The longtime religious columnist for The St. Louis American the Reverend Shirley B. Deavens passed away on November 12, 2010 at the age of 72.
Deavens’ “Living the Abundant Life” column appeared in the American for more than 25 years. Many people would come to the congregation after reading her articles, her friend and Associate Pastor Tonya Stewart said.
“So many people said how the articles she wrote saved them from committing suicide and how they had to meet her,” Stewart said of their ministry at the World Overcomers Christian Center.
Her column had a very loyal following. In recent weeks, as her health declined and The American began to reprint former columns, readers noticed and began to ask if Shirley was unwell.
Shirley prayed over every article, Stewart said, asking what God wanted to come into the article.
Not only did Shirley write this, she lived it.
“The things she wrote about in The American, people got to read them every week, but we got to hear them every single day of our lives,” said Darwin Deavens, her son. “That’s truly how she raised us.”
Her son Gregory Deavens’ fondest memories of his mother are from the holiday season, which are upon us.
“She loved being with family,” Gregory said said. “She always looked forward to decorating and shopping for the holidays.”
He will always remember her message at the end of Christmas dinner. For decades, without fail, after dinner Shirley would ask her family what their goals were and what they accomplished last year.
“Then she would ask if we had written them down yet, because revisiting your goals on a regular basis is an important part of achieving them,” Gregory said. “And that was part of her normal ritual.”
Her lifelong friend Sallie Bradford said the happiest times of Shirley’s life were when she was in the pulpit declaring the Word. Gregory said she could deliver a prayer better than anyone he had ever seen.
“She has inspired so many people to think on the positive side. You could not discuss negativity with her. There was no room for that,” Bradford said.
“Many of the things that she taught, I’ve used to stay strong in what I do. I miss her so much already. Even in her period of illness, she still tried to inspire others to go forward.”
Look for additional memories of Shirley in her column space in future editions of the paper while we recruit inspirational columnists. Anyone who would like to submit a memory of Shirley or her column, or an inspirational message of your own, please send your story or column (no more than 500 words) and a photograph of you to cking@stlamerican.com.
