Article submitted by Gary & Patsy Hall, MVI Chairman of the Board
John Potter—Mighty Man of God, the best of Husbands, the dearest of Dads, the truest of Friends.
We had only been home from a short-term mission trip to Uganda for 2 weeks. On Friday, 29 June, we got the unbelievable call that John (MVSouth Africa Regional Coordinator) had passed away. The shock was overwhelming. The loss deeper than we can express. John, Cathy and their 3 girls are family. We have lived together, visited back and forth, vacationed together, done missions together. How does one imagine the world without John Potter.
We flew back to South Africa July 2 to participate in the funeral and just to be with Cath, Rob and Justine, Grant and Shelly, Katie and close friends in Durban. Melanie and Lindsey went with us—it was a time for all of us to be together. A friend wrote us how she felt when she suddenly lost her dear friend: “…I learned that the intense pain of loss matched the intense privilege & love God poured on me through the beautiful God-filled relationship we shared.” How true. John was the best and truest of men and our loss is intense—but so are the blessings we’ve had because of John and his family. Everyone was important to John. His heart held the world, & his family was right there at the top. He lived & released life to the fullest extent—just like Jesus, whom he loved so dearly. We love you so much, John Potter! And we miss you more than we can say.
Please continue to pray for Cathy Potter and their 3 daughters – Justine, Shelly and Katie – as they process and grieve.