Feb 22, 2018
By Donna S. Bond
Shiloh SDB Church, NJ
“I could wring that man’s neck,” I said TO my husband (not ABOUT him) in mid-December. Sometime in October, George Pettit, a senior member of the Shiloh, NJ, church, had told me God was leading him to give a children’s message and he needed my help. Knowing that I make patchwork dogs — named “Cretora dogs” in memory of my grandmother — he arranged for me to make 15, hopefully before Christmas.
I was involved in some other projects but slowly got to work on them, adapting the size and design to get the job done. Red and black, he wanted.
Early in December, while I was working on Dog #11, I told George to sign up for a Sabbath in early January. While I was working on #12, 83-year-old George went into the hospital. This is when I said to Tim, “I will wring his neck if he doesn’t come out of that hospital…” On December 22, George left the hospital for Heaven.
So…rather than be stuck with 15 nearly identical stuffed patchwork dogs, I signed up for the message on January 13, 2018. Thanks to Tyler Chroniger, George’s picture was displayed on the screen — dressed, as usual, in his black suit, white shirt and red tie — holding his Shih Tzu, “Precious.” In keeping with the spirit of George, I donned a black pantsuit and white shirt, and looped my husband’s red tie around my neck.
“Where did Mr. Pettit go when he left the hospital?” I asked the ten children. They knew: “Heaven.” Holding two dogs in my lap, I continued, “Do you see how the seven pieces of fabric in each dog represent a job for that piece to do? The eye is at the front so the dog can see where he is going. The tail is in back so he can wag it when you come home. The nose is in front so he can smell food or danger. He has two legs in front and two in back to take him where he wants to go.
“This dog is like a church. The church is made up of many people who each do something different so the church can look like a church. Some people sing, some preach or teach, some work in the kitchen, some drive the bus and some do many, many other jobs to keep the church going.”
Then I pulled out a specimen of seven strips of fabric randomly placed to make the goofiest-looking dog anyone could imagine. Surprisingly, the oldest girl wanted it! “Comparing this dog to the church would be like Ron Bond playing the piano, Brayden (Chroniger, age 2) driving the church bus, and me coaching the basketball team. Do you know what would happen if I coached the basketball team? We would lose every game and the other teams would make fun of us!
“Your job for now is to learn all you can about Jesus and look for ways to help others. For example, when I laid a glass cookie tray on a table in the fellowship hall last Sabbath, it slid out of its box and onto the floor inside a square of tables. Fortunately, Reyna (Mazza) was there to pick it up and give it to me. If I had to do that myself, I would still be there!”
When I pulled the bag of the remaining 13 dogs and invited the children to each take one, they were like ants on a puddle of honey!
Afterward, an 11-year-old (MUCH too mature for the children’s message) asked me for a dog, and I also gave two to senior saints of George’s generation. That left two for me to take to the Baptist church where I play the piano on Sundays —just the number of preschoolers they have!
Truthfully, I have no idea what George intended to say to the children. I do know that God put me outside my comfort zone— the sermon title was “Church” and one line in the anthem was, “…though our talents, Lord, are varied….” George, I hope you are looking down with approval — and I hope you can forgive me for making “terroristic threats”!
