MEN'S MINISTRY
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding: in all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight."
Proverbs 3:5-6
The Men’s Ministry of the White Bluff Chapel is composed of men dedicated to glorifying God while ministering to the White Bluff community, Whitney, Hill County, and beyond.
This includes:
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Small projects and repairs for White Bluff Residents via the Chapel's "Handyman Services" ministry.
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Building ramps for handicapped individuals in Hill County in conjunction with the Texas Ramp Project.
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Participation and support of numerous WBC ministry/mission endeavors.
Feel free to contact the church office for more information.
RECENT EVENTS
The First Highway Clean-up of 2025!
​Tuesday March 25, the Men’s Ministry gathered outside of the gates of White Bluff on Highway 933 to collect trash. The crew consisted of ten enthusiastic men. The helpers were Ed Helmbeck, Chris Hayes, Mark Baker, Larry Lively, Jody Yarbro, Rick Faught, Jerry Arias, and not pictured Sherrell Kidd and David Kernan. It took the men three hours to collect 14 bags of trash and a lot of trash too large for bags.
Men’s Ministry Chili Cook-Off
Saturday night about 100 people gathered to support the Men’s Ministry. Twenty chili contestants eagerly brought their delicious chili early to be judged. This year, there were six people who entered the competition for their first time.
Congratulations to the category winners:
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Chili with no beans- John Jaske
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Chili with beans- Chris Hayes
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Non-Traditional chili- Kathleen Knightstep
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Youth chili- Rosemarie Webb
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Wild Game chili- Ron Williams
And the GRAND PRIZE winner was……… Chris Hayes!
After the winners were announced, it was time for everyone to get in line to enjoy their spicy dinner. A special thank you to our judges, Kelly Bransom, Kris Auten, Mike Miller, Randy Marshall, Ron Stone, and Mark Baker who sampled each chili whether spicy or not, as they filled out a rating sheet.
Men's Ministry Breakfast
On January 25th, thirty-four men joined the Men’s Ministry for a delicious breakfast prepared by Howard Clement, Larry Turner, Glen Van Wagner, Ron Williams, Danny Bodeker and a few more. As important as who cooked is who cleaned up when it was over. All of the above mentioned plus Ed Helmbeck enthusiastically did the dirty work.
As the men were eating, they enjoyed each other’s company immensely. An interesting and pleasing aspect of the event was the Joy evident by the loudness of the group conversations.
Rick Faught led the program; he spoke about the successful group projects that many of the attendees participated in. He also the discussed that the focus for the upcoming year was to reach out to the isolated and/or potentially lonely members of our communities who need company and help but will not ask for it. He encouraged the group to be proactive on their attempts to be a blessing. Rick shared a hymn with the group by Will Thompson titled “Have I Done Any Good”. ( The song is shared in the picture.)
Steve Glover was their featured speaker. He shared what he learned about being a public servant in his 36-year career as a coach, teacher, principal, and administrator.
As advertised: Faith, Food, Fellowship, and Fun!
Feeding the Whitney Wildcats
The Men’s Ministry fed the Whitney High School Wildcats during Homecoming Week. Danny Bodeker smoked delicious brisket which was make into sandwiches. The fixins consisted of potato salad, chips and home-made desserts. After the Wildcats feasted, the team gave their attention to guest speaker Keith Harris, WB Golf Pro as he spoke to the boys.
Men’s Ministry busy with Missions
The Men’s Ministry participates in several Mission opportunities throughout the year. Most recently, a group of six men braved the heat to participate in the Texas Department of Transportation Adopt a Highway Project outside the gates of White Bluff on FM 933. Six men worked over three hours to collect fifteen bags of trash.
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The Texas Ramp Project is another Mission project that several of the Men’s Ministry team participates in. A group of ten men worked in the heat to bless another family with a much needed ramp entrance to their home.
Bless these men who have a giving heart and are willing to work in our Texas extreme heat.
Men's Ministry Breakfast
Our Men’s Ministry had another successful breakfast meeting on May 4th. Thirty men came eagerly to be fed physically and spiritually. They discussed many ways that they can serve our community in the near future, including a new mission presented by John Jaskie. John presented, “Sleep in Heavenly Peace”. This organization’s motto is ‘No kid sleeps on the floor in our town”. “Sleep in Heavenly Peace” helps families in need by providing beds for children ages 3-17. The men are excited to help our area this new mission.
They were also blessed to have as guest speaker. The pastor of the First Baptist Church, Aquilla joined the men. He led a message about to be a better disciple.
Another Great Ramp Project
A team from The Texas Ramp Project met in Hubbard on April 17th to build another great ramp for a deserving family in need. Our Men’s Ministry volunteers and four helpers from Recovered and Free in Hubbard provided the labor, and the Heart of Texas Area on Aging financed the material. This ramp was the 174th built by our Hill County team since starting in 2013. The team’s motto is “Lord, make us a blessing to someone today”.
Pictured are the volunteers for this project. From left to right: Tim Reardanz, Howard Clement, the client Mike Autrey, John Toler, four helpers from RAF Hubbard (3 in black shirts and 1 in blue), and Ron Williams. Not pictured is the photographer David Kernan.
After completing each ramp, the team presents the family with a Bible, signed by the volunteers. This project had a twist! The client presented the team three poems written by his wife. Please read below Our Tears, by Carlene Autrey.
Our Tears
A reunion, praise God!
We’ve been invited to some day;
For Jesus didn’t leave this earth,
And simply go away.
We’re to look forward with expectation,
Yes, He’ll be coming with the clouds…
And to know we are God’s children
Should make us mighty proud!
He’s the Alpha and Omega,
The Precious Lamb, our own God’s Son…
Don’t just sit there gathering dust,
We must spread the news to everyone!
Our Saviour’s been quite busy
Preparing the New Jerusalem we’re told,
Creating another of His wonders
With Heavenly streets of gold.
But it’s not the beauty of Paradise
That we really long to see;
It’s Our Heavenly Father of Love
Whose gift has set us free!
When we stand in the presence of Our Lord,
After waiting all these years;
He’ll understand without a word…
The emotion behind our tears.
Men’s Ministry Chili Cook-Off
Saturday night over 100 people gathered to support the Men’s Ministry. Twenty two chili contestants eagerly brought their delicious chili early to be judged. Five judges sampled each chili and filled out a rating sheet. Categories were: Hot, Mild/Med with beans, Mild/Med no beans, Wild Game, Vegetarian, and a new category was added, for Youth chefs.
The category winners were:
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Chili-mild/med no beans- Bobby Littlefield
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Chili-mild/med with beans- Nancie Yarbro
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Vegetarian- Ava Wood
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Youth- Allison Elmore
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Chili-hot- Louis Hicks
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Wild Game- Ron Williams
The Overall all winner was Louis Hicks. His name will go on the new Chili Cook-Off Trophy created by John Knightstep.
Texas Ramp Project Volunteer of the Month
In the Texas Ramp Project Newsletter, there was a special tribute to Ron Williams. He received the honor of becoming the Volunteer of the Month for February. We are blessed to have Ron in our congregation as he serves our Chapel ministry in many ways.
Texas Ramp Project Continues To Help Others
The Men’s Ministry vamped it up this December; they constructed two ramps for two gracious families. The first ramp project consisted of four men who completed a ramp in four hours! After working on the ramp, the men presented the family with a Bible.
The second project was a two part job. It consisted of building a ramp and leveling the porch. The daughter continually thanked the men for the ramp and leveling the porch.
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This group is such a blessing. As you can see, the transformation is amazing. The recipients now have a safe entrance to their home.
Another Successful Ramp Project
The Men's Ministry of White Bluff Chapel helped a family in Hubbard by building a ramp to their front door. The Texas Ramp Project started in 1985 by members of the Kiwanis Club of Richardson, Texas. Since 2006, the Texas Ramp Project has expanded into more the 40 Texas regions, from Texarkana to El Paso and Amarillo to McAllen. Over 24,000 ramps have been built, which laid end to end, would extend for over 122 miles. White Bluff Chapel is honored to be a part of this project by helping those in need.
Adopt a Highway
On a beautiful Monday morning after an informative and spiritual Bible study, 11 service minded men converged on Hwy 933 to pick up trash and beautify the sides of the road that White Bluff Men’s Ministry is responsible for.
These cheerful men picked up 22 large bags of trash plus a large amount of miscellaneous wood, metal, and tire pieces that wouldn’t fit in bags. It was a record day of participants and productivity.
Adopt a Highway
The Men’s Ministry recently met on SH 933 to pick up the trash before the mowers begin their summer mowing. The men waded through knee-high weeds picking up trash. Two hours later, fourteen bags of trash were collected. A special thank you to Larry Cosper, Brian McCutcheon, Bob Wilson, Greg Gummelt, Bob Tull, John Knightstep, Jody Yarbro and Rick Faught.
Men’s Breakfast
Seventeen hungry men enjoyed a delicious breakfast prepared by several members of the Men’s Ministry. After eating, they had a devotional which was lead by Kevin Hughes. Kevin is a member of WBC as well as the new Chief of Police for the city of Whitney.
Texas Ramp Project
Phil and Sherry Graham were delighted with the work of our Men's Ministry Ramp Team. The men built a much needed ramp leading up to the entrance of their home. Ron Williams, David Wood, John Knightstep, Larry Cosper, Bob Tull, Sherrell Kidd, Timothy Reardanz, and Jody Yarbro were the heros of the day for this project. As you can see from the smiles, the Grahams were not the only ones who enjoyed this project.
Chili Cook-off
The Men’s Ministry hosted their annual Chili Cook-off, Saturday. There were about 100 hungry patrons who came out to support the Men’s Ministry’s only fundraiser. Eighteen participants eagerly brought their home-made chili early prior to the dinner to be judged in one of the four categories. The categories and winners are:
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Hot- John Knightstep
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Mild to medium, no beans- Bobby Littlefield
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Beans- Chris Hayes
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Wild- Danny Bodeker
The delicious chili with the overall winning score was prepared by Danny Bodeker. A special thank you to their judges: Noel Allen, Randy Marshall, Mike Miller, Jeff Williams and Glen Van Wagoner.
Texas Ramp Project
The Texas Ramp Project has been busy! The WBC team is fast approaching 150 ramps since joining the Texas Ramp Project. They recently built one ramp in February and two ramps in March. New members who have joined this team are: John Jaskie, Brian McCutcheon, Bob Tull, and Bob Wilson. The team has recently broadened their skills. They built their first ramp over a valley!
Whitney High Student Council Helps With “Build a Ramp”
It’s not uncommon for our men’s ministry, led by Ron Williams, to build a wheel chair ramp for someone in need. The men’s ministry is always willing to help. But it is unusual for our local high student council at Whitney High School to send students to help with the project. We were delighted to have the help from five of our local teens as we worked this past week. The teens did a wonderful job and were appreciated as they “showed us their muscles” while helping build the ramp.
Paw Pals Garage Sale
Our Men’s Ministry recently helped our local animal shelter (Paw Pals) with a garage sale. We are always amazed how God works in our ministry. We had planned to work for a couple of hours. Life changes and we ended up helping several White Bluff families who have been going through some rough times. We were there to help, but visiting with these families gave us tears, re-connection and life awareness. It is amazing how God works in our ministry. Several in our neighborhood are moving and were ready to donate items to the garage sale. The men gladly helped load and take the items to the sale. Those assisting were Rick Faught, Ron Stone, Jay Miller, Larry Lucas, Terry Newman, Kathy Coons, Roy Ringwald, Reba and Mike Miller.
Adopt A Highway
It’s a memorable day when eight men come together to pick up 18 bags of litter from the roadside in 30 MPH wind. The Men’s Ministry not only did the job but had a good time while doing it. Special thanks to Todd Williams, Danny Bodeker, Jodi Yarbro, David Kernan, Mark Hamner, Ed Helmbeck, Randy Marshall, and Rick Faught
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Men's Ministry Trash Pick Up
Our Men's Ministry is composed of men dedicated to glorifying God while ministering to others. This week the men participated in the Great Texas Trash off. They collected sixteen large bags of trash plus a lot of items that would not fit into the bags. Later in the week, the men helped a White Bluff neighbor with yard maintenance. We are grateful for these men who never tire of serving and helping others.
Men's Ministry Builds Swing Set for a Family
The White Bluff Chapel Men’s Ministry finished 2020 on a high note.
The opportunity to be Santa’s Helpers was seized when a need became evident. A White Bluff resident purchased a large cedar swing set for their children. It was delivered but not assembled. The “simple” job ended up taking almost 8 hours for 4 men. The family is thrilled with their new backyard play station.
What a great way to serve the Lord by making our neighbor’s load lighter.
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The mom’s response was: “I cannot say THANK YOU enough, to the Men's Ministry at the White Bluff Chapel, for building a playset today for 2 happy kiddos! It was a great surprise.”
Annual Feeding of the Whitney Wildcats Football Team
November 2020
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As in years past, the Men’s Ministry had the opportunity and privilege to serve a pre-game meal to the Whitney Wildcats. The 2020 season was a rebuilding year and the win column was a little below what we’ve enjoyed for the past few years. However, it was evident that these young men enjoy each other’s company and, based on their appetite, they will all be bigger football players next year.
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Larry Turner shared words of wisdom about “what a friend we have in Jesus.” (Someone should write a song). Although he didn’t get any Amens some heads were nodding in agreement. Hopefully, this community service opportunity will always be a part of the football experience.
Men's Ministry Builds Ramp for Hillsboro Couple
October 2020
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After the Monday morning Men’s Bible Study on September 28, a team of seven White Bluff Chapel volunteers were joined by two men from King Memorial UMC to build a handicap ramp for a thankful client in Hillsboro. Acting on a referral received through the Texas Ramp Project, the job was completed in just three hours, using materials funded by the Heart of Texas Area Agency on Aging. The group felt blessed that the folks served were fellow Christians and expressed their thanks for the ramp and the prayers offered by pastors Randy Marshall and Brad Slaten. The team also enjoyed hearing personal stories from the client’s husband, who goes by the name of “Tex.” For many years he was the deep voice of “Big Tex” at the Texas State Fair in Dallas.
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Thank-you notes continue to be received, thanking the men of the ramp project of Hill County. There is one that comes from Betty Elmore. Betty is Terry Cosby’s mother’s cousin. Her place in Mertens is close to where Terry’s parents live.
