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My name is Larry Zamer
and this is my story...
I was born in Westmont a suburb of Johnstown, PA and enjoyed a 'Leave It To Beaver' childhood. With two brothers and a sister, our house was often filled with kids and my dad made our backyard the neighborhood baseball field. Dad was a scout for the Washington Senators and a salesman for Kessler Whiskey while mom maintained the home front. My life revolved around family, friends, and sports, and all was well until my dad died suddenly of a heart attack. This left my mother the responsibility of raising and providing for four young children. While we didn't have a lot, we got along fine primarily due to my mother's sacrifices. My mother taught me two valuable lessons: First, to earn an honest dollar you have to do an honest day's work and secondly, there are always individuals less fortunate than you that you can help.
Our family attended church - as well as Sunday School - on a regular basis, but to me church was something I had to do, not something I wanted to do. I found it boring and it interfered with sports. After high school, I attended Robert Morris College where I majored in business and minored in partying. God was a distant horizon during my college years.
Though disappointed, I gave up on my dream of playing pro baseball due to my inability to hit a 90 mph fastball. After graduation, I decided not to look for a "nine to five" job and traveled to Colorado where I worked in an underground mine on an explosive crew. Eventually, I took an entry-level position with a consulting firm where – twenty-six years layer - I am now a senior partner. As a young adult, I focused on career, making money, and friends. Those were my priorities and they received most of my attention. I would occasionally contribute to charities - or sponsor a child through the Christian Children's Fund, but that was driven by guilt more than anything else.
In 1989 I met my wife, Bev, and after dating a short time, Bev felt we needed to find a church home. As we searched, one of Bev's co-workers suggested Orchard Hill. We loved the music and were pleasantly surprised how relevant the message was. Soon, Stu shared about a relationship with a living God and a faith that wasn't about what we did, but what God did for us through Jesus Christ. As I walked out of the Chapel that day, I realized that I was not a Christian. I had thought the Christian faith was about rules, regulations, and merit. Now I recognized it was about a relationship, a free gift, and grace. A short time later, I entered into that relationship with Jesus Christ.
Bev and I worship regularly on weekends and Wednesday nights and we both serve - Bev in KidsQuest and myself as an usher. We roll up our sleeves and consider it a privilege. I find myself doing this not from any sense of guilt, but to share the love with others that God first shared with us. For two years - on early Monday mornings - I met with a group of men who challenged each other to exercise our faith in every walk of our lives – our workplace, our community, and our homes. It has been a wonderful and fulfilling experience. As valuable as these relationships have been, even more valuable was developing the discipline of spending daily time with God.
I share this because we're excited about what God has done here at Orchard Hill and we're even more excited about what God plans next in our lives. Thirteen years later, I'm thrilled to stand here today and tell you that I am still walking along the same path with Bev – who I married in the Chapel in 1993, my family here at Orchard Hill, and God. I'm just an ordinary guy, but because of steady growth as a Christian I'm a better person, husband, father and friend. I am grateful for the change God has accomplished in my life and I am anxious to discover His direction for my family and our family here at Orchard Hill.
My name is Larry Zamer and this is my story.
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