Jun 24, 2013

Lucille Sunby: A shining example

 

Although many are left unnamed, the Bible mentions 188 women. These include female leaders, prominent queens, and prophetesses.

Monique Provance, in a research paper discussing biblical women, wrote about six females who displayed positive character traits—Judith, Esther, Ruth, Deborah, Rebekah, and Rahab. For example, Rebekah exemplified how to cheerfully serve others without complaining, and Abigail was “a woman of good understanding, and of a beautiful countenance” (1 Samuel 25:3, KJV).

On her website avirtuouswoman.org, Melissa Ringstaff writes, “I want to encourage women to serve God in every aspect of their lives. Being a Proverbs 31 woman is not about being ‘perfect.’ It’s about living life with purpose, diligence, forgiveness, and repentance.”

For many women, Lucille Sunby—a longtime resident of Milton, Wis.—is a shining example of what a Christian woman should be.

 

Lucille, who turned 97 in February, was born in Dodge Center, Minn., and moved to Milton at age 10 in 1926. She joined the Milton SDB Church by letter in November of 1935, almost 78 years ago.

Many people admire Lucille’s gentle spirit, warm smile, Christian faith, and gift of hospitality. Personally, I’ve coveted her gorgeous, angel-white hair for as long as I can remember. (Now that I’m a “mousey” gray, I covet it even more.)

Lucille equally enamors my daughter, Jennifer. In fact, Jen’s four daughters have “adopted” Lucille as their honorary great-grandmother. What woman but Lucille Sunby would place her “good” china in front of little ones when they could barely handle sippy cups?

Since Lucille is the queen of impromptu tea parties, I’m convinced tiny, elf-like chefs live in her kitchen cupboards, producing tasty goodies at a moment’s notice.

Jennifer posted the following on Facebook recently, and the comments confirm Lucille has a large fan base.

Jennifer: “As I’m bumming around at home, day two, in my ratty yoga pants, I can’t help but wonder if the ever-so-graceful, 97-year-old Lucille Sunby ever dressed down like this a day in her life?”

Terry: “I don’t think I have ever seen her without lipstick.”

Jayne: “Lucille is definitely the gold standard—for everyone who knows her. Me included, of course.”

Ralph: “I can remember some years ago, when she may have been a mere 90, in full dress pants and dress jacket, with full jewelry and heels, out front of her house doing gardening.”

Jayne: “No matter who I get in a conversation with, older or younger, that person will mention Lucille as the kind of person she aspires to be. Soon after one such conversation, I let Lucille know how much she inspires us women. She thought it was amusing and, of course, was her humble and gracious self.”

Marcy: “I saw her working at Turkey Supper a few years ago in dress slacks and a white blouse. When she left, she didn’t have a spot on her! (She also didn’t wear an apron!)”

Teresa: “Not a chance. I have never seen her look not put together. What a great lady she is.”

Sue: “I have seen her mowing the lawn in a wool skirt and fancy wool jacket. Not a hair out of place. Granted, it was a riding lawnmower, but still!

Jayne: “Sue, a riding lawnmower… in a skirt?!!! That’s Lucille for ya! She’s gorgeous, inside and out.”

Leanne: “I don’t think Lucille would even know what ‘dressed down’ means.”

Sara: “I have often said I want a rubber bracelet that says ‘WWLD’—What Would Lucille Do?”

Thanks for being such a powerful Proverbs 31 woman, Lucille—an awesome Christian role model for both present and future generations.