asked about Christmas time as a pastor’s family, Joan responded, “We always completed church activities before driving to Atlanta where our families celebrated Christmas together. It was always a joyous occasion but chaotic! I remember two incidents that were not so joyous. Once, Willis didn’t open the garage door enough, and the carrier we had on the top of our packed, small car was stripped off as he backed The Gilliland Family out. Another time, at our family gathering in Atlanta, my father accidentally picked up a box of baby clothes and burned them in the trash.”

Joan and her husband were fortunate to do extensive travel, especially seeing the Passion Play in Oberammergau. Because she had always lived in a parsonage, Joan enjoyed the lake home she was able to build in Dyersburg after her husband’s death. Briefly, she was employed by a funeral home but finally was able to spend her time enjoying her hobbies and church activities.

Following a health scare in 2020, Joan moved to Kirby Pines to be near her daughter. She is always involved in multiple activities and hopes to get more involved. “I love to volunteer!” exclaims Joan.
Written by Joan Dodson, Resident of Kirby Pines

Written by Joan Dodson, Resident, Kirby Pines

FAITH, FAMILY & COUNTRY

The men and women who have served in our armed services are given special recognition during the month of November. Don Wiseman is one of the many veterans who live at Kirby Pines. During his tenure in the Army, his contributions were exemplary, rising from the rank of 2nd Lieutenant to Captain. Don is also a man with a strong religious faith who loves his family and his country.

Don’s life began in Memphis on August 5, 1939. Although he was an only child, Don says he was never lonely. “There were several children my age that lived on our street, and I spent more time with them than I did at home,” admits Don. He attended Rozelle and Bethel Grove Elementary schools and Fairview Junior High where he was elected president of ninth grade. Don graduated from Central High School in 1957. He doesn’t remember being very active during his high school days, devoting his time to study. However, he was a member of the football team, but according to Don, “I wasn’t good enough to play with the team and mostly kept the bench warm.”

Don chose to enter Mississippi State University beginning with a major in engineering but he soon changed to accounting, graduating in 1961 with a BS degree in Accounting. It was during his senior year that he met his future wife, Ann Cook, on a blind date. She was a senior at Mississippi State for Women (“The W”), and they were married in August 1961, following their graduation.

During the nine months following his graduation, and until induction into active duty with the Army in 1962, Don was employed with Humble Oil in Houston, Texas. Through the ROTC program at Mississippi State, Don was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant. He attended Artillery Officers Training at Fort Sill, Oklahoma, and graduated first in his class. He was then assigned to the Army Basic Training Center at Fort Polk, Louisiana, where he served as an Executive Officer of a basic training company and then as Assistant Adjunct of a training brigade. Don received a Commendation Medal for his services and ended his army career in 1964 as a Captain.

Following his discharge from the Army, Don, and Ann moved back to Memphis, residing in Whitehaven for several years before moving to Germantown, where they lived for thirty-five years. Always employed as an accountant, Don’s second job was with W. R. Grace Chemical Company for five years, followed by another five years with American Electric in Southaven, Mississippi. His last move was to Langston Companies, where he retired in 2005 after thirty-one years. Ann worked as an assistant to the Headmaster at Whitehaven Presbyterian School and later at St. Mary’s Episcopal School.

Don and Ann have two sons, Darryl and Michael, and five grandchildren. As an active member of Bellevue Baptist Church his entire life, Don served ten years as a Deacon. He enjoyed playing golf until his car was stolen and, of course, his golf clubs were in the trunk of the car. That ended golf! Don also enjoys watching all sports on television, especially the Mississippi State Bulldogs.

Don and Ann have also had the good fortune to travel via several cruises and tours. Once on a trip to Amsterdam with friends, they were on a trolley with all of their baggage. When they got to their stop, all got off except Ann. It seems that she had gotten so involved in a conversation with a group of ladies that the door of the trolley closed, separating her from her group. She continued on in the trolley! In a panic, Don and his friends managed to get to the next stop where they found a shaken Ann waiting.

Two of their most notable trips were organized by two pastors at Bellevue Church, Adrian Rodgers, and Steven Gaines. The one led by Dr. Rodgers was a tour through Germany and Austria which included the Passion Play held every ten years in Oberammergau, Germany. The trip led by Dr. Gaines traced the missionary trips of the Apostle Paul, including a visit to the Isle of Patmos. For years, the family made an annual trip to Gatlinburg and the Smoky Mountains to see the “changing of the leaves.”

Don and Ann moved to Kirby Pines in 2019 when it became apparent to Don that Ann’s illness of dementia required more care than he was able to provide. She now resides in The Manor where Don visits her three times a day. “It is so convenient to visit her with both of us under the same roof”, says Don.

Don says this about living at Kirby Pines: “I love the friendliness that resonates through the halls and the willingness of others to help anyone and everyone in their time of need. I enjoy playing bridge and participating in the 10 a.m. worship service each Sunday as well as the Men’s Saturday morning Christian fellowship group. I continue to meet with my Bible Study group at Bellevue at 8 a.m. each Sunday.”

Don’s favorite scripture is Isaiah 40:31 which reads: “But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.” According to Don, this is the foundation for the strength, hope, and encouragement he needs to sustain himself.

Written by Joan Dodson, Resident, Kirby Pines