Local family finds strength in devotion to church, each other
Many believe the biggest failure in contemporary America is the breakdown of the family unit.
Families have come under attack from from every direction. Divorce rates have increased, gangs are growing, molestation is reported more often than ever, drug addiction is rampant and sex has become a casual encounter.
Amid all these depressing facts, a Texarkana family has found their ray of hope: the Bible.
Billy and Fonda Newsom believe wholeheartedly that the Bible is God’s instruction manual for life and that all the answers can be found there. They have chosen to raise their family based on Scripture and have raised children and grandchildren who are lovers of Jesus and work diligently to spread the Gospel.
The Newsoms met in 1970 at G.C. Murphy Co. in Texarkana, where they both were employed. She worked in the buyer’s office and he in the stockroom. They began dating, taking long walks and getting to really know each other over the next year.
“He swept me off my feet,” Fonda
Newsom said.
They were married in August 1971.
The young couple attended church at Hillcrest Baptist Church, where Fonda Newsom’s parents were members. Both had a strong foundation in the church and wanted to continue that legacy.
Their family blossomed with the birth of twin daughters, Shelly and Kelly, in March 1973. Their world suddenly revolved around the two sweet-faced little girls who had stolen their hearts.
The Newsoms were active parents in all of their daughters’ activities. Along with their own parents, they would attend football games, competitions and school parties and were active in their children’s lives.
They participated in Band Boosters, worked concession stands, helped with uniforms, and chaperoned school trips and other functions. Everyone knew who Kelly and Shelly’s parents were. And everyone was welcome in the Newsom home.
In 1977, the family began going to church at Flower Acres Baptist Church. They briefly attended another church, and for a while did not attend regularly. Even during this time, the couple never stopped teaching the girls about God. They lived life according to Scripture and taught them the values they believed were important.
The Newsoms’ marriage taught the girls their first lessons on love. The couple applied biblical principles to their marriage and supported and respected one another. Although there were hard times along the way, they were always patient, loving and forgiving.
These same values spilled over into their parenting.
“When we got in trouble, they always backed each other up and when the correction was over, they didn’t speak of it again, life went on and the next day was a new one,” Kelly said.
They tackled life as a family. On Saturdays you would find them cleaning the yard or house together. Later, they might drive to get a groceries. Money was often tight, but they found every opportunity to make something fun and exciting for their kids.
“Sometimes Dad would drive all of us to get an A&W Root Beer in Fouke. He would take the back roads and they would tell us about the Fouke monster,” said Kelly. “We were scared, but it was fun.”
Billy Newsom’s conviction that his family needed to be in church led them back around full circle to Flower Acres Baptist Church, where they again began attending.
Both girls grew up, married and had children of their own. Shelly has a 14-yearold daughter, Tori. She is married to Glen Hall,who has three children of his own, Dustin, Emily and Donny. Kelly has three children, Logan, Cara and Collier. She is married to Billy Luplow, who has two children of his own, Beau and Samantha.
Billy and Fonda Newsom’s grandchildren grew up attending Flower Acres Baptist Church. The family attends as a group and has taken on several leadership roles.
Billy is a deacon in the church and serves the body of the church by trying to meet as many of the needs of people in the community as possible.
Shelly teaches the 4-to-6-yearold class. Her husband, Glen, teaches and fills in as needed also. Tori is active in the youth programs, teaching and preaching. She never misses an opportunity to share the Gospel with people at school and leads a Bible study with classmates regularly.
Kelly teaches a women’s class, Overcomers. She is on the welcoming committee and is organizing witness teams to reach out into the community. Her husband, Billy, is associate pastor, Sunday school director and teaches men’s Bible study on Sunday mornings. Cara is active in the youth programs, teaching and preaching often. Logan often preaches and teaches and shares the ministry wherever he goes. He attends the men’s Bible study and can often be found helping his Paw-Paw with head counts and getting things ready for Sunday morning services. Collier attends the mens Bible study, and his grandparents know they can count on him to help any time they need it.
Billy and Fonda oversee the food ministry for the church. They work diligently to make sure that food is available and makes it into the hands of those who need it. Produce is given out several times a month as well as a monthly food pantry distribution. The entire family has helped, from bagging groceries to carrying them to cars for the elderly. Especially during the summer, it is common to see the entire family rallied around, helping.
Johnny Murphy, pastor for Flower Acres Baptist Church, could sing the family’s accolades for hours.
“There is no way to measure the Newsom family’s worth to the church,” he said. “They are absolutely faithful to God. Their relationship with God is not talk, but carried out in action. Now their faithfulness is paying off with their children and grandchildren.”
Over the years, times have not always been easy. Hardships have come and gone as with all families. The Newsoms’ faith was always what carried them through.
“It didn’t matter what we were going through, God was always there and Mom and Dad made sure to point that out,” daughter Shelly said. “I try to apply a lot of the same principles in my own household.”
Kelly agreed.
“During times of trouble, my Mom and Dad’s faith would show and silently teach even when they thought it wasn’t,” said Kelly.
The family always knows where to look for the hard questions of life—the Bible.
“Jesus said it best, Love God and love others as yourself. We are not perfect, but all of us love God more than we love each other and we love each other more than ourselves,” Billy Luplow said.
Proverbs 22:6 states, “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.”
The Newsom family is a wonderful example of this promise and serve as inspiration for other families in a world full of temptation.
Their relationship with God is not talk, but carried out in action. Now their faithfulness is paying off with their children and grandchildren.” —Johnny Murphy