A Legacy of Faithfulness

If you have attended Moody Bible Institute in the last 80 years there is a good chance that you crossed paths with a member of one family with an unbelievable web of alumni. Maurice Peterson graduated from Moody in 1930 and Ione Reed in 1935. Maurice married a woman named Lucille who just happened to be Ione's sister. There was a third Reed sister, Marcellyn, who was a 1941 graduate. And this is where the story gets interesting. The families of these three sisters have produced 23 Moody alums and one current student-28 Moody students in all.

At Founder's Week in February of 2013, several members of this family connected for a mini, impromptu reunion. It was unplanned because they didn't know the others would be in attendance! Ruth Hasenauer '63, daughter of Maurice and Lucille, tells the story: 

"I was there for my 50th reunion and was surprised to find that there were seven other members of my extended family attending the evening service at The Moody Church for Alumni Day! With text messages back and forth we managed to get together after the service: cousins Margaret and Harold Baker (Moody Stewardship representative), Nephew Jim Huhta (class of 1983) and wife Cathy, cousins Nathan ('07) and Tricia ('01) McMillan, and cousin Tommy McMillan, who is a present student. We shared together until the church's lights flashed on and off for us to leave. We discovered there were twenty eight family members who had attended or were attending Moody." 

Those are impressive numbers, but there are other numbers from this legacy that are equally astounding. At least two members of this family have graduated in every decade since the 1930s—that's eight decades—and at least two more will have graduated by the end of the current decade. Over the years and generations there have been fourteen last names that have been part of this family through marriages. And it doesn't stop there. The legacy this extended family has left is remarkable.

In true Moody fashion, this family has done gospel work. Two of them have been pastors, two others missionary doctors, and still two others missionary aviators. Twelve others engaged in missions as well in numerous countries and a variety of ministries. Three of them have gone into Christian education while others have served at Moody to support the ministry. The decade-after-decade faithfulness is notable, a true legacy of service to Jesus. 

The story that started with three sisters in the 1930s is one of faithfulness. Foundationally it is a picture of God's faithfulness to a family across decades and across the globe. It is also a powerful depiction of familial faithfulness to Jesus. Eighty-three years and twenty-eight students serving the King is an amazing thread to trace. Alongside those, though, is the faithfulness of the ministry of Moody Bible Institute over the years as a place people turn to for biblical truth and training. We are thankful to God for his sustaining hand on this family and this ministry.