by Gail Beran Neils

Anyone who has spent some time at Bethany knows Sylvia Lidell. Most know her as the helpful face behind the reception desk in the administration offices. Others know her as a member of the choir, or a Stephen Minister. Some know her as a great fan of the Seattle Storm women’s basketball team. But there is more to Sylvia than meets the eye.

Sylvia began working at Bethany in 1989, when the congregation averaged around 300 members. She remembers her first year as a time of transition as Senior Pastor Dick Denham was followed by Interim Pastor Ken Biornstad.

The year was made even more memorable for Sylvia because she crashed while paragliding and was unable to come to the office for 2 1/2 months. She had barely returned to work when Bruce Murphy became the next senior pastor at Bethany.

Since then, Sylvia has seen a lot of change. She has seen our current senior pastor, Dan Baumgartner, follow Bruce Murphy and interim Francis Horner. She has also watched the staff grow to 15 people and the congregation to 550 members.

Sylvia has always had a love for the church. The daughter of a pastor, she grew up in small churches throughout Washington. Without a large staff to help him, her father recruited Sylvia and her three sisters to fold the bulletin each week.

After graduating from Business College, Sylvia found a job as a secretary at North Seattle Alliance Church. She worked as one of four secretaries there for 1 1/2 years, then applied for the job at Bethany.

Sylvia has been at Bethany for 16 years now and loves it. She summarizes her feelings by saying, “You just have to come and experience it. It is simply a hard church to replace.”