If you have attended the 7 am Sunday service at Farrington High School, you probably have seen Alfred and Florence Chang before. They have served as greeters for the 8 years, and just recently celebrated their 60th anniversary on August 30th. What you may not know is that they both graduated from Farrington High School in 1943, though they did not know each other then. Another thing you may not have known was Florence’s tremendously difficult upbringing.

Before Florence was even born, she had earned the animosity of her mother. While pregnant with Florence, the family lost a toddler-aged daughter. Chinese traditions forbade expectant mothers from attending funerals, as it is said to harm the unborn child. As a result, Florence’s mother held a grudge against her even before she was born.

That grudge grew into unabated hatred over the years, and it showed through Ma’s treatment of Florence. Florence was physically and verbally abused on a daily basis, she was thrown in the garbage, threatened to be flushed down the toilet, even thrown in the oven in a fit of rage. She was told that she was stupid and good for nothing, and was even told “I wish you were dead.” All this before Florence entered third grade.

One year, Florence was enrolled at Sacred Hearts Academy. She didn’t do well there because of the advanced workload, and years of discouragement placed upon her, but there was one thing that Florence particularly enjoyed about Sacred Hearts: chapel. At chapel, she would sing the hymns at the top of her lungs, it gave her a strong sense of peace, which she now knows was God’s first touch on her life.

Thoughts of suicide crept into Florence’s head when she was a teenager. Her hardships at home and at school began to pile up, and there were times where it just felt like too much to handle. However, she worried what would happen if she didn’t actually die in the attempt. She would have been severely hurt or handicapped and only her Ma to care for her. She decided that was a fate worse than death and decided not to go through with her thoughts, hoping that whatever the future held would be better. “Looking back, God held me in His hands at that time,” said Florence. “However, there was yet more to face, and it was not easy.”

Her time at Farrington High School was very hectic. During World War II, the campus was also used as a hospital, so half of the students would attend school in the morning, and the other half would go in the afternoon. Florence didn’t ever meet her future husband, Alfred while at Farrington, although they graduated in 1943 together.

When Florence graduated, her father and one of her sisters watched the ceremony, but her mother stayed home. “I went to school every morning by myself and didn’t expect any kind of celebration, even at home.” She didn’t get to enjoy graduation at all, so the very next day she began work at the Hawaiian Ordinance as a messenger.

A few years after beginning work at Hawaiian Ordinance, Alfred Chang came into Florence’s life. Ma tried to discourage Alfred from dating Florence by giving her countless chores before she was able to leave. Many times, they ended up not going out, and Florence even told him to stop coming by. But Alfred persisted. One day, he asked Florence’s father for her hand in marriage, and received Pa’s blessings. When Alfred presented Florence with the ring, she happily accepted. Ma sat with Alfred and Florence and for the first time, Florence heard how good she was and many other beautiful things about herself from her mother. She was glad to get rid of Florence.

They were married on August 30, 1947, and began a new hectic life together. After a year of marriage, they were blessed with their first of four children, a son. As their children grew, Florence and Alfred decided that they would begin attending church. When she told them about their decision, Florence’s parents openly showed their animosity, but Florence and her family continued to go to church anyway. Alfred didn’t want to go to a “big church,” so they went to small churches where they felt the Spirit leading.

When most of her children had grown and moved out on their own, Florence had a vision where she saw her father walking with a man and a woman. She recognized the man as her older brother who had died during World War II and her sister that died as a toddler. Later that morning, she received a call that her father had passed away.

By that time, her Ma was old and needed help once in a while. Florence’s younger sister asked if she would be able to come once a week and take care of Ma. “I didn’t hesitate or say ‘I’ll think about it,’” she agreed to help right away. Even after all those years of physical and psychological abuse, Florence knew that she had to take care of her mom. “The very one who rejected me ended up needing me,” she said.

As she took care of her mom, by walking the dog and seeing that her Ma ate lunch, Florence would often talk about Jesus to her. She taught her how to pray, and taught her about what the Cross meant. One day as Ma was getting ready for her afternoon nap, she asked Florence if she was going to go to heaven. So Florence led her to say the sinner’s prayer and accept Christ into her heart. When Ma laid down to rest, she looked very strange. What happened was Ma had suffered a slight stroke at the time, and she was sent to the hospital. She passed away late in the evening past visiting hours, so the family was unable be there and she died alone. But Florence believes that Jesus was there with her as she passed.

Throughout the years, Florence and Alfred still attended church. On a whim, Florence decided to attend New Hope and found a home there. But Alfred was still averse to attending big churches, so he went to New Hope reluctantly. However, Pastor Wayne spoke to Alfred’s heart as if they were speaking one on one, and he too found a home at New Hope. They joined the Greeters Ministry just one year after they began attending where they still serve faithfully to this day.