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Golia Jordan is a ''Doer of the Word"

DORA CORBETT

MAPLE HILL - Golia James Jor-dan has been called a "community-church worker."

" I just want to be a doer of the Word," Golia says. 'Tm a servant, cleaning the kitchen and bathroom, making the church ready for wor-ship."

A lifetime member of Lee's Chapel Missionary Baptist church, Goldie re-calls the days when mules pulling carts were tied outside. She said she loved sitting near the potbellied stove.

"Revival time brought to Maple Hill a special lady from New York • who wore a big broad hat and a fur around her shoulder," Golia recalls.

And it was local ladies - great aunts Joyce Shepard and Rebecca Lee - who had an influence on her life. "These women were saints," Golia .said and she wanted to be like them.

Through the years, Golia has served on the pastor's aid committee, the usher board, V.P. for the missionary circle and was financial secretary for 30 years .

At age 12 she started singing in the adult choir. Later she organized and

· led both a youth choir and a children's choir, her favorite hymn, "Just as I am."

She teaches class of 12 to 15 year olds of whom she says "are full of questions."

Golia is also a deaconess and says she takes notice of who is absent and does a·lot of visiting.

Using elderly ladies in the mission- . ary circle, Golia organized a "mentor program" for single parents. The older women "adopt" a child and are able to help the parent through the child, Go-lia said.

"Some of these women have be-come key people in the lives of these families," she said.

Both Golia James and Nathan Jor-dan were working at Camp Lejuene _and riding together before they married in 1958. They now have four children and 2.grandclti~e_n: __

Golia Jordan In the community, Mrs. Jordan or-

ganized Sunlight Chapter #634 and was its first worthy matron. The late Maggie Strong wa·s Grand Worthy Matron and the late Rev. Carroll Mid-gette was District Worthy Patron.

Golia was also president of the Ma-ple Hill Women's Community Auxil-iary, is a p~st trea_~ure_r and past secre-tary of the Maple Hill Civic Club and past secretary of the United Gospel Choir.

She has served as chairperson of the Black Focus beauty pageant and of the Maple Hill beauty pageant.

Co-chairperson of the Maple Hill Rural Health Center board, Mrs. Jor-dan is active in the cancer fund drive and assists in the CHAP program.

She is a retired assistant teacher from Camp Lejuene and holds an as-sociate degree from Southeastern Community College. She also attend-ed Fayetteville State University.

Golia is known locally for "Operation Grave Cleanup." Her church you.th group has literally cleaned all the community cemeteries.

In spite of the time Golia has spent at church, at work and in the commu-nity she has made time for her family . She took care of her mother unti l her death. Now, she makes time to care for her elderly father. -