Deb Hetherington
Congratulations and blessings on your retirement
Church Anew has been honored with Mrs. Deb Hetherington’s service since December of 2019. In a year that threw all sorts of challenges at our ministry to congregations across the nation and around the world, Deb helped us build the platform that has come to mean so much to pastors, church staff, and people of faith. Often in tasks that are behind the scenes and go with little thanks, Deb did her work with joy and eagerness.
This week, Deb will retire from a career that culminated in her work at Church Anew. As Deb leans into new adventures ahead, we would like to celebrate the many ways she has contributed to congregations throughout her career.
Dawn Rundman, Director of Faith Formation Resources at 1517 Media shared some of the ways Deb made an impact in her previous roles, “While a resource developer at 1517 Media, Deb Hetherington worked on thousands of pages of faith formation resources for children and families. She was an essential part of the team that created the award-winning Spark Story Bible, now with hundreds of thousands of copies in print.” While not the only resource that Deb had a hand in creating, the Spark Story Bible has become a beloved centerpiece of households because of its use of age-appropriate language and beautiful diverse depictions of Biblical narrative.
Dawn Rundman continued in her praise of Deb’s gifts, “Her smiling, sparkling presence at ministry events and conferences drew customers in for conversation, laughter, and, ultimately, points of deep connection regarding the faith lives and well-being of children. Her generosity, faithfulness, and creativity are evident in the multitude of ways she has shared her many gifts with the children and families served by the church.”
Likewise, Deb has contributed much to individual families with her work as Director of the Starlite Singers at St. Andrew Lutheran Church in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. Juli Hermanson, St. Andrew council-member shared recollections from her own family, “Much of the love of music that our children possess is credited to "Mrs. Deb", as we lovingly still refer to her in our house. As parents, we were amazed to observe (and often participate alongside) a roomful of little ones who were completely mesmerized by Deb's enthusiasm for music.”
Deb’s enthusiasm, energy, and faith have been contagious to generations of children and to families around the world. Deb has learned Creole in her spare time so that she could communicate better with children in Jacmel Haiti, a community that Deb has visited several times. Pastor Peter Johnson remembers well Deb’s magnetism with children: “She has brought a dynamic presence to ministry with children in Haiti, speaking and singing to them in their own languages, even writing songs for use in our partner-congregation’s ministry. The entire community swarms when Mrs. Deb is telling a Bible story or leading singing!”
As Deb leans into the next phase of her life, she will be spending time caring for her mother and step-father, who are moving back to Minnesota. Deb will continue to learn Creole and hopes to travel back to Haiti more in retirement. The entire Church Anew team wishes Deb the best on the next chapter in her life and ministry. Your legacy lives on in the communion of saints.