Maggie Trice | SovHope Spotlight Blog
Adam Vinson
By David M.
Let's all take a trip down memory lane to when our church met at the Freeman Sasser. I know what you're all thinking, "I've paid thousands of dollars in psychiatric help to block the memories of the disgusting broom closet nursery, dead cockroaches on the ground, and terrible acoustics that made it sound like kids were screaming into bullhorns." Okay, maybe I'm the one thinking that. But for all its bad, the Ol' Sassy did see some good times. How can I say that with a straight face? Well, it's because Maggie Trice first visited our church during that time. She was a close friend with Jessica McCloud (then Booher) who had invited her to join us on a Sunday morning. Wary, but being a good friend, she decided to give us a shot, and came on a morning that just so happened to be when we were discussing The Elephant Room series. Those of you who weren't there for that missed a truly exciting phase in our church history called the, "We're small enough to do whatever we want" phase. Unfortunately, that was the best day Ol’ Sassy ever saw because Maggie never visited another Sunday until we got our own building (I wonder why). However, she was impacted by her experience and was interested enough in our church to start visiting the singles night events. Thank goodness for us because it was through these events that Maggie decided we were the kind of people she wanted to do life with, and she has never looked back since.
LIFE
Have you guys been to Maggie’s? If you haven’t, then this is not an open invitation to show up and knock on the door, but if you have then you know why I’m bringing it up. The first thing that you will notice is that she is very tidy. Everything has its place and is in that place for a specific reason. The second thing you will see is her eye for interior design, and I should know because I too have somewhat of an interior designers eye (I mean, I watch a lot of Fixer Upper), and what Maggie has done with the space is both functional and tasteful. I can say that, not because of my experience as a professional TV watcher, but because Maggie will tell you that the creative control she has to design her own space has been one of the best parts of living by herself as well as independence she has experienced. She has loved living on the property with Jesse and Courtlynd and is not the only who has benefited from it. Maggie has enjoyed seeing her dog Wallace start to thrive as he comes more and more out of his shell.
WORK
Maggie had a vey satisfying career as a wedding photographer, but now she’s blazing a trail in her new business, photographing a more memorable occasion. You might be asking, “What’s more memorable than my wedding day?” How about the day you’re squeezing your husbands’ hand so hard that your fingernails start cutting into his skin, or your wife is yelling so loud that you are now experiencing early signs of hearing loss?
That’s right. I’m talking about the day your baby is born. Maggie is right there with you to capture the moment your bundle of joy enters this world and you first meet your new son or daughter. To be fully transparent, I thought this was a weird idea when she was explaining it. I mean to me, I want just the necessities in a delivery room: wife, doctor, and “The Final Countdown” blaring in the background. I had never imagined that scenario with a photographer, but now that I’m writing it I have to be honest, it makes me a little emotional. That is truly an amazing time to capture photographic memories as you bring new life into this world, and the crazy thing is that she is the only one in the surrounding area that offers these services (hence the “blazing a trail” part I mentioned earlier). She has to be on call for three weeks for every client, which means that at any second during that time she could get the call to come to the hospital. Talk about stressful! But as she talks about sharing the beauty of a new life and how precious life is with her clients, you can see how meaningful the job is to her. She is going to expand her services this year to include lifestyle family portraits and another package called “Fresh 48”, which would be photos taken 48 hours after birth, as well as offer support in the delivery room by becoming a certified doula. Along with trying to grow that business, she is also working at Ben’s Odds and Ends. She is really enjoying it, specifically the opportunity she has to get closer to Andrea and the Schwarting family and support a business whose purpose is much bigger than making money. The growth that she has experienced from working for Ben and with his family has been invaluable in her life, and she requests prayer to be a good steward of her time as she balances both Ben’s Odds and Ends and her growing photography business.
Maggie is like a cake. Or maybe I mean she’s like an onion. Or is it an Ogre? I don’t know. Ever since Shrek I’ve been really confused on which is the best metaphor. What I’m getting at here is that there are a lot layers to her, and while that may sound silly, I am being very serious when I say that it is definitely worth it to take the time to get to know her. What you will find is someone who is caring, funny, honest, genuine, and someone that everyone needs in their life. I know that we are truly blessed to have her serving as a deacon at our church, and I am very glad that the Freeman Sasser didn’t scare her off.