|
By Wally Dennison
FOR MORE than a decade, Kelowna’s Errol Hannigan
has been soaring spiritually with genuine, earthly angels – his old
dark world of 25 years with various outlaw motorcycle gangs long forgotten.
The transformed life of this 59 year old with an
artificial left leg speaks of the miraculous, and clearly reveals divine
intervention – considering that he almost took a loaded pistol to his
head several years ago.
Now, Errol and 48 year old wife Judi, who suffers with
the incurable and erosive internal disease of systemic lupus, are planning
to motor across North America on a lifelong mission – as
full-time faith-and-fitness ambassadors powered by Jesus. They are seeking
funding to bring their inspiring message to town halls, churches
– to any venue, anywhere.
Their incredible story blossomed in an interview
recently, conducted by teaching pastor Tim Schroeder before a packed Sunday
worship assembly in Kelowna’s Trinity Baptist Church.
There they were happily talking on stage – a most
unlikely trio, judging by their backgrounds: the ex-biker, muscular arms
fully tattooed; the daughter of former Christian missionaries to Alaska,
whose father founded a church in Westbank; and the pastor, a former RCMP
auxiliary constable.
Along with Judi, the pastor is now one of the earthly
angels in Errol’s life. As Errol observed, he and Tim, at one
point, had been in 180-degree contrast – the pastor enforcing the law
as a Mountie, while he was climbing the ladder of biker criminality.
Thankfully they never crossed paths back then.
Errol has since undergone an astounding reversal of
direction, for a gent whose rebellious youth in Ontario landed him in
assorted reformatories and prisons – pre-schooling for later
notoriety in biker gangs.
In 1996, Errol, then living in Vancouver, came to
Kelowna to register his motorcycle for a custom-car show at the local
curling club. There registering entrants was Judi, also a Vancouverite, who
was helping a friend organize the event.
“We just glanced at each other, and it was really
love at first sight,” Judi said. “We talked a little, and
exchanged phone numbers.” A week later in Vancouver, Errol phoned for
a coffee date – which ignited a four-year courtship, and then
marriage in a civil ceremony with friends and Judi’s family in
Calgary, in 2000. The newlyweds moved to Kelowna.
In January, 2004, Judi persuaded Errol to come along to
Trinity Baptist with her and her mother, Vera – then visiting
from Calgary and, in Judi’s words, an “avid prayer
warrior.”
“I just wanted to get it over with and make the
old bird happy before she left,” Errol noted. “We sat in the
last row, next to the door, so that I could leave quickly if bored.”
But Errol hung on – feeling Pastor Tim was
speaking directly to him. Trinity Baptist had then launched a church-wide
program of small groups based on lessons from Rick Warren’s
mega-seller, The Purpose Driven Life. He and Judi then went to services for the next two Sundays,
with Tim’s messages impacting Errol just as piercingly as that first
Sunday.
“I figured there was no way Tim would reach me
like that a third time. But he did, and I know God was putting the words in
Tim’s mouth.”
Errol emailed Tim with appreciative comments, and that
launched a special friendship. Tim suggested a coffee meeting.
“I guess he saw something special in me. We have
been genuine friends the last several years. We’ve been meeting for
coffee maybe once a month, talking about everything, and we’re
regularly in touch by email.”
As church members for four years, Errol and Judi were
baptized together by Tim in Okanagan Lake June 15, 2004.
But just two months later, a despairing Errol had his
left leg amputated at the knee.
After 10 years – and a series of medical
misfortunes which had started with cartilage cleanup, followed by seven
complete and partial knee-replacement surgeries – infection had
returned, leaving no alternative but amputation.
Continue article >>
|
Thereafter followed what Errol describes as
unrelenting, 24-hours-a-day “phantom pain . . . Nothing flushed the
pain, and I tried everything, even with 10 times the medication normally
prescribed. I became morbidly depressed, and although I didn’t
mention it, I had been considering suicide for months.”
Then, one grim day late in 2006, Errol prepared for
death in the basement of their home. A pistol with six bullets lay on a
table, and taped to walls beside it were garbage bags “to catch the
mess – I wanted to make sure of everything.” Then he lumbered
up the stairs to ask Judi’s permission for him to end his agony.
“Until then, she had never said ‘no’
to me for anything.” Adamantly, Judi exclaimed, “No,
you’re not!” She emphasized that her lupus had seriously
advanced.
When she was diagnosed, she had reluctantly quit as
executive assistant in a thriving business. Now, the disease had been
leaving her listless for up to 18 hours daily. Fatigue had drained her, and
she slept on the sofa most days.
“Judi gave me two reasons for her
‘no’: the guy she married wouldn’t ever quit; second, she
needed me beside her now, more than ever. So, I went back downstairs, and
told myself, ‘I’m hooped. Okay, she needs me, so I’ll
stick around and live with this pain.’”
Soon after, Judi noted that both Errol and herself had
packed on a lot of flab over two mutually-frustrating years. She researched
the internet and discovered that exercise eased the pain of lupus; she hit
upon the Body-for-Life program whose positive results derive from
weightlifting and a healthy diet.
She found a local gym in January, 2007, and insisted
that she and Errol exercise together, following the program’s advice
and schedule.
“Within five minutes of lifting a weight that
first day, I found my pain would vanish for two to three hours,”
Errol said. “Now we go to various gyms four days weekly.”
Within 12 weeks, Errol had shed 50 pounds – to
175 from 225 – and Judi had slenderized in dress size to 6
– 8 from 14 –16. So thrilled was Errol that he entered
before/after photos in the program’s Canadian body-challenge contest
– and he placed 10th over several thousand entrants.
Now, as crusading faith-and-fitness ambassadors, Errol
said, “we want to battle the obesity epidemic that’s obviously
overtaking our population – one fed by poor diet, overeating, lack of
exercise, and tobacco and booze.”
Truly, the couple’s transformed bodies speak to
the truth of being temples of two healthy souls.
“We want to show that even the handicapped and
ill can achieve fitness,” Errol said. “Look, I’m just as
able-bodied as anyone else.”
Moreover, Jesus is so ingrained into Errol’s
spirit that he routinely exercises his faith. Waiting in their parked car
for Judi, for example, he automatically reaches into the glove compartment
for a quick read of copied excerpts from The
Purpose Driven Life.
“Jesus is first and foremost in our lives,”
Judi added, “and we pray together to him every day. Still, with all
that’s going against us, my chronic lupus and Errol’s ongoing
pain, we thank our Lord every day for all our blessings.”
Yes, angels do fly together – even one born to
flight from the dark recesses of outlaw biker gangs.
Wally Dennison, a retired newspaper journalist, is a
member of Kelowna’s Trinity Baptist Church.
September 2008
|
