Doyll Andrew's Blog

Lately, I have been reaching career milestones. The one that recently struck me was the anniversary that I have been practicing as a lawyer for 25 years. This concurrently means that it has been 25 years since I graduated from Valparaiso Law School.

I have several memories of that graduation day. One memory that has influenced me, and has recently come to mind, is a conversation I had with my grandfather.

We were walking from the ceremony to the cars to drive back to my home in Hammond. He came up behind me, put his arm around me, and squeezed a big hug saying how proud he was. We then paused and looked back. My Law School Graduation was held in the Chapel of the Resurrection on the Valparaiso University campus. Grandpa shook his head and told me the following, “I never would have guessed.” He then proceeded to tell me the following:

Grandpa and Grandma were members of a Franklin Park, Illinois, Lutheran Church since the 1940’s. Grandpa remembered sitting in church when the Lutheran Church leadership approached his congregation with a capital campaign to secure funds for the Chapel of the Resurrection at VU. He told me that he and grandma gave a little bit of money to the campaign and his church also contributed funds to help build this chapel in Valparaiso, IN (which is about a 2-hour drive away from their home town in IL). What blew his mind, was that decades later, his own family was benefitting from this gift given so long ago. He gave that money to the project never expecting to see any return or even the prospect to see the chapel. What he didn’t know at my graduation, is that my niece is now a student at the university, and most likely using the chapel as part of her university experience. That money he gave to a project, nowhere near his home, has gone on to benefit his grandson and his great-granddaughter.

From the information I have received, the church is about to have a capital campaign. The building is in need of repairs. The money that is raised for this campaign is money that, for some of us, we will never think we will see a return on. Money invested in a capital campaign usually is not about immediate results, it is about the future. This money supports a building that offers a roof to the homeless, a learning environment for preschoolers, enrichment for Boy Scouts, a place for celebrations of life after death as well as baptisms, and a gathering place to worship.

The money is for the future, but as my grandfather could attest to, you can’t even imagine how it could come back to benefit you and your family in the future.

This blog also starts off the Advent season. It is my hope that this holiday season finds you in good health and spirit. Merry Christmas from the Andrews family.

Doyll