Guinness World Records has recognised an 87-year-old woman in Liverpool as “the world’s longest serving Sunday School teacher”.
Pam Knowles begun helping at St Anne’s Church in Aigburth with its Sunday school in 1951 on the age of 13.
In addition to the Guinness World Records recognition, this Christmas marks one other milestone for Pam – participating in her seventy fifth Christmas nativity.
Seven many years, 16 prime ministers and two monarchs later, she’s still there and says she has never lost her passion for teaching the following generation of Christians.
Speaking to the Church of England, Pam talked of the importance of St Anne’s Church in her life, saying she had been baptised, confirmed and married there. She also celebrated her sixtieth wedding anniversary together with her late husband there.
“My calling has and at all times will probably be to St Anne’s. I just love the church!”
Pam was first approached to assist on the church by its superintendent. After passing a test set by the Diocese of Liverpool, she was permitted to run a children’s group.
Reflecting on her lifetime of experience as a Sunday school teacher, Pam noted that the essential format hadn’t modified and that timeless stories just like the birth of Jesus, Jonah and the whale and the garden of Eden remain favourites.
“I believe little children can relate to those stories and so they often bring their very own innocent tackle the Bible, which is just wonderful.”
She added, “I’ve noticed children aren’t quite so well behaved as they was – they run around a bit more now, I suppose it’s a bit more relaxed.”
Having ministered to children for thus long, a lot of Pam’s charges now have families of their very own.
“It doesn’t feel like I’ve been doing this for 74 years, some days I feel like I’m only just starting, as there’s recent children on a regular basis. It was great to be recognised by the Guinness Book of Records – my son has hung the certificate near the front door within the hall for visitors to see, he’s very proud!
“At the moment, I don’t intend to stop doing this. I still have a number of energy and I’m just as keen about it now as after I began!”
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