
Miss Lillian Beard with all her Drama Lillians Ann Hornbeak (1983), Lori Ann Mallory (1914), Sophie Harris (1921), Peggy Carpenter (1931) Dr. Jerry Seale

Five performances during the weekend of December 14-16, 2007, were Woodhaven’s gift to the people of Houston and the surrounding area. The drama, entitled “The Empty Chalice” told the life story Jesus, showing how He poured out His life for a sinful world. The drama also told the story of the founder of the Deaf Ministry at First Baptist Church, Houston, Lillian Beard, who established the ministry in 1924 at the age of 14. Miss Lillian, now 99 years young, attended every performance. That ministry has since become Woodhaven Baptist Deaf Church, which will celebrate 84 years of “Signing, Serving, and Sending” in February 2008.

From her adoption as an infant by a deaf couple, Octavia and Mack Fitzgerald, through later important events in her life, the story of Miss Lillian’s compassion and sacrifice for the deaf paralleled the love and life that Jesus surrendered for us.

Starting back in September, Woodhaven members and volunteers from all around the Houston area came together to produce this wonderful work of art. Building the stage to represent Lillian’s humble beginnings and then including Bethlehem and Jerusalem for Jesus’ life story took many hours of hard work by many helpful hands and hearts. Character parts were assigned, lines were memorized, voice interpreters secured. Sixty-plus people congregated weekend after weekend to put both stories together so that they could be told in a smooth, convincing manner. Back stage managers, stage hands, lighting technicians, food coordinators, make-up assistants and animal caretakers, although unseen, were also important to the production.

A team from the drama will also present an abbreviated version of the drama the evening of January 10, 2008, to the deaf inmates at the Estelle Unit in Huntsville, Texas.

Another year of drama has ended…. Twenty years of “telling the story” has honed our skills as a drama team at Woodhaven. But, there is always next year’s drama…a new story to be written, new parts to be memorized, new stage to be built, all to emphasize God’s love for His people by His sacrifice of his only son Jesus, the Christ, the Messiah, Emmanuel – God with us.

We will begin working on next year’s drama in September 2008. If you were touched by the drama this year, please come join our team next year and help us tell the story to the world. Watch the Woodhaven website www.woodhavendeaf.org for more information on how to be included in the drama. Information will be posted as the starting date grows near.