Ten Years Ago – from the book Champions…Plus Trust and Obey by Paul Bandy There are times for each of us when something happens that has a profound impact on our lives. Under the word profound the Webster Dictionary lists: “difficult to fathom or understand; extending far below the surface – specifically the depth of the sea; characterized by intensity of feeling or quality; and, all encompassing.” All those things applied to my feelings upon hearing about Mark’s accident and the unthinkable consequence of the loss of his left arm, and apply to the things which have happened since. On Sunday evening, August 3, 2003, I had just returned home from a wonderful four-day Christian conference in San Diego, Calif., when I received the call from a friend that Mark had been in an accident in Maine, was in critical condition, and had lost his left arm. I went through the usual stages of stunned disbelief, grief, and sympathy for my friend. It was hard to wrap my mind around how this could happen to someone who was so gifted and had dedicated his life to serving God through music. Music was his life! What would he do now? The next stage for me was: What can I do to help? I spent some time in prayer for Mark directly and also asked that God would use me in some way to help. Then I started making calls to friends and churches Mark had served, asking them to put him on their prayer lists to pray for his recovery. Since Mark and I lived in the same building, I had been collecting his mail for the many weeks he had been on his playing tour and vacation to the East Coast and Canada that summer. He originally had been scheduled to fly home to California in early August. I knew he had bills due, so I sorted his mail and went through the bills. His car and medical insurance premiums were due, and I knew those had to be paid. I received calls from several friends asking how they could help. One couple sent a check to me for $500 and another for $250 to meet the immediate needs. Another friend sent a $1,000 check back to Maine to help with expenses there. This was only the beginning of the overwhelming generosity of so many wonderful people who wanted to help in some tangible way. Prior to the accident I knew that Mark was well known and respected, but I had no idea that the response of people to his physical, emotional, spiritual, and financial needs following his loss would be so tremendous. Also, prior to the accident I had known that Mark was a deeply committed man of faith and had dedicated his life to serving God through music. I knew that he trusted in God’s love and care, but I had no idea how that would be put to the test. Nor did I know how Mark would so graphically demonstrate just how strong that faith was and how God would bless so many others through Mark’s great faith, trust in God’s care, and ultimate plan for his life, and his obedience to follow wherever God led through this new and totally unexpected journey. I received a call from Janelle Grose at Lake Avenue Church in Pasadena, Calif., who said that people wanted to help Mark financially. We talked about how to make that possible. She connected me with Lois Dalke Williams and Leigh Trenham, and we later met with a lawyer to set up a trust fund to help with Mark’s medical and living expenses, both in the short and long term. I did not know Lois or Leigh prior to this and had no idea what a blessing their friendships would become to me, and to many others, as we worked together to help our dear friend. After information about the trust was published by Lake Avenue Church and other churches, it quickly became evident that God was deeply touching the lives of many people across the country through what had happened to Mark, and the response was overwhelming. Again, the word profound comes to mind as people responded with prayers, cards, letters, e-mails, and checks. From talking with the friends who were there at the hospital and rehab with Mark in Maine, and later with Mark, I know this outpouring of prayer, love, and concern was a tremendous encouragement to Mark and that he felt it in a very real way. A number of Mark’s friends began talking about how they might be able to raise money for the trust fund. Eric Dale Knapp conceived the idea of a benefit concert with musician friends donating their time to perform and help in the production, with proceeds going to the Mark A. Thallander Trust. A concert committee was formed which included Lois Bock, Marilyn Fontana, Judy MacLeod, Frederick Swann, Leigh Trenham, John West, Lois Williams, and myself. Other people, such as Janelle Grose, contributed as well. The first benefit concert, Affirmation of Faith and Life, was held at Lake Avenue Church in Pasadena on March 21, 2004, with David and Darlene Feit-Pretzer co-chairing the event. It was a glorious celebration of Mark’s life and God’s wonderful grace, with over 800 singers from 30 churches in southern and northern California and Canada participating, and over 3,800 in attendance. People were generous when the offering was taken, which gave a tremendous boost to the trust fund. Also, that wonderful experience with people from so many different Christian denominations and faith communities coming together to celebrate and worship gave birth to the vision of replicating that opportunity for people across the county to come together and experience the glory of praising God through beautiful music. That vision, and the understanding that music offers the unique opportunity for unifying the diverse Christian community, provided a new direction and ministry for Mark, and led to the incorporation of the Mark Thallander Foundation in 2005. A second benefit, The Mark Thallander Keyboard Benefit Concert, was held on September 10, 2004, at the Crystal Cathedral in Garden Grove, Calif. Christopher Pardini and John West coordinated the event, and again, performers and others helping with the production donated their time, with the proceeds from the offering going to the Mark A. Thallander Trust. Since that time, as Mark has grown stronger physically, he has shared his journey across the country, and others have responded with generous financial support to meet his medical and living expenses. When Mark shared in the weekend services at Lake Avenue Church, radio personality Rick Dees and his wife Julie were so moved by Mark’s story that the next week Rick started a drive on his morning radio show to raise money for a prosthetic arm for Mark. He raised over $50,000! The generosity and response of Rick and others to the need had a deep impact on Mark and was tremendously encouraging to him as he watched God work through others, His wonders to perform. As chair of the trust, I can affirm that the financial generosity, prayers, cards, letters, and e-mails of hundreds of people around the country and beyond have made a profound difference in Mark’s life as he continues the journey of recovery from the physical trauma his body has gone through, as well as the loss of income from not being able to work. That generosity also helps sustain him as he continues to deal with ongoing pain and adapts to his new physical limitations in daily life. Through it all, Mark continues to demonstrate a genuine and inspiring positive mental attitude which is a reflection of his deep spiritual faith and trust that God has and will continue to provide for all of his needs. God is so good! Even in times of great tragedy in our lives He is faithful and His Grace is sufficient. Mark so wonderfully demonstrates that with his tremendous faith and willingness to follow wherever God leads, on unimagined paths. Through great physical and emotional pain and loss, Mark has never lost his faith or his “wicked” sense of humor, as so many of us can testify. To me, and many others, Mark is a true champion rising above the difficulties of life to demonstrate that we can trust God with our lives, no matter what may come. Mark is living proof of the truth in the words of the second stanza and refrain from an old gospel hymn: Not a burden we bear, not a sorrow we share, but our toil He does richly repay; not a grief or a loss, not a frown or a cross, but is blest if we trust and obey. Trust and obey for there’s no other way to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.
Posted on: Mon, 17 Jun 2013 18:20:51 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015