Following are profiles of just a few of the many volunteers who use their time, talent, and experiences gained through jobs or just life in general to engage in the ministry of the Chapel each week. These faithful volunteers serve in many capacities in a variety of ministries at the Chapel.

There are many opportunities to serve - from helping to direct traffic on Sunday mornings to teaching children in Promiseland to helping assemble the latest edition of the Ministry Guide. Elizabeth Duncan, Director of Equipping Ministries, is happy to assist you in discovering how your time and talents can be used to engage in ministry.

BALINDA WILSON

I am a wife and the mother of 3 great kids - two girls and one boy. Ansyritta is 21 and attends the University of Arkansas, Kelsey is 19 and attends Norfolk State University, and Thomas is 8 and attends Clara Byrd Baker. My husband is in the military and is currently deployed to Afghanistan and for his fifth deployment. I attended the University of Arkansas at Little Rock and I have also attended Culinary School. We have been attending the Chapel for about 6 months and we all love it and how family oriented the Chapel is. God has blessed my family by sending us to so many different places as a military family. God’s love for the entire world just amazes me. Family is very important to me and even thought we are separated at the moment, God keeps us all close and is watching over each and every one of us.

I mainly work in the Community Cafe and I assist wherever help is needed. I have been working there for about 3 to 4 months now and I really enjoy it. I serve because serving and helping other is what God wants us to do as Christians and I am more than happy to lend a few minutes of my time to serve for the Lord. Serving has benefited my journey in faith in a way that has strengthened my relationship with God and has brought me closer to Him. It has also helped me to trust people more. I have met so many great people while serving at the Chapel.

NANCY KOZICK

I have been attending the Chapel about 6 years. My husband and I are retired and have two children and 5 grandchildren. We moved to Williamsburg in 1998 from Hampton. We spend our time between Hampton, where our daughter and her family live, and Charleston, South Carolina, where our son and his family live.

For a couple of hours one day each week, I help prepare the Orders of Worship and the Weekly for distribution on Sundays and fill in when there are other needs. Serving in Communications connects me to the Chapel on a different level. My faith journey is enriched by the people I work with and new people I come into contact with while serving.

RALPH URCH

I’ve been married to a fantastic woman, Laura, who is the only female in our family of five. (I think Bill Warrick can empathize with Laura since he is the only male in his family of five!) Laura and I have been married for 18 years – even after my Air Force career forced her to drive cross-country with me while in her third trimester with our twins, as well as a final trip from Ohio to Virginia with a 2-month-old baby. For the past 4 years, I’ve been working for a large defense consulting firm supporting Air Combat Command at Langley Air Force Base. At the Chapel, I volunteer as a member of Promiseland’s Tech Support Team for the Large Group sessions.

The other volunteers and I play the recorded music, control the slide show presentations, and play any videos and sound effects needed to support the Large Group teacher in presenting the week’s lesson. With two services each week, we rely heavily on Joe Broker to put together a schedule that deconflicts our overlapping “non-availability” dates. My role also includes putting together the Powerpoint slides and music lyrics for each week.

I enjoy watching God’s Word getting into the young people, but more importantly, seeing their response to the love of Jesus Christ. I can now better understand when Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 18:3)

From what I’ve seen over the years serving in Promiseland, young children tend not to come to the Lord with a preconceived notion of “religion” - a list of rituals that must be accomplished - but with open hearts ready to accept who He is. I am thankful that all of my children have been presented the Gospel in a way tailored to their age; and that I know what my youngest son is experiencing in church.