By Linda Elissalde
Who is Delightful Dora? I had a delightful time interviewing this delightful lady. She was once a little tomboy who rode horses, played tennis, ran track and enjoyed racquet ball. Young Dora also loved animals, gardening and quilting. She lived on a farm with her wonderful family that included one sister and two brothers. Her older brother had a buddy named Joe Summers. Those two boys were down right ornery and loved to tease tiny Dora calling her, “Dora, Dora 2 by 4 a”. She certainly would never be interested in that Joe Summers.
Dora and Joe went to the same school. He was 2 years and 7 months older, and 3 grades above her. Then came high school. Joe Summers asked her to be his date for the senior prom. He must have realized that this lovely young lady with the sparkling eyes was something special. Well, they fell in love, later married and spent 42 adventure filled years together.
Joe Summers successfully mastered many different assignments. (You will hear more about Joe in a later installment.) They moved many times. Smart Dora studied teaching, mastered banking skills, enjoyed being a house wife and mother to their two girls. She skillfully kept the home front in order and served as a youth and children’s minister. Meanwhile Joe traveled on mission trips to build churches in Mexico. It was in Mexico that he learned from a bush pilot about the need for churches in Honduras. His missionary work would be on the island of Roatán, Honduras.
Honduras is full of natural beauty, but also contains a mixture of extreme wealth and extreme poverty. Roátan is a safe stop for cruise ships. Folk enjoy the lovely Caribbean water, shops and hotels. Things change as one moves away from the glamorous coast. Poverty, violence, brutality, disease is rampant. Dwellers have no fresh water, no bathrooms, and many dwell in cardboard houses. Joe was assigned to coordinate mission assignments. Building schools, churches and helping medical teams were a part of his duties. Lay minister Dora laughingly explained how she arrived with all her quilting equipment for teaching Honduran women how to quilt. She quickly discovered that quilting was not high on natives lists. Dora went right to work making quilts for babies and small folk.
Life was not easy. Lice, gas prices, waiting in line several hours in banks and-oh BUGS! Those bugs found Dora to be delightful too. An army of pests once sent her running from a Christmas program as they worked their way up from toe to head. You think monkeys are cute? Beware when walking under Honduran trees as they bomb you with most unpleasant refuse. Residents often beat hangers together to keep them away when washing clothes. These primates enjoy breaking into houses and also playing mean games with puppies. Not so cute.
Yet, the two loved their assignments. The couple spent ten years in Honduras. Dora shared stories of the wonderful missionaries and medical teams that came to help. Some took needful children back with them. How marvelous the transitions were for those who once had no hope. The couple returned to Missouri, remodeled a lake house while Joe became a minister in the Global Methodist Church. Dora and Joe discovered Crystal Beach’s Bay Vue Methodist on John Wesley Street. Pastor Valerie Hudson was retiring after ten years of faithful service. Dora and Joe liked the church, the peninsula and the residents. A select committee from Bay Vue, High Island and Bolivar Methodist Churches interviewed candidates. Pastor Summers was their unanimous choice. They also received the bonus of wife and lay minister Dora.
Visiting with Dora is such fun. Her keen intelligence, her faith, her kindness and her sense of humor make for interesting conversation. You want to hear more. We look forward to Dora sharing her book of devotionals and other offerings. The name Dora translate as “gift” in Greek. She certainly has been a gift to her family, friends and those she helped in the past. Our three peninsula churches are truly blessed because we are gifted with DELIGHTFUL DORA.
Coda: Dora and Pastor Joe Summers returned to Roátan in November. Their driver who met them at the airport had been one of the children they helped in their ministry. He gratefully shared with Dora that he still had that little quilt she made for him when he was a child.
Open House at the Summers
