“When I was seven years old, Mom had a baby boy. He was very sick with a serious illness,” Barb Muller said. “We lived across the street from the hospital. I remember watching Mom carry him to the hospital.It was hard. The baby died. Mom had a nervous breakdown. But, the Doctor invited us to attend his church. We started our faith journey as a family.We were all baptized andthe Lord has been part ofour lives ever since.”
Today, Barb is enjoying a Bible study. They are studying the book of John.John 3:16. “For God so loved the world, that heGave his only begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” This is one of Barbs favorite verses.
“Words like this are good to follow,” Barb said.”Listening and studying the bible can be encouraging.
“Besides reading the Bible and reading Christian novels, Barb does a mile prayer walk each day to pray for each person in her family.
“This is a great way tokeep in touch with my children and grandchildren,”Barb said. “The Lord is myhelp and I ask Him to bewith my family daily.”Barb grew up in SiouxFalls with two younger brothers, Mike and Scott.Barb was 12 and 14 when the boys were born. She was like their little mom and helped raise them.Her dad was a good Buick salesman. Mom was a stay at home mother and took a job at the telephone company when the kids were grown. Barb graduated from Washington High School and attended Sioux FallsCollege where she met her husband Will. “He was a freshman and I was a senior. He had been in the army and spent time in Germany,” Barb said. “We were married and I graduated from SiouxFalls College with a major in English. I taught English at Worthington, Minnesota while Will finished college. Next, I taught at Hawthorne.” Will graduated and they moved to Ft. Morgan. Barb taught English for two years. Will taught elementary physical education and did a lot of coaching. Their first baby, Caroline was born. Next stop was Hendricks, Minnesota. “We both taught for fourteen years. We added our second daughter, Susan, and our son, Greg. We also adopted a daughter,Tammy,” Barb said. “I enjoyed being in a small town where we knew everyone. We bought a new house and unfortunately we hada fire in the basement. The community helped us with finding a place to live while the house was cleaned and repaired. It was special to have such caring neighbors and friends.”Moving to Sioux Falls was the next move. Will taught Physical Education in various elementary schools and did some coaching.”I saw the opportunity to try something new and applied for a teaching position at the Penitentiary in Sioux Falls. I got the job and found it a very rewarding experience,” Barb said.”The inmates were happy to be in class. I taught a class called “Impact ofCrime on Victims.” I invitedChristian people to come tell how crime had affected their lives. I retired after twenty years at the prison.”Over the years the family enjoyed a lot of tent camping. Susan was their last baby and was a lot younger than the other kids. She was a constant companion with them when they camped. It was a lot of fun.”I used to take my word find book with me.I would write down the date of our trip and the destination. It was fun to look back on that information,”Barb said. “My husband and I were married for sixty years. About three years ago, Will and I joined Active Generations. He wanted to do line dancing.We did just that until he became ill and couldn’t do it any more. You never quite get over loosing ones spouse, but life does goon and I am trying to learn new things,” Barb said. Barb has enjoyed coming to Active Generations again. People have been very supportive.”The line dancers welcomed me back and remembered Will. It was nice to be back among friends,”Barb said.Barb appreciates the exercise classes. They are geared for older people and are great.”I come every day Monday through Friday for an exercise class. I enjoy the sing-a-long held on Tuesdays and I hope to try the Ukulele class sometime. I am also interested in finding a place to volunteer at Active Generations.””It is hard for me to believeI used to weigh fifty more pounds than I do now. I joined, “First Place”.I still use their recipes when I cook,” Barb said.”I feel well everyday. I am glad I can exercise and not hurt,” Barb said. “I can still do stairs and love to exercise. Life is good.”
