RRJ:  What goals have you set and achieved? In your opinion, where does your drive come from?

Charnelle:  Two of the first goals I set were to obtain my cosmetology license and become a certified group fitness instructor. Once those goals were met, I started setting new ones. I graduated from Mississippi State University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management, commissioned in the Air Force, obtained my Teachers of English to Students of Other Languages (TESOL) certification and began teaching English as a Second Language. 

My family recently received the exciting news that beginning in July we would have the opportunity to experience a “new beginning” and return to the River Region to serve Prattville’s First United Methodist Church.  What a true joy to return to a place that has been so formational in our spiritual and family journeys, but a transition that has caused us to lean even deeper into the love and provision of God in our lives.

You go into the experience of an airplane flight with the expectation that you will routinely get to your destination, more or less on time, with only a minimum of inconvenience - maybe some turbulence, perhaps a snafu with the baggage.  But, the passengers on a recent flight from New York to Dallas had another thing coming.

The ChurchLeaders.com website tells the story of what happened to the 149 passengers on that plane that day: “An explosion in the left engine of the plane sent a piece of shrapnel through one of the windows of the plane. A woman was partially sucked out the window but other passengers managed to pull her body back into the plane and a registered nurse administered CPR until the plane landed.”