In Reply to: Qualifications of WS members posted by Laura on June 20, 2004 at 14:35:48:
I have this memory of "applying" for a job in a WS home in 1973-74, although they weren't called WS homes back then. What I remember is that "top leaders" needed/wanted more secretaries, so a call went out for skilled labor. Since I could type & spell, the colony shepherd asked me to write something "personal" to Berg on the back of a card with my photograph pasted on the front.
I'm not especially photogenic to begin with, and the black-and-white photo was done in one of those coin operated booths you find at amusement parks and bus stations. My picture came out really goofy looking, so the bosses actually spent another buck or two trying to get a second and third pic of me that looked halfway attractive. As I recall, I had this crooked, maniacal grin and wild, glaring saucer eyes. To top it off, I had curly, frizzy hair going every which way. I literally looked like a cartoon character with her finger in an electric socket.
The colony shepherd who was putting together my "application" laughed at how nutty I looked in the photos, and I got the definite impression that my poor photo shoot was a problem. I didn't care how stupid I looked, since I thought my ability to type and spell was what mattered. I don't know if my application for a secretarial position was ever sent off to England. I didn't care that much one way or another about being a secretary, and the "personal" note I wrote was about a dream I'd had of meeting Jesus face-to-face and how that encounter had changed me. If I'd been truly "spiritual" in a Family way, I'd have said stuff about loving, yearning, yielding & obeying. When I look back on it, I think Providence did me a favor with those lousy photo booth pics. I don't suppose making a basic confession of Christian faith moves anyone very far up the Family's leadership ladder, either.
Do you suppose shepherds get a "finders fee" for all the attractive young women they're able to successfully promote into WS homes?