The Famous Chrissy Weaver

Welcome to Character Week!

The USA Network has, for several years now, used the tag line CHARACTERS WELCOME on commercials for their original shows.  That could have been our slogan in the youth ministry of FUMC-K as well.  All this week here at I'd Laugh I am going to remember a few of those characters and the some of the moments that made them memorable.   And what better place to start than with our most famous celebrity...

Chrissy Weaver started her journey in our youth group when she and her large class of 6th graders joined us in June of 1994.  She was a tiny, quiet little thing who rarely spoke but smiled constantly.  She came from a family with some issues (don't we all!) and her mother was extremely protective of her children, including Chrissy's brother Tommy.  Like so many others who spent a great deal of time around our ministry, she got over the quiet part- but she never quit smiling!  You have read about her mooning people at Myrtle Beach; you have seen a picture of her trying to eat Ben Thompson's head.  And yet, even as she broke out of her shell, she remained a shy person at heart.  Today we want to take a look back at a day that put her patience with us to the test.

Pretty much every summer we had a Disney Day on our schedule, because we had so many people who had access to admission to Walt Disney World.  We always had a blast on those days, and it always seemed there was one story that would mark the day.  On this particular day (I have no idea what year it was) we were standing in line to ride Space Mountain.  Those of you who know Disney know that there is always a long line for the ride, and this day was no different.  Waiting in line can be fun when you have a group to kill the time with, and there were a bunch of us that day.  Chrissy Weaver was a rare young lady in this sense; she was beautiful, but had no idea that she was.  The older guys in the group used to joke at the time that they needed to become friends with Chrissy now, because when she got older she would be so far out of their league she would never give them the time of day.  On this day, surrounded by huge crowds as we moved through the Space Mountain line, we decided to give Chrissy a hard time.  I began the whispering, saying to the youth around me, "Isn't that Chrissy Weaver, the TV star?"  Others caught on, and we all began to whisper and point.  Chrissy was blushing and trying to ignore us, so we just kept getting louder.  Youth group members were asking for her autograph and talking about how amazing it was to see her there.  And slowly, but surely, the "strangers" in line with us began to look.  We could hear them talking, trying to figure out who she was.  Some began to say they recognized her from various shows.  It was hilarious.  I am sure a number of those folks returned home that day talking about the celebrity they saw at WDW.

We. of course, could not let it end there.  Every where we went that day we talked aloud of our friend "the famous Chrissy Weaver."  People kept looking, wondering what she was famous for!  And it's funny- from that day forward Chrissy didn't just feel like a part of our youth family, she felt like an IMPORTANT part of our youth family.  In our little world, she was indeed famous.  As a youth pastor you always want your students to feel like they matter; that episode just showed that you never quite know what will do the trick!  Chrissy was a true character and one of my favorite people, and I miss her.  I have no idea where she is today, but wherever she is, I still think of her as a celebrity.  Thank you, Chrissy, for providing us with some great character moments! 

Because of Jesus,