My Aunt Mabel Coggin Hill died yesterday, 1/3/2015 at 97. She was a special person. Mabel Hill was devoted to her family. She was a faithful follower of Christ and was the listening ears, the helping hands and willing feet of Christ in the world. She was beloved as a teacher throughout her career. Mabel was my aunt, mentor, confidante and friend. She was a good listener and always cheered me up. I know that many of you felt the same way about her. She had a way of making me feel loved and special, and I know that her children, grandchildren and other family and friends felt the same way. You knew she cared about you and the bond was special. Her devotion to family was legendary. She sold her high school class ring to pay the matriculation fees for her younger brother Jim to go to college. That was actually an insurmountable barrier at the time, and without her help, Jim’s education and subsequent ministry might not have been possible. She worked to support her mother and brother so he could continue his studies. When Jim met Carolyn, she and Mabel became sisters not just in-laws, and they remained close to the end. The last photo of Mabel was with her dear “sister” Carolyn. Mabel and my mom were definitely BFFs, and they would talk on the phone every day. We went to her house almost every week. I remember when we welcomed baby Sue to the family. John Arthur and I were constant playmates with Bill tagging along whenever he could. They had a big live oak in the back yard, which I watched John Arthur climb with great admiration. When John Arthur died as a teenager riding on the back of a motorcycle, we all mourned the loss, and with her abiding faith, Mabel somehow managed to carry on. Those who knew her later in life would probably never realize the great sorrow she carried from her son’s death. She continued to be cheerful and positive and caring toward others. When my sister, Wilda, died a few years later, mom and Mabel shared a bond that only those who have lost a child can understand. Wilda left behind four children and Mabel helped care for them. Today they remember her with deep love and affection for helping them get through that difficult time. For years, Mabel and I often talked for an hour or more on the phone each week, and when I was with her two or three times a year, we would talk for hours. We often laughed, and I always felt uplifted. She always wanted to know what book I was reading, and she could finish 20 books for every one I completed. She was almost as avid a reader as her nephew Quinton, who probably holds some kind of world record for reading the most books. Her interests ranged from fiction to the spiritual. When her eyesight worsened, she used a reading device that required her to move the book for each line. As laborious as that was, she continued to raid the local library so she always had something to read every day for a few hours. As her vision deteriorated, she allowed me to read to he, and last week we read the Bonhoeffer biography and another book that led to a discussion about the chronological order of the writings of Paul and the gospels. She had a lifelong interest in studying the scriptures. As many know, Mabel retired from teaching elementary school in Mobile, Alabama where she taught among many others, one young man who eventually became the father of the man her granddaughter married. That retirement for Mabel meant the beginning of an exciting series of adventures. She traveled extensively and taught overseas, occasionally serving as a missionary educator. She traveled with my parents and me to England, France and Denmark one summer, and for years afterwards, we laughed about some of our misadventures. None of us spoke French, and without a dictionary, we ordered a mystery meat. Later, we were horrified to learn that we had actually enjoyed horse for lunch. You may not know but I was the one responsible for her going to Riga, Latvia in 1996. She was always ready for adventure, and somehow I convinced her that it would be a good idea for her to go to the Ukrainian School in Riga to teach English when she was 82 years old. Neither of us had any idea what she was getting into. The woman who had requested an English teacher, Tamara Bol, was herself a teacher at the school. The teaching conditions were less than optimal, and she had minimal resources, but it was the after-school experiences that turned out to be the source of many a funny story afterwards. Tamara turned out to be less than satisfactory as a tour guide. She took Mabel to distant locations on a bus and dropped her off without specific instructions on how to get back to her apartment. It only took one or two times for Mabel to decide that she really didn’t want to do any more “sightseeing’. The greatest challenge though was the apartment building where she lived. They had heat turned on at a specific date in November regardless of weather conditions. So after a few weeks of freezing temperatures and no heat, she decided to return to a more civilized lifestyle. As challenging as that experience was, it didn’t stop her from trying again. She was always looking for a new place to go. She went to Thailand, American Samoa and China where other adventures awaited her. She always came back with lots of stories from her experiences -- many of them so funny that I would laugh until I cried. We could stay here for the rest of this day as friends share memories of wonderful times with her. Friends who taught with her, traveled with her, sang in the choir with her, met her in Sunday School, her neighbors and friends of friends -- all greatly loved her. We could stay for days to hear from the members of her immediate and extended family who dearly loved her. She was second from the youngest of ten, and she is the last of her beloved siblings. She kept up with everyone -- each of their children and grandchildren until her last day. She could remember who each one was married to and where they lived. She called and visited relatives near and far as long as she was able. She loved her children dearly. Bill and Sue meant the world to her, and I saw her rejoice in their many successes and prayerfully guide them through whatever challenges they faced. She adored her grandchildren and played a meaningful role in each of their lives. She was thrilled with each of her great grandchildren and held them in a special place in her heart, and needless to say, they all adored her. She had a way of giving each of them memorable moments that have shaped their lives and made them all the extraordinarily wonderful people they are today. Mabel inspired and challenged me. She was fearless and open to new possibilities. Her faith was unquestioning. She stepped out in faith listening to God’s call time and time again. All who knew her will forever be touched by her. We who loved her, love her no less today because she is gone, and we know she loves us even more. She reminds me of the words from the hymn You who dwell in the shelter of the Lord, Who abide in His shadow for life, Say to the Lord, My Refuge, My Rock in Whom I trust. And He will raise you up on eagles wings, Bear you on the breath of dawn, Make you to shine like the sun, And hold you in the palm of His Hand. Rest in peace, my dearest Mabel.
Posted on: Mon, 05 Jan 2015 00:17:09 +0000
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