I am going to ask you to indulge me for a moment on my favorite topic--relationships. We will start with a lovely reunion last Sunday at the museum with Kurt Mueller. Kurt, wife Sheri, and sister, Diane were our guests for an author forum. As I've previously mentioned, Kurt has two amazing manuscripts which we were permitted to read and review. Kurt then, bravely, met with us after reading each manuscript. I personally find Kurt's insight about family dynamics, his journey for "truth," and his wonderful written descriptions to be refreshing reading. Kurt is also good "on his feet" and provided the group with amazing dialogue. I love to watch the beautiful, supportive interactions between Kurt and his wife, Sheri. I also enjoyed watching the sibling support that Diane and Kurt provide each other. Kurt shared examples of his father's silver work. It was beautiful. He also shared examples of his son's professional animation. My favorite "show and tell" was viewing Kurt's portfolio of his art pieces. They are extraordinary and thought provoking. It was an honor and a special blessing to have them at the museum. I hope we have many more reunions with the Mueller Family.

As the Mueller Family was walking out of the door, Clinton and Doris Wunderlich were walking in the door. Clinton's body of research as been a lot of help in our journey to set up the Zion Roots research library and reading room. Doris is a large part of the reason that my family moved to southeast Missouri. She was the realtor who showed us around Cape Girardeau nearly 15 years ago. I was not convinced about the move, and she helped to sway our decision to move here. My relationship with Doris and Clinton is a special one to me. I also thank them for their support of the museum.

The next relationship I want to talk about is my friendship with Wilmar Degenhardt. Wilmy is a rock for me. He challenges my spirituality, my theology, and has been a great brainstorming partner in the development of fundraising and research for the museum. Wilmy helped us digitize the church books a few weeks ago. He is currently helping me put together a special C.F.W. Walther display for the bi-centennial of his birth (C.F.W.'s not Wilmy's.) This relationship benefits the museum and the museum director greatly. I am thankful for this 85+ year old friend everyday.

I received a nice email from our museum friend, Kathy Berkbigler this morning. Kathy is always a breath of fresh air for me. She often provides encouragement and resources for the things we are working on with museum development and research development. Kathy is one of many "people in the world" who make this museum possible with her encouragement and insight. She is a "long sighted" person and she helps me zoom-out and see the big picture. This relationship is vital for our site.

I could continue this blog on relationships all day. I could write a week about Ken Craft and Susan Fiehler (two people that I could not function without.) Every person on the docent and advisory council deserve many blog pages of thanks. Thanks for enduring my gushing, but never underestimate the power of the positive relationships in your life.
Take Care,
Carla Jordan
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