She is a Bay Area painter whose work has been shown at various California galleries. She is owner, with her husband Casey, of Belden House, a long term residence for brain injured adults, and her work there is on display in the smiles of the people who call it home, some for over 20 years. She is mother whose work can be seen in the happiness and success of her grown sons. She is a wife whose success can be measured by the joy of her home life. She is a daughter whose triumph can be seen in the loving face of the elderly mother who lives with her. She is Debbie Harding, a most remarkable woman not only for all she is but for the way she lives her life. Every step she takes seems geared to repair the world.
As a child she had been told she had artistic talent but another ability prevailed with a master’s degree in psychology that took her to Belden House where the people there are part of her family. So when the owners wanted to sell Belden House, Debbie and her husband Casey bought it rather than bear the pain of seeing the residents scattered. Casey, described by Debbie as the backbone of Belden House, with his master’s in psychology worked at Memorial Hospital until about three years ago when he retired to run Belden House full time with their two sons Micah and Jordan.
Debbie is a woman of enduring religious faith who does not feel she is doing anything in life without reliable guidance, and at various crossroads in her life her prayers have been answered.
When she decided to take some time off, Debbie prayed that God would give her something to do in her later years. Prayer answered. First, an artist friend whose work she admired followed by the gift of a art lessons for her birthday. She painted about 8 or 10 oils only to be sidetracked again with the purchase of Belden House.
She prayed that someone would come into the life of her aging mother as a caretaker at which point her mother called to say that she was ready to move in with Debbie and Casey. Debbie smiles as she talks about the joy of having her mother live with them, about the joy of taking care of her.
She is a devoted teacher, having decided to home-school her two sons as they entered public school 3rd and 5th grades and saw they needed better spelling and math skills. She was introduced to the concept of home-schooling by Focus on the Family a radio show that focuses on relevant Christian marriage advice, parenting and other topics. She took this on with the same intelligent and allowing attitude that marks all her undertakings. Both sons returned to public schools eventually at their own request, which was fine with Debbie. The Harding boys are both successful young men. Micah is an exceptional writer who at the age of eleven had written a seventy-page novel. He is now a writer finishing his master’s degree in English while Jordan has just joined the military with plans to become a medic.
And, with all this, Debbie is a talented artist with something to say through her work. She has the gift of taking a new look at old things and presenting to the public what they might otherwise miss in the busy life. Her botanical works are luscious and filled with the kind of detail we might, in fact, miss on our own.
Time to write a letter to her mother. As Debbie talks about her mother, to whom she will write a love letter, you can hear the beautiful specifics that emerge and that will be included in this letter. I was thrilled to learn the details of Debbie’s life, her endless successes, her natural generosity, and her obvious ability to love. I was touched by the depth of her faith and how naturally that translates to her every day life. I invite you to see who helped Debbi and Casey buy Belden House and to get to know Debbie by listening to her story in her own voice.
From me to you with love in the air,
Janet
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