I Am Wilshire – Pat Spikes.
Hometown: Eudora, Arkansas;
Education: BS, Louisiana Tech University; MA, University of Houston – Clear Lake;
Profession: Physics and chemistry teacher for 33 years
Present city: Garland
Tell us about your family.
I’m married to Duane Spikes, a retired Texas prison chaplain. We have two sons: Dr. Christopher Spikes, who lives in Dallas and has one child, Margot, 13; and Patrick, who lives in Arvada, Colorado, and has a son, Sean, 11.
How about your work or volunteer life?
After working in several Texas school districts, I retired in 1996 from Mesquite ISD and again in 2011 from Dallas ISD. I volunteer for the Trails Neighborhood and have worked with refugees from Afghanistan. I work with the Mesquite Garden Club helping children learn about gardening.
What are your favorite hobbies?
My backyard flower garden is my happy place. I’m hoping to learn how to make my plants thrive through the Mesquite Garden Club.
What are your favorite places to travel?
I love Europe, especially Rome and Norway. I have cruised the Mediterranean in both directions and have visited all the countries that border it, as well as Greece, Ephesus and Africa.
What brought you to Wilshire and when?
While looking for a new church in 2013, I drove by Wilshire one day and decided to visit the next Sunday. I liked the saying I saw on a poster that read, “Jesus died to take away our sins, not our mind,” and I joined.
Where are you engaged at Wilshire?
I was a member of Compass Class and now attend Discovery Class. I’ve served on the Hospitality Ministry Team, helped with One Starry Night, and I sing in New Song Community Choir.
What has surprised you about Wilshire?
The education level of the members and the traditional worship service, even though it has progressive viewpoints.
Tell us about your faith journey.
I accepted Christ at an early age. My family went to church each Sunday, and I was active in youth activities. At college I was active in a local church. My faith has steadily grown from a childlike understanding to a more meaningful and personal faith as a senior adult.
What’s something interesting most people wouldn’t know about you?
I was a cheerleader and majorette in high school. I have traveled to all 50 states. As a science teacher, I fell in love with physics, my teaching field for many years. It is the science that explains the why and how of everything.
What adjectives describe you?
Conscientious, dependable and caring.
If you are interested in being featured in an upcoming I Am Wilshire article, contact Carolyn Murray(cmurray@wilshirebc.org)