Dorothy Frady, right, is embraced by one of the many people who came out to celebrate her on Sunday at Northbrook Baptist Church. / Nick Griffin
CULLMAN – There are people in this world who make huge positive impacts on those around them and in the communities in which they live. One of those people is Dorothy Frady. On Sunday, Northbrook Baptist Church hosted a celebration for Frady, to honor her 88th birthday (Nov. 7) and in recognition of all she has given to her community.
Dozens of people came out to tell Frady what she means to them, whether they were there just to meet with her or to thank her for the impact she has had on their lives. Frady has spent much of her life working to improve the lives of others, particularly the women in her community that need help getting back on track, helping them restore their lives through faith and compassion.
For more than 25 years, Frady has been a fixture at the Cullman County Detention Center, where she brings food and leads a Bible study for the women there. She has been a board member at Restoring Women Outreach since it was founded in 2011 and has donated much of her life to doing mission work with Northbrook. Thanks in large part to Frady’s leadership and the inspiration she has provided the program’s leaders, Restoring Women Outreach has a success rate of more than 80 percent.
At Restoring Women Outreach, a Christian nonprofit, 12-step, residential recovery program, Frady has donated multiple houses for women who need homes to start putting their lives back together. The houses are named “Frady House,” after her late husband, “Destiny House” and “Family House.” The two newest of those houses will be opening this month. Frady has led Bible studies for many of the women living in the homes, even giving them rides to church on Sunday mornings.
Carol Berry, founder and executive director of Restoring Women Outreach, spoke Sunday about how much Frady has meant to her and the organization as a whole.
“RWO wouldn’t exist without Mrs. Dorothy. She’s given houses, her time and more than we could have ever asked for; we are nothing without her. She has set the bar really high for all of us here but there’s always something out there that we all can do and if you think you can’t, you need to think of Mrs. Dorothy.”
Through a connection from one of Northbrook’s members, Frady received a letter from the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association that was read to her for the first time at Sunday’s celebration. Graham and Frady share the same birthday and a similar mission in life. The letter honored Frady and thanked her for her commitment to her faith and her tireless efforts within her community.
After the letter was read, Frady took the microphone to deliver a closing message to the countless women in the crowd whom she has helped.
“This is such an amazing reward for such little effort,” Frady said. “I always wanted to be a mother and have children, but that was not God’s plan for me, so I don’t have any biological children. But I love all the women in this room like you were my own children. All of you are my daughters and I love you more than you can imagine. I’m so very thankful to see so many people come out here for me. Thank you; I love you all.”
Frady’s health has kept her from doing as much as she wants to recently, but she still saves her strength during the week so she can visit the detention center every Sunday for Bible study. Frady’s work with these women has left such an impression on them that graduates from Restoring Women Outreach programs provide much of Frady’s care and are some of the program’s top donors today.
Learn more about Restoring Women Outreach at www.facebook.com/Restoring-Women-Outreach-Inc-507636689278874.
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