At 83 years old, Helen Decker still kneels on muddy floors, pulling out waterlogged sheetrock, hauling debris, and encouraging weary homeowners who have lost nearly everything. For her, volunteering with Texans on Mission isn’t about slowing down in her later years, it’s about living out a lifelong calling to serve.
“I grew up the daughter of missionary parents,” Helen explained. “Missions has always been a passion with me, and I’ve always worked in some area of missions my entire life.”
That passion led her first into nursing, where she served faithfully for 42 years, and later into international medical mission trips across South America and Africa. From Bolivia to Belize, Helen and her longtime friend Deborah Green have carried both medical aid and the message of Christ to those in need.
But Helen’s service doesn’t stop overseas. For more than a decade, she has answered the call to disaster relief through Texans on Mission. Whether mudding out homes in San Angelo after devastating floods or supporting families in Louisiana facing mold-ridden houses, she sees each task as more than manual labor.
“It’s heartbreaking to walk into a home and see the damage,” she said, “but the great part is being able to talk to people, share Jesus with them, and let them know that people who’ve never even met them are praying for them.”
Her commitment is as practical as it is spiritual. Fellow volunteer and team leader, Bruce Slaven, calls Helen the “go-to” person on flood recovery sites, known for her eye for detail and relentless work ethic.
“We’re not gonna leave this house until Helen says it’s ready,” he laughed. “She makes sure nothing is left behind – not a nail, not a scrap of sheetrock. The house is ready for rebuild the moment she’s done.”
Despite her years, Helen shows no signs of stopping.
“As long as I’m able, I want to keep doing it,” she said with a smile. She jokes that when she and Deborah are on the team, the men work harder. “If we take a break, they take a break,” she laughed, “so we just keep working.”
Even after decades of service, Helen’s vision remains simple: to serve the Lord with excellence, whether in a mud-soaked Texas home or a makeshift clinic in South America.
“If I’m doing this for the Lord, and He were to walk in the door, I’d want Him to say, ‘Well done,’” she said. “So I think it needs to be done just as clean and neat as possible.”
For Helen, the work is about more than fixing homes, it’s about restoring hope.
“It’s one of the most wonderful experiences of your life to be able to help someone, to see them smile again, to know their life has a little more hope. Once you’ve done it, you’re hooked.”