As many of you know, Mama Knopp passed away on August 25, 2025, at the age of 106. I don’t know how to adequately speak about a life lived so well for so long, but maybe the fact that Christine Knopp was known only as “Mama” to several generations is the best testament to her life. If Papa (Paul) Knopp was known to many of us for his joy, Mama was known for her thankfulness and hospitality. One part of her obituary reads:

Mama Knopp's legacy of hospitality was immeasurable. She warmly extended love, food and fellowship to all who entered her kitchen and sat at her table. Over the years, she welcomed more than 10,000 people into her home, offering them meals and a place to stay when needed. In 1971, she began a guestbook that now spans 14 volumes. Along with her husband, Paul, she was a dedicated supporter of Grace Christian School, an outgrowth of Community Fellowship Church, which was founded in their home.

The Knopp home was known for its hospitality, and a generation of GCS students can probably testify to that hospitality in the form of participating in homemade donut parties hosted in the wing of their home where the church once met. In case you didn’t know, whenever you attend a home game at the Activities Center, you pass their home on the right side of the driveway on the way up the hill. That’s because Papa and Mama donated the land for the building of the Activities Center, a facility that has served the school well now for twenty-five years. The GCS community remains grateful for the longstanding generosity and support of Mama and Papa Knopp.

But more than that, I am convinced that Mama’s greatest contribution to GCS was her regular, quiet prayers for us. Her obituary notes, “Her prayers were simple yet powerful, covering everything from practical needs like parking spaces to the more profound concerns of her family's future.” Mama prayed for Community Fellowship Church, and she prayed for Grace Christian School. I believe that God honored those quiet, regular prayers from Mama. If we weren’t already, it’s time for us to continue lifting such prayers to the Lord for our school community.

We are thankful for Mama’s longstanding faithfulness to the Lord; for her unwavering hospitality and encouragement; and for her constant example of gratitude and faith. May we follow her example and faithfully run the race set before us that we too will one hear those wonderful words of Jesus, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”
 

For the full obituary and service details, click here.