Bill Allison
I originally asked Jesus Christ to come into my heart at a Child Evangelism meeting. I was ten years old. My father was overseas serving in the army. We moved a lot – different houses, different schools, different friends – I had a loving family, but little consistency or putting down roots. I was lonely and lacked guidance. In the 9th grade I was invited to attend Hume Lake Christian summer camp, where I again went forward and made sure of my decision and commitment. In Jesus Christ, I began to find the friend who would never leave or forsake me and a loving father who was always there to guide me.
Coming from a non-Christian family which traveled frequently, I found it difficult to become active in any church until high school, when I was able to attend Memorial Baptist Church in Fresno. It was that year that I re-dedicated my life and opened all channels to God. That same year, with the help of Pastor Don Baker, I dedicated my life to full-time service wherever the Lord would lead. As I became more involved in the church family and allowed Christ to take more control, I discovered my love for that family and a new eagerness to serve them. Under the guidance of Pastor Chuck Rogers I was able to harness my love and talents in music and leadership and turn them into active tools for the Lord's use. Gradually doors began to open and new opportunities for ministry came my way. I was able to work on the church staff during the summer of 1972 as an Intern. There I focused in on song-leading and working with the Junior High student's Sunday School classes. I was part of several musical and ministry groups in following years. One small group was called "The Fishermen". We spent a summer traveling with Operation Mobilization in France and recorded an album. God continued to lead and mold my life. Sensing that God was leading me to pursue ministry as a career, I spent some time at Western Seminary in Portland. That short experience played a major part in the shaping of my philosophy of ministry. My love for people, as well as my interest, gifts and training in music and drama have been the foundation for the work that God has enabled me to pursue over the last 50+ years at Calvary Church in Los Gatos, Silverdale Baptist in Bremerton, WA, Mennonite Brethren Church in Reedley, CA, and Saratoga Federated Church in Saratoga, CA. My hunger to know and love God continues to grow as I’ve entered retirement , and my desire to be His person is the goal still set before me - to walk worthy of my calling in my church, in my daily life, and in my home
I can look back on many relationships and people that have been part of my spiritual formation, but none compare to the friend, life partner and ministry partner that I found in my wife, Diane. We began our married life in the community and family we found at Calvary Church. Our two sons, Chris and Will, were born here. For all four of us, Calvary is an integral part of our story. We invested in lives here for 20 years, and were blessed by the investment of so many in our lives. We never imagined that God would bring us full circle, and bring us back to this place and this body that has always felt like home. We have been so excited to see the diversity and breadth of this congregation, to feel the fresh breath of God’s Spirit breathing through the worship, the teaching and the commitment to the future of being God’s hands and feet in Los Gatos and the surrounding community.
As Diane and I prayed about the call to be an Elder, the thought kept coming back to me – for such a time as this. And so God continues to write our story, as part of His global body, and the body here at Calvary Church. It’s with gratitude and anticipation that we turn this new page.
Craig Giordano
Having been brought up in a Bible-believing church, I can’t ever remember not believing in Christ and God’s plan of redemption for mankind. In the early years, my parents and grandparents (particularly my maternal grandmother) were steadfast teachers and examples of lives dedicated to Christ. For this, I will forever be grateful.
As I grew, however, I became very distracted…especially during the middle school and early high school years. The small church I had grown up in struggled to provide meaningful mentoring to youth going through the “turbulent teen years.” It became easy for me to have my “church life” and my “real life.” So, I believed…but was not really confessing to the world around me.
Thankfully, I met a few Christian friends in high school, that helped to “mainstream” my faith. In college at SJSU, I became involved with the Campus Ambassadors Bible study. Besides diving deeper into the Scriptures, I met other Christian students, several of whom had already determined that God had called them to full-time ministry. This was really a new concept for me 50 years ago…that God would call “ordinary people” to serve Him that way. That helped to form a fresh perspective for me of full dependence on God and the reality of my faith in every-day life.
Seeking a Christ-centered church with strong programs for children, my wife Kim and I were drawn to Calvary Church in 1990, and soon became members. Through the years, so many teachers and mentors poured into our lives and the lives of our two children. We are blessed beyond all measure that our children and their spouses are fully sold-out to Christ and are raising our five grandchildren to know Him and the plan of salvation. The Calvary family was certainly instrumental in this.
Jesus is my savior, friend, daily guide and advocate. I cannot imagine what my life would have been like without His Word and His relentless pursuit of me when I thought I could find my way on my own.
I am humbled to be considered to serve as an Elder for Calvary Church, and do not take the responsibility lightly. Through our 36 years in this fellowship we have laughed, cried, prayed, grieved, rejoiced and celebrated with so many of the Calvary family. We look forward to sharing in the lives of many more. As we move forward, my hope and prayer is that we will be a people united in our love for God and for each other (Matthew 22:37-40), serving with a spirit of unity (Psalms 133:1), and be representative of all of God’s creation (Revelation 7:9-10).
