Surprise! An Update from Sun Valley's first Preacher

Do you ever really stop and think about just how often God puts us in the right place at just the right time? I believe there is a reason for how and why everything happens even though we can't see it at the time. Saying that, I will tell you how "we" came to locate the man (and his wife) who became the first preacher at Sun Valley and provide you with the following photo and personal bio.

Although I wasn't able to contact my source to make sure that I had remembered the details correctly, I remember that Barbie (Cooper) Carlisle had gone to visit her son, daughter in law, and more to the point, her new grandbaby in Surprise, Arizona (you will see how fitting the name of the city is). Barbie had attended church at a congregation where she had seen Sandra and Don Humphrey's names in the bulletin regarding a mission trip or some other effort. Barbie told me about it after arriving back home and wondered if it could possibly be the same people from Sun Valley. Well, as it turned out, Barbie called the church and got an email address. I then made contact with the Humphreys asking if our Sun Valley connection could possibly be a blast from the past! To my surprise and theirs, it was! Even more ironic, when they responded, I was confused with the details they gave since they had helped start and preached at another congregation in the Phoenix area also named Sun Valley Church of Christ!

Anyway, for those of you who were old enough to remember Sandra and Don Humphrey and wondered where they are, now you will know.

Don Humphrey Bio

Having graduated from Harding in 1958 and then marrying Sandra Herrington in 1960 while preaching in Wichita, Kansas, Don moved to Houston, Texas, to work with the Oak Meadows congregation on a mission project. When they started the Sun Valley congregation, he became the first preacher and worked with them for their first year while still meeting in the school house. Sandra enjoyed taking art lessons from Senia Atkinson that year.

Don eventually worked with the Wynnewood Hills church in Dallas to move to Massachusetts with 55 families as Exodus: Burlington, creating the largest church in New England on their first Sunday to meet. From there, they moved to Colorado where Don started the successful religious publishing company, “Christian Communications, Inc.” and preached weekends in Estes Park and Salida.

After a fire destroyed their publishing business, they merged with the Gospel Advocate Company in Nashville. Don became Vice President of the Gospel Advocate and Sandra the Editor of Christian Woman magazine. Later, Don preached 10 years in Phoenix and then retired. They then moved to California and preached for a small congregation near Yosemite for five years but have now “retired” again and returned to Nashville.

Don is still working, however, starting a preacher training school in Sudan, promoting his “Missing Peace” evangelism video, and hosting tours to the Bible lands. They have six children, all graduates of Christian colleges—and eight grandchildren.

Sandra and Don are still living in Tennessee. Although they are not sure of their attendance at the reunion, they may be reached by regular mail at 839 Ridgetop Dr.Mt. Juliet, TN 37122 or emailed at sandra.humphrey@comcast.net or don.humphrey@comcast.net.