Growing up at Calvary, Stephanie Gee remembers singing in the choir, Christmas pageants and mission trips to Arizona, Belize and Jamaica. Kimberly Pate, her friend, remembers Sunday school lessons, her confirmation, and singing hymns as Dorothy Pett and Dick Clark played piano and led the youth in music.

When I was about 12, my mother and father separated. Money was tight. She worked three jobs. Every Sunday she took us to Calvary Baptist Church in New Orleans. When the offering plate came around, she dug into her wallet. Then, she passed the plate to my sister and me.