TRUST: Total Reliance Under Stressful Times by Donna Strong - Read Chapter One!

TRUST: Total Reliance Under Stressful Times by Donna Strong

Introduction ...

September 11, 1961

It was a Monday and Mom was no longer working, as I was due to enter this world on September 17. Dad was helping build houses with Mom's father and uncle. Leaving for work, Dad kissed Mom goodbye and said he'd see her that evening. She jokingly responded, "Okay, unless I'm in the hospital." He quickly replied, "Well, if you're going to the hospital, I'm not going to work!" She reassured him she was fine and she'd see him later. Believing her, he left to begin his day.

Not much after, Mom's contractions became more intense than the ones she'd had through the night (a fact she had not told Dad). Since in 1961 there were no cell phones, Mom called the police, who sent the Sheriff to the job site to inform Dad that Mom was in labor. Interestingly, the Sheriff's name was the same as my dad: William Brock!

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During those days, moms were in the labor and delivery room with only medical staff fathers and other family members were reduced to pacing in the waiting room. Thankfully, no one had to wait too long, as I was born at 12:06 p.m. at Good Samaritan Hospital in Dayton, Ohio. Because of how big the doctors thought I'd be, I was expected to be a boy, with the chosen name of "Darryl Wayne." After seeing I was a girl, I was named "Donna Sue." Donna was after Donna Reed, a Hollywood actress who starred in her own TV show and apparently could “do it all” in taking care of her family; Sue, after my mom's sister, who would be helping Mom after she came home from the hospital, while Dad returned to work.

I weighed in at a whopping 8 lbs. 15 oz. and measured in at a length of 21 inches long! The ob/gyn said if he'd realized I was as big as I was, he would have delivered me by a cesarean section. However, Eva Brock did well. My being born at all was truly a miracle. Mom had been told by several doctors she would never carry children full term. In fact, she had five miscarriages before I was born. With so many miscarriages, Mom and Dad were beginning to wonder if the doctors were right. But they also knew they served a God who was bigger than any potential reason keeping them from being parents.

A couple months prior during a Sunday evening church service, Mom and Dad had gone forward in a prayer line and told the evangelist they needed prayer. The evangelist looked at them and said, “You don't need to tell me the request. God wants you to know He has heard your prayers... and you are to trust Him.  A few weeks later, Mom found out she was pregnant but waited until after that sixth week (where she had lost so many) before saying anything to anyone.

One of the first persons they wanted to tell was their pastor; but when they went to tell him, he smilingly said "You don't need to tell me because God already did. You're going to have a baby." That was me! Three and a half years later, God would bless Mom and Dad with another daughter ... Brenda Marie.

Proverbs 3:5 & 6 (NIV) "Trust in the Lord with all your heart; lean not unto your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.”

While this Scripture seems like a no-brainer for a believer in Christ, life can sometimes throw unexpected events our way. When we cannot see the full picture, we must trust Christ with our whole heart and lean unto Him for understanding realizing that He sees all; knows all; and sometimes allows circumstances to mold us into being more like Him, a place where we'll experience true victory.

Our job: TRUST!

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Chapter One...

My Parents

Dad

Dad was one of nine children ... born on April 5, 1927 in Jellico, Tennessee. He had four sisters and four brothers, although one sister and two brothers passed before their third birthdays. As such, Dad was the youngest of the surviving children. Each night, he would read the Bible to his mom as she could neither read nor write. From those nightly readings, Dad learned to dearly love the Word of God. He always displayed an enormous faith in God, and I'm very thankful for that tremendous heritage.

Dad's father was a self-taught carpenter. While Dad inherited that love and talent from my grandpa, they didn't get along well in the early years. "Poppy," as the family called him, wasn't a believer in Christ; but, my grandma...that was a different story.

Dad was very close to his mom and his father's mistreatment of her angered Dad. At just 16, Dad left home to live with his brother and sister-in-law, Clyde and Hazel, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. (Clyde was a Louisiana Patrol Officer and even chauffeured Governor Jimmie Davis.) Dad said many times if he hadn't left home for Louisiana, he might have hurt his father.

In 1948, Dad moved to Cincinnati, Ohio. A year later, he moved to Dayton and began working at G.H. & R. Foundry. Being in his early 20s, he dated quite a number of girls. He took one girl he'd been dating, and was thinking about marrying, back home to meet his parents. My grandma told him, "You're not going to marry this girl. Your future wife will have black hair like her, but this girl isn't the one." Just as she predicted, Dad didn't marry this girl. Incidentally, that girl Dad didn't marry: married one of mom's brothers. So, she became my maternal aunt.

Grandma Brock passed October 28, 1955, just shy of three years before my parents married in August 1958 meaning Mom never met her mother-in-law. But indeed  Mom had black hair!

I've heard my grandpa would pull my grandma's hair while she was on her knees praying; he would hide her shoes so she couldn't go to church. Well, Grandma kept praying; and she'd walk barefoot to church! She didn't allow my grandpa, or anyone else, to keep her from serving the Lord. Her faith sustained her and never wavered. In later years, my grandpa dedicated his life to Christ ... even becoming a trustee in that same church. I firmly believe that if my grandmother had surrendered to my grandpa's shenanigans, he might never have accepted Christ.

Stories about my grandma are all so positive. Dad's oldest sister, Mae (the first born), married when Dad was just three years old. So Mae's children are older than I, seeming like aunts and uncles ... rather than first cousins. (Their children are my and Brenda's ages.) So, these "older" first cousins had the opportunity to know "Granny Brock." They've said she had the sweetest spirit about her and never uttered a bad word about anyone. Considering all that she faced with my grandpa (and other areas not definitively proven), that's pretty awesome! One cool story: Many times in church, the Holy Spirit would fall upon my grandma and God would use her to minister to others. One time, she went to the piano, playing masterfully!

The people began flocking to the altar for prayer. But, why is this story so cool? Because my grandma couldn't play piano! I hope when I meet her in Heaven, there'll be a piano where she can tickle those ivories just for me. I wonder if I got my love of piano from her? After my grandma passed, Poppy remarried blessed again with a wonderful wife, "Maw Clara." He was 70; Clara, 35! In 1956 in sleepy Jellico, it was pretty scandalous (especially since Clara was younger than most of her step-kids)! Together, they had three children! So, a "half uncle"(although there are no "halves" in our family) is only four years older than I. This time, the age difference makes him feel more like a cousin, rather than an uncle.

Mom

Mom was also one of nine children, having two sisters and six brothers. Her family (with the surname of "Christian") was faithful in attending church and believed wholeheartedly in serving the Lord. All nine children lived into adulthood, which is a bit of a miracle due to alcoholism with three of her brothers. I remember we unplugged our rotary dial phone from the wall connection at night; so, it would ring to the caller, but not in our home (as her brothers liked to call in the overnight hours while drinking or drunk). When sober, they were wonderful uncles. One uncle gave me a small faceted sapphire. I'd always intended to set it in a ring. I have no idea if it's "real," but I still have it ... as it holds a special memory of when he was in control of his actions. I learned from these uncles how easily "things" can take over our lives. I vowed early on not to let that happen to me!

Mom was born in Brookside, Kentucky on July 19, 1931. Her family moved to Dayton, Ohio when she was in elementary school; so, she considered Dayton her hometown. She began working at age 14 at Virginia's Cafeteria and worked as a keypunch operator at Duriron Manufacturing until just before my birth. Mom was 30 years old when I was born.

In 10th grade, Mom quit school to help her mom take care of her new brother. Even though she didn't graduate, Mom was highly intelligent and a wonderful multi-tasker. She was an excellent cook and baker, pretty much never having recipes for those delicious meals and treats. When something didn't taste right, she'd mess with it until it became a favorite ... especially her potato salad; chicken n dumplings; and fudge!

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Mom was proud to be a stay-at-home mom taking care of her girls, returning to work evenings when I was 16 years old. After several jobs of cleaning, she landed a job in a machine shop. With no previous training on the machines, she was one of the company's best employees. She always applied herself to any task and succeeded well.

One major task Mom didn't expect came while working in that machine shop. A new rule required employees to hold a high school diploma or GED equivalent. Mom said, "That's for new employees, right?" Uh... NO! It would apply to all employees.

So, to keep her job, Mom studied for her GED (with Brenda tutoring). In May 1993, a couple months shy of 62 years old, Mom received her GED at Memorial Hall in Dayton, Ohio. Interestingly, when Brenda and I graduated from high school ... our ceremonies were also held at Memorial Hall. What a cool turn of events! Mom's determined spirit was always an asset and an example to so many!

Mom and Dad

As our parents faced difficult times, trusting God would be paramount for whatever was needed. In 1968, Dad began working as a school custodian (fancy word for “janitor”). Prior, he worked in a service station and had become Manager which, quite honestly, meant more hours for little more money. When time with family became less, he quit for the custodian position (retiring in 1984 due to back issues).

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In 1968, Dad earned $2 per hour! Minimum wage: $1.60! (For 2025, $2 equals $18.62 ... definitely not a huge hourly wage.) Even so, we always had exactly what we needed. Mom and Dad were always givers, paying tithes to the church and supporting whatever projects they could. Once, Dad had only $20 and, even though it was for a bill, he put it in the offering ... because God told him! Mom asked, "How are we going to pay that bill?” Dad said, "I don't know but God will provide!" Sure enough, unexpected money came in that next week! Brenda and I most definitely learned: You can always trust God!

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Mom could stretch food like no one ... she'd try to spend about $12 each week at the grocery. Once, I wanted a candy bar but she told me no. I said, "I've been good!" She looked at me and firmly said, "I said no." When we got to the car, she apologized because we didn't have the extra money. I told her I understood but wish she just would've told me. She said she didn't want to say anything in front of the cashier. I guess she would've been embarrassed. We had clothes (many which Mom sewed beautifully). But, as we grew older, we wanted "store bought" clothes like our classmates, whose dads worked at the General Motors Assembly Plant and made much more than Dad. I remember Dad giving Mom a budget of $10 for school shoes. That was pretty difficult because I wore a size 9 when I started junior high. Most "cute" shoes were smaller sizes and the larger the shoe size, the more they charged. I'll never forget going to the Dayton Mall and seeing a pair of brown earth shoes (aka, boat shoes) that I wanted so badly. They were almost $20! I somehow convinced Mom they would last longer and actually save them money. She bought them and, together, we explained to Dad why we spent the extra. He didn't say anything but I wondered if he said anything more to Mom in private. Trust me: I made those shoes last!!!!

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We had a roof over our head although renovations were always ongoing with Dad, as he'd buy a house ready to be demolished and move us in while he remodeled. I remember walking across floor joices from the garage, through the not-yet floored extension to the older part of the house. Once, I fell through and scraped my legs pretty badly. It seemed we never lived in a completed house; something always needed fixed. I  was amazed Dad could build and remodel as he did, knowing he had only an 8th grade education. Decades later, I learned he didn't know how to read a ruler! I was shocked and asked him HOW he didn't know that, yet built as he did. He simply said, "I just counted the marks past each number!"

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Now, Dad was by no means "stupid" in fact, he had much more common sense than a good many people I've met! Once, he was trying to design a roof rafter that would tie in together with an existing roof, with the new portion going at a 90-degree angle. We were all in bed, almost asleep, when he exclaimed at the top of his voice "I've got it!" Brenda and I, sharing a room at the time, sprang up in our twin beds to hear Mom say, "You've got what?" "I know how to do those rafters." Mom said, "Well, good. Now go to sleep!" It just proves, from time to time, common sense may work better than book sense!

Copyright © 2025 by Donna Strong