I first met Donny while I was renting the trailer at Hastings while going to seminary. We connected very quickly over our shared love of camp, but I think I made a friend for life when I commented once that sausages were an underappreciated art form of food. Donny in his excited, yet still humble way, said, “Oh, I like sausages quite a bit too.” I would later learn that this was a massive understatement, because sausage making was one of Donny’s life passions, and he had even taught the art at NAIT’s culinary classes.

 

Later, when Andrew asked me if I would be willing to work in the camp kitchen for a summer, I said “Yes, I’ll do it, but only if Donny is willing to do it with me.” I am glad Donny agreed. That summer was full of laughter, many lessons, long days, a lot of hard work (support your camp kitchen staff! It’s a very hard job), and, of course, freshly made sausage.

I’ll treasure a lot from that summer, but the biggest one is the chance I had to get to know Donny. When we had the chance to get off our feet and rest, Donny was quick to share his life story with me. I was amazed by his openness as he shared the ups and downs in his life. He had such a warm and friendly demeanor; I had mistakenly assumed that his life story would be smooth. Instead, I learned that there was a lot of difficulty and loss that he had faced.

As I reflect on the life he lived, and that he shared with me, I realize that there is a very appropriate analogy for Donny’s life. There’s an old stereotype that you can eat sausages, but you don’t want to see how they’re made. This is from the process of throwing all the questionable bits and pieces left over from the butchering process into the grinder to be added to the sausages (If you’ve eaten a sausage from Donny or myself, fear not, we used only quality cuts). The practice of throwing everything into the grinder and ending up with a lovely food item serves as an analogy for how God works in our lives. Each of our lives are filled with things both lovely and questionable. Things we love to show and things best left off the plate. Victories and losses. But, when we, by faith, put ourselves into the masterful hands of Jesus, we can see how all these bits, even the yucky stuff, can be used by him to create something special.

 

What impressed me most about Donny was that despite the hardships of life, he
didn’t become bitter, but maintained a soft and loving heart. I know this was

because he both received and practiced the forgiveness that comes through
Jesus. Donny loved that Hastings Lake Bible Camp was a place where people could
know this grace and forgiveness. I’m grateful to God that through camp I got to
know Donny, and that he became a part of the ‘mix’ in my life.

- Pastor Darcy Albers, St. Albert Evangelical Lutheran Church