The Gift of Letters
I had the privilege of interviewing Betty Jean Spann at Circle of Sisters, where she shared a beautiful love story—one filled with devotion, distance and more than 500 letters.
On January 28, 1961, Betty Jean was set up on a blind date with a fellow named Rock. She was a senior and biology major at Georgia Southern College; he was a junior studying business. They dated for five months, but it wasn’t until Betty Jean graduated and prepared to leave for a job in Atlanta that Rock realized just how much he was going to miss her. At last, he declared his love.
“Took him long enough!” she said with a smile.
After a brief stint in the big city, Betty Jean accepted a job in Augusta to be closer to Rock. They treasured every weekend they could spend together. During the long stretches apart, when telephone calls were far too expensive, they poured their hearts onto paper—257 letters from him and 254 from her over 16 long months.
The day before his graduation in June 1962, Rock—sporting a snazzy pair of Bermuda shorts—picked up Betty Jean and drove her to Pittman Park Methodist Church. He took her by the hand, walked her down the center aisle and, at the altar, he knelt and asked her to become his wife.
After graduation, Rock accepted a job in Macon, and they continued taking turns making the long drive to see one another. In September, Betty Jean returned home to Woodbine to prepare for their wedding. His final letter to her ended with a promise: “The next time I see you, I’m taking you with me.”
And on September 29, 1962, he did.
They honeymooned at the Cloister, where a pianist played “Ich liebe dich”—“I love you”—the same song that had been sung only hours earlier at their wedding. Then they began a beautiful life together in Macon.
Three months ago, Betty Jean discovered their letters, neatly tucked in a bin in a storage area that she uses often. “I don’t know how they got there!” she said. She now reads just a few at a time, savoring every word. And for those precious moments, it feels as though Rock is with her again.
Betty Jean and Rock’s story reminds us that words written with love can outlive distance, time and even loss. A letter—or the simplest handwritten note—can become a gift that brings someone we love close again.
So this week, why not put pen to paper and write to someone you love?
As our interview ended, Betty Jean’s smile returned, along with one last playful memory.
“You know, when we were first dating, I found his little black book in my car one day,” she said. “I made sure I was the last entry in it!”
– LSW
One Sweet Offering
On Monday mornings, I open the safe to count the weekend offerings — a quiet, usually predictable task, full of familiar envelopes. Nothing too exciting — until recently, when I opened the safe there was envelope with a child’s handwriting, with the words “Church Offering”
My first thought was a parent allowed their child to help prepare the church offering and label the envelope. But when I opened it, I found a note: “22% of lemonade stand.”
I smiled! I was so touched to see that a child could be so generous.
When I told the staff about the sweet offering, Pastor Matt laughed and said, “I would have been going to the video game store.” Generosity like this doesn’t come naturally — it’s inspired. Learning to share is simply what you do with what you’ve been given. This child didn’t just donate; they practiced stewardship.
Somewhere in our church family, some child already gets it — that giving can feel good, not as an obligation but as something worth doing with their own two hands — and their own lemonade stand. May we all learn to give like that: cheerfully, thoughtfully, and without needing anyone to notice.
~ Shannan Wassel