This neighboring story brings to life the very essence of connecting our neighbors with the hope of the Gospel. It’s what Jesus meant when He said to love God and your neighbor. Sue Carpenter and her late husband, Robert, moved to Peachtree City in 2001. Sue continues to live in the same neighborhood all these years even after Robert’s passing in 2022. Afterall, she has “such great neighbors, so why consider moving anywhere else?”. Sue’s neighbor Annette moved to Peachtree City 9 years ago as a widow and lives right across the street. Sue’s next-door neighbor, Maria, is a single lady who has lived in Peachtree City and the same neighborhood for the last 32 years.
All of these women have very different backgrounds, but God has intertwined their stories into His story, as neighbors. Sue grew up in two small towns of Georgia – Piney Woods and Mountville. One of six children, they lived in a farming community where neighbors shared their bounty and helped one another at every opportunity. Sue recalls their neighbor helping transport her mother, older sister, and the young twins, to & from medical appointments in Atlanta. Annette was born and reared in Newnan, Georgia, an only child. The neighborhood where she grew up was a really, rural area at the time. There were lots of children and folks in the community that knew one another. Annette recalls her mother driving one of the neighbor ladies to the grocery store since she didn’t drive and when Annette became of driving age, she would drive her own grandmother to the store. Maria was born in Berlin, Germany and has one brother who still lives in Munich. Her family was living in Berlin during World War II. Maria recalls a childhood neighbor that was her friend, but that friendship ended when they had to evacuate and move to another part of the country. When the war ended, Maria’s family returned to Berlin, but only to find that their home was severely damaged, and they had to make a new home elsewhere.
Though all three of these ladies come from differing backgrounds, they have one thing in common. They sure know how to be good neighbors! They’ve been helping each other over the years with medical appointments, house sitting, and being there for one another in celebrations and losses. They saw the generation before them model this same neighborly love and respect and they too, have grown to love God and love one another. He has woven a beautiful friendship that they couldn’t have dreamed for themselves. (Interview and writing done by Mary Fields | Director of Care Ministries)