From childhood to retirement, Connie Maxwell has always been home for retiring married couple

An unbroken thread weaves its way through the lives of John and Sue Sheriff.

It appears first in their childhood, then young adulthood, and is stitched intricately into the fabric of their faith, marriage, family and work.

That thread, an abiding presence in their lives, is Connie Maxwell Children’s Home.

John Sheriff as a young boy at Connie Maxwell.

John Sheriff as a young boy at Connie Maxwell.

John and Sue first met as children when both were living at the children’s home. Years later, after they were married, they returned to Connie Maxwell as employees. Today, for only the second time since they first arrived as children at Connie Maxwell, they are residing somewhere other than at the tree-shaded Greenwood campus. The couple recently retired from Connie Maxwell — Sue, 66, as director of education, and John, 70, as director of enrichment — and have settled in a house just a few miles from the place where they spent most of their lives.

John was almost 6 years old in the early 1950s when he and five brothers were brought to Connie Maxwell. “My mom died of cancer, and my father, who was a farmer, needed help,” he said.

In 1959, Sue was 10 years old when she came to live at the children’s home. “My family was torn apart,” she said. “My parents were not educated, and it was hard for them to support us.”

Sue Sheriff from her early years at Connie Maxwell.

Sue Sheriff from her early years at Connie Maxwell.

John and Sue were more than three years apart in age, but they grew up knowing each other. Their first date was during Sue’s senior year of high school in the spring of 1969. She then graduated and went off to college at Winthrop, while John was circulation manager at the Greenwood Index-Journal and worked part-time at Connie Maxwell in the athletics program.

The next year, Sue moved back to Greenwood and enrolled at Lander College. She and John were married that same year, and she started working part-time at Connie Maxwell in the recreation program. In 1978 and 1980, Sue and John became full-time employees at Connie Maxwell, where, over the next 30-plus years, they lived, worked and raised two children. When they retired earlier this year, their combined years of employment (part-time and full-time) totaled 92.

John said he struggled with the decision to suddenly stop spending every day at a place that was such a central part of their lives. “I spent lot of days sitting in my office and crying,” he said.

Sue said the decision was “hard in one sense,” but added, “You know when it’s time.”

The couple is adjusting to their new life in retirement, but they say they will never stop being grateful for a lifetime of experiences at Connie Maxwell.

“In Connie Maxwell’s nurturing Christian environment, I was given many opportunities, but most of all I was given hope and encouragement for a positive, productive future,” said Sue.

“Just walking the hallowed grounds of the campus — from childhood throughout my adult life — has truly been a blessing. I give Connie Maxwell credit for everything I am. If I had it to do over again, I wouldn’t change a thing.”

As for John, he says Connie Maxwell is “next to heaven — a wonderful place to grow up, work, live and raise children.”

In remarks he prepared for a “legacy” service at Connie Maxwell Baptist Church (where he and Sue still attend), John wrote: “Legacy is just a fancy word for footprints. The legacy that I hope to leave is the mirrored image of many Connie Maxwell staff that have gone before me. I appreciate the staff for weathering some storms with me. They never gave up on me during my troubled years. They saw something good in me.

“I believe I was also able to help children weather some storms of life over the years. Together, our Connie Maxwell family has made life better for many children. I know — I was one of those children many years ago.”

The Connie Maxwell thread that so clearly marks their childhood, marriage and careers is also an important part of John and Sue’s faith. Both accepted Christ as children and were baptized at Connie Maxwell. They grew up attending church together. They were married at Connie Maxwell Baptist Church, and their children — John David and Christina — were dedicated and baptized there. John, who has taught Sunday school for 47 years, says that the most important thing he wants said about his life is that he was a Christian.

Sue wonders if it was a “divine purpose” that brought her to Connie Maxwell so that she could prepare for her future life and work. “Was that pull actually God’s leading?” she said. “Through his mercy, I believe it was.”

Miller Murphy, longtime director of communications at Connie Maxwell, said many people call John and Sue Sheriff “Mr. and Mrs. Connie Maxwell.”

“And for good reason,” he added. “They grew up as children here, but, more importantly, they helped children to grow while serving here by caring for them and showing them God’s love.”