Merry Beth Gay
Share a core childhood memory and a bit about your younger years and places you’ve lived.
I was born in Ashland, Wisconsin and grew up in Saxon, a small town in northern Wisconsin. I lived there until I was 16 years old. My favorite summer memories were attending vacation Bible school and Bible Camp for a week or two each summer. Our church owned a small camp on Lake Superior.
I came to know the Lord when I was seven years old. My mom was very influential in helping me with Bible memorization. She always told me you should memorize scripture in the event you did not have a Bible to read. I’m very thankful to have a memory bank filled with scripture. At the age of 16 we moved to southern Wisconsin where I lived for three years before heading to college in St. Paul, MN. From there, I moved to Denver, Colorado to live near my college roommate and where I got my first nursing job. I met my husband, Ralph two years later and we married nine months after we met!
We moved to Rochester in 1993 for medical residency and ended up staying here. While I have held many nursing positions in my career, being mom has always been a priority. We have three adult children, one daughter-in-law, one soon to be daughter-in-law, and three grand dogs and they all live in Minneapolis. We are very thankful that we are able to live in close proximity to them.
3 children and 3 grand dogs!
What is a favorite memory you have from high school?
When I was in high school I took part in multiple musical opportunities. When I was a senior, I was in the lead role of Sarah Brown in the musical, “Guys and Dolls”. That was great fun!
Describe yourself in 5 adjectives.
It is s so much easier to describe others! But I think I can honestly describe myself as; hospitable, generous, organized, hardworking, and reliable.
What is your favorite thing to spend money on?
I like to spend money on others. Buying unexpected gifts for others is fun for me.
What are three of your favorite foods?
This is a very easy question! My three favorite foods are lemon meringue pie, flourless chocolate cake with a raspberry glaze drizzled on top, and salted caramel ice cream .
What is your favorite Bible verse?
I think you have different favorite Bible verses in different seasons of life. Because I tend to be more like “Martha” in my day to day life, God has put Psalm 46:10a on my heart for the past several years, “Be still, and know that I am God.”
Jill Clarke
Share a core childhood memory and a bit about your younger years and places you’ve lived.
I was born and raised in Rochester, MN as the third of three children. I had a bit of a rough start when I was born as I had a congenital hip defect in both hips and had to wear a Y-shaped full body cast. My dad took some roller skate wheels, attached them to a piece of plywood and laid me on my stomach so I could scoot around on my own.
As did many residents in Rochester, my dad worked at IBM and my mom worked as a nurse at Methodist Hospital. I attended John Marshall High School and went to Winona State University to get my teaching degree. My first job was in Litchfield, MN, a small town in western MN. I taught there for six years and made some incredible friends who I still keep in contact with. I volunteered with Youth for Christ where I learned as much as the kids did and really stretched my faith.
After the six years, Litchfield became a little too small for me so I returned to Rochester to teach at Sunset Terrace Elementary. I also started attending CEFC where there was a large singles group. Once again, I met many wonderful long-term friends and my husband, Bart. 35 years later, many of us still get together for reunions and it’s as if the time never passed.
Tell us about growing your family.
Bart finished his residency and fellowship in Endocrinology and we got married in 1990; and had our first son, Taylor. Since there weren’t any jobs available for him at Mayo, we moved to Chicago where our second son, Josiah, was born. Even though we liked it there, we were glad when Mayo recruited him back in 1998. I stayed at home with the boys while Bart worked long hours, but got involved with AWANA, Women’s Bible study, and volunteering at the boys school.
What do you enjoy doing in your spare time?
With Bart being able to travel for meetings, we all got to tag along to many interesting places and enjoyed learning about different cultures. Bart and I have traveled some with the National Parks in Utah and Colorado being some of the most breathtaking. The most memorable trip I’ve taken has been to Israel. Unfortunately, Bart was unable to take the trip with me, but as they say, it was the trip of a lifetime. The Bible came alive as I visited places where Jesus walked. I saw the Sea of Galilee; got baptized in the Jordan River; and toured unbelievable places in Jerusalem. As Bart and I near retirement, we hope to cash in our frequent flyer miles and travel more.
Now, I spend my time visiting Josiah in the Twin Cities and Taylor and his wife, Sarah, in Redding, CA. I’ve taken up watercolor painting; attend Renovare Bible Study; and attend a small group Sunday School. In September I went to Disney World with three high school friends and had a blast. We managed to travel in between Hurricanes Helene and Milton.