Sam and Kim Shaneyfelt: Sharing Their God-Given Talents with Others

If there is one thing Sam and Kim Shaneyfelt enjoy in life, it is sharing their talents with others.

“We believe we have been given so many gifts,” Kim says. “As it says in the Parable of the Talents in the Gospels, if you just bury your talents in the ground and don’t share them, you won’t grow them. But if you share them, they will actually increase. It only makes sense. Even though you may worry that if you get involved, you will lose track of your time, the opposite is true — you will only find yourself more enriched.”

By giving to our parish family and beyond, Sam and Kim have found themselves abundantly blessed in return. Our parish community is very near and dear to their hearts, and it shows. Both of them enjoy serving as sponsor couples for St. Mark’s Marriage Preparation program, as well as instructors for the Pre-Cana class of the Diocese of Ft. Worth. They have a profound appreciation for helping couples embrace the true meaning of the Sacrament of Marriage.

“The family is so foundational to the formation of our children and the support of our elderly,” Kim says. “Strong parishes have strong families. For instance, Sam’s mother, Myrna, just moved in with us full-time about three months ago. I couldn’t think of any better way for her to live right now, than being welcome in our home. We help couples see that we have such a beautiful blueprint to follow in Christ the Bridegroom, and His Bride, the Church. Stress, curveballs and challenges are a normal part of family life, but if you have a sacramental marriage with Christ at the center, you will be able to handle whatever the world throws at you.”

Furthermore, Sam and Kim both volunteer as team members for our parish’s Adoration Community Theology Service (ACTS) ministry, which offers inspirational retreats for men and women.

“We enjoy this ministry because it builds a stronger sense of community among our parishioners, and it really helps us refocus on the sacraments,” Kim says.

Sam and Kim appreciate being able to serve on the parish’s evangelization team, as well.

“We want to share what is so special about our Catholic faith with others,” Kim says. “As a team, we are discussing ways to evangelize people who aren’t quite sure about the Catholic faith yet, and start conversations with them to deepen their faith.”

Sam also helps to run the Protection Ministry, which ensures that there are armed guardians present at every one of our weekend Masses. Kim also serves on the leadership team for our annual St. Mark Gala Dinner and Auction.

“In past years, this event has raised over $100,000 annually to help us achieve the goal of building our parish sanctuary,” Kim says. “We want our sanctuary built and completed by the end of 2023. It is exciting to be part of that effort.”

Overall, the Shaneyfelts have found our parish to be a “second home” for them, where their fellow brothers and sisters in Christ dwell.

“Our parish is really a family to us,” Kim says. “This is so important for us because we are both retired military officers who have spent a significant portion of our adult lives moving from place to place. We appreciate having such a strong sense of community at St. Mark’s. We have options to move to other places, but we stay in this area because of our parish.”

Over time, they have found that being involved at St. Mark’s helps nurture the relationships they have formed.

“We have such great friendships with the people of this parish,” Kim says. “But these friendships would not have developed if we hadn’t been very active in the parish. You don’t really get to know people unless you start helping in some way. St. Mark’s has been such a blessing to our family.”