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Bible
Quizzing Hall of Fame Recognizes Faithful Service
by Helen Kaufmann
This year seven new members were added to the FM Bible
Quizzing Hall of Fame, bringing the total to 23 since the honor
was first bestowed at the 50th year celebration in 2003. Hall of
Fame status is awarded to former quizzers who "not only did
well in competition, but more importantly, who applied what they
learned and are currently living God-honoring lives in faithful
service for the Lord."
The current inductees' quizzing years range over the
full half century of Free Methodist Bible Quizzing, from Stanley
B. Thompson, retired president of The Free Methodist Foundation,
who first quizzed in 1957, to Julie Allman, one of the most recent
quizzers, who was active to 1994 and now serves as a missionary
to Ukraine. This year's other inductees include Allman's parents,
Harold and Lois Allman, 1965; Steve Coates, 1975-1981; Kathleen
Costello, 1961-1965; and Gregory Sanders, 1971-78.
The Hall of Famers represent a variety of areas of
Christian ministry. In addition to missionaries, they include former
quizzers who have gone on to become pastors, conference delegates,
church board members, Sunday School teachers, directors of Christian
education and adult and youth ministry, praise team members, foreign
chaplains, Gideons, college professors, a bishop and — not surprisingly
— quiz coaches.
Allman, this year's youngest Hall of Fame inductee,
quizzed for New Brighton, PA, from 1989-1994 on a team that went
to Nationals in 1994. That year she received the Dave Markell "Excellence
in Attitude" award. In her Hall of Fame interview she says
"I have memories of Dave Markell from when I was a kid too
young to quiz, tagging along to Finals with my mom and dad, and
I remembered his influence on the spirit of Bible quizzing."
Markell, now deceased, was appointed Director of Youth Ministries
for the denomination in 1977. He recognized the potential for Bible
quizzing to get God's word into the hearts and minds of youth and
was instrumental in making the program a vital national ministry.
About her quizzing experience Allman says, "As
a teen, quizzing really helped to ground me in my faith — not just
in opinions or popular interpretations of what the Christian life
is about, but in the living Word of God." Allman has been serving
with FM World Missions in Ukraine since 2000, working with youth,
worship and music ministries and outreach to new areas.
Another Hall of Famer serving in full-time ministry
is Steve Coates, military chaplain in Japan. Coates quizzed for
the Moundford Free Methodist Church in Decatur, IL. His memories
of quizzing include an annual "Quote-a-thon" for which
his quiz coach (his brother, Chuck Coates) had quizzers quoting
20 to 30 chapters of scripture from memory. The effort was rewarded
when Coates' team won national championships in five of the seven
years that he quizzed. His comment on the estimated 2000 hours he
spent memorizing God's Word was, "I thank God for the privilege
of consuming that much positive input in my mind and for sparing
me 2000 hours of potential harm."
In the years since his time as a quizzer Coates has
coached teams in Greenville, IL; Dearborn, MI; Spring Arbor, MI;
Springfield, IL; and now in Iwakuni, Japan, where he serves as a
chaplain in the U.S. Navy.
It is clear from the testimonies of former quizzers
that the personal rewards of quizzing are many, and that winning
is not the main thing. Interestingly, when Hall of Fame nominees
were asked by quizzing personnel if they had won any championships,
some (who actually had won) said "I really don't remember."
Benefits accrue to the denomination as well. Bible
Quiz Director Mike Hopper says, "The greatest single source
of quality leaders for the quizzing ministry is our former quizzers."
He asks church leaders to encourage former quizzers to continue
to be involved in the program through coaching, quizmastering or
officiating at tournaments and to consider beginning a quizzing
program in a church that does not yet have one.
For more information on quizzing, click on the link below:
www.fmquizzing.org
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