A Symphony of Service
Audrey Hoover could see the elderly woman as she cracked open the door. The woman’s youthful hair color had long since faded, and the rickety walker in front of her stood as a quiet reminder of the limitations that time had gradually pressed upon her.
Two students from Ozark Adventist Academy stood on the woman’s porch with Steps to Christ and The Great Hope in their hands, watching as she gingerly slid open the door. The girls were part of a small group of students spending their Sabbath afternoon distributing literature and praying with residents in a neighborhood close to the school.
For almost an hour, the girls stayed with the elderly woman, listening to her stories, singing to her all the verses they could remember from “Amazing Grace” and bringing cheer to her lonely heart. Since the elderly woman had gotten sick and lost her strength, no one came to visit her. Even from her own church family, no one came.
As Hoover met up with her group of schoolmates a little farther down the sidewalk, her excited words tumbled out. She wanted to do more to help. It was easy to see the sweetness of Hoover’s heart.
Hoover, a junior at Ozark Adventist Academy, wasn’t just sweet that day. This is what she is like every day.
Long before the sun peeks in her dorm window each morning, Hoover’s alarm quietly buzzes at 5:30 a.m. Reaching for her Bible, its pages marked with her own thoughtful notes, she spends these early morning moments in prayer and Bible study. It is the foundation of who she is, and its reflection is seen in her life every day.
Bible teacher Brad Simmons sees this regularly. He appreciates Hoover’s desire to encourage those around her to deepen their faith, saying that she wants “to make sure that everyone meets her friend Jesus.”
Hoover is already planning for a future in mission work. She hopes to become a therapist, physician or pharmacist, ministering to women in areas where no female healthcare providers are available. In some regions, Hoover explained, the absence of female doctors means women suffer needlessly, sometimes fatally. The daughter of missionary parents currently serving in India, Hoover speaks English, Portuguese and French. Though English is her first language, Portuguese has been a constant presence in her life, and she has no memory of a time when she didn’t understand it. French is a more recent addition, but Hoover thinks she can speak and understand it well enough to pass her classes if they were taught in French.
Music has also been a central part of Hoover’s life. At age 5, she dreamed of playing the violin like the American violinist Lindsey Stirling—until she heard the screeches coming from her own instrument. At 9, she began formal piano lessons. However, at 13 she found the instrument for her. During the COVID-19 lockdowns, Hoover decided to take on the oboe. She wanted something different, something challenging.
Now, at Ozark Adventist Academy, Hoover’s musical gifts enrich the campus and community. The warm tones of her oboe echo through the Gentry Seventh-day Adventist Church as the school orchestra plays “Gabriel’s Oboe.” Hoover can often be found accompanying the orchestra and choir on piano. Her voice leads praise teams, dorm worships and afterglows.
Years from now, perhaps in a remote village or a bustling city clinic, Hoover’s skilled hands may bring healing, her gentle voice carrying words of comfort. The girl who once winced at violin screeches has grown into a woman whose life is a symphony of service.
Even now, in her simple strains of “Amazing Grace” in a lonely living room and at a forgotten door, the Author of all music is showing through the symphony of Hoover’s life that the sweetest melodies are often played on the gentle keys of everyday kindness.
By Debbie Upson, Ozark Adventist Academy Digital Media
