Eunice Lassiter’s eyesight may be failing her, but her mind — and her heart — are as focused and precise as the columns of numbers she’s been looking at for more than 50 years.
She views her job as treasurer at Cullomburg Baptist Church, Silas, as something to take very seriously.
“I feel it is a sacred position to be in charge of God’s money,” Lassiter said.
And for more than half a century, she’s arranged her life around that calling.
“When I got home from church every Sunday, I immediately counted that money to make sure it was right, posted my books and paid my bills,” she said.
It was a routine that started not too long after she and her first husband, Keith Doggett, moved to the area and built a house in the mid-1960s. They ended up at a summer revival put on by Cullomburg Baptist where Keith gave his life to Jesus and Eunice rededicated hers.
“We both became truly dedicated Christians,” Lassiter said.
Getting involved
From there, her husband began sharing his testimony as a lay speaker, and she served in a variety of roles in the church over the years. She taught youth and adult Sunday School, sang in the choir, served as music director and was active in Woman’s Missionary Union. And, of course, she served as treasurer.
John Singley, chairman of deacons at Cullomburg Baptist, said she has served in each role with “complete dedication.”
Heart for service
“During the last 20 years that I have been a member of Cullomburg Baptist, Eunice has demonstrated her love and devotion to the church through her service,” he said.
The church has changed over the years, and so has Lassiter.
After 15 years of marriage, she and Keith got the opportunity to adopt a newborn — their first child.
At the same time, they discovered Keith had lung cancer. He died while the little girl, Keturah, was still young.
Three years later, Eunice married again — H.J. Lassiter. He died in 1997.
“We can always come to God with our problems and illnesses,” Lassiter said. “Faith in God is the most important part of our lives.”
And with age comes passing some of that wisdom down to the next generation, she said.
It breaks her heart to give up the position, but as she’s suffered from macular degeneration, she’s realized that she needs to pass the money handling on to someone else. She’s been training someone younger to serve as church treasurer now that she can’t focus on the fine print like she used to.
“I’m having to adjust to not doing it,” Lassiter said. “But it’s still part of my job to be up there and do what I can.”
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