2005-Danielle Smith

"It's a Good Day to be an Adult and an Eagle."

Note: 25 students helped make the 2005 yearbook, but only 1 stayed to finish it: Danielle Smith. My former editor would sit cross-legged and barefoot on a desk when working on pages and then hand-off the finished pages to me and take my two-year-old son outside to play while I worked. When the yearbook was finished, off she went into the world.

Some of those nursery rhymes we were taught back in the day were quite misleading. Remember “Sticks and stones may break my bones but words may never hurt me.?” Twenty years after being lumped in with a group of seniors who were accused of having “no scruples,” Danielle (Smith) Fisher remembers those words uttered in judgment. Today, Danielle Fisher is a wife and mother of four, a Journey’s Ministry Assistant at Hosanna Lutheran Church in Mankato, and moments before our interview, a small group women’s Bible study leader. The topic? Paul’s letter to the Romans describing how “suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame.” Back in 2005, Fisher didn’t even know the definition of scruples. “After I looked up what scruples meant,” Fisher admitted, “I was very offended and took it very personally because it meant we had no morals.”

The Suffering

Looking back on her time in high school, Fisher described herself as a “very outgoing, loud, spirit-filled” young woman who wanted “to be everybody's friend and supporter.” As a dynamic student who participated in athletics, music, and dance, she made a point to attend the events of her peers to cheer them on. Yet she also admits she was still trying to find her own identity. In fact, she took the better part of a decade before she discovered who she was supposed to be. While she did graduate college with an early childhood degree, the next few years developed her character through some of those tough times described by Paul in the Book of Romans. “College was the next thing to do,” Fisher recalled, “but I had no idea what I was even going to college for. And I remember all I wanted to do was be a wife and a mom. But the good Lord had better plans for me because he made me go almost all the way through my 20s before I met Jason. I didn't become a wife or a mom until I was 28, and it has been the biggest blessing of my life.”

The Endurance

Having left home to see the big world, Fisher returned home having learned some tough lessons and what she wanted out of life. But finding a husband didn’t come easily, especially once she knew what she was looking for in a spouse. “We've been married for almost nine years. We met at church–good place to meet.” Her mother first noted that her eventual husband, Jason Fisher, began sitting closer and closer to them in church until she loudly noted to her daughter “he doesn’t have a ring” with him in earshot. Her patience paid off and resulted in giving the former yearbook editor/babysitter a pew-sized family. “When we got married, he made me a mom right away because he had a daughter and so I became a mom the same day that I got married.” Now she is not only mother to Riley but also to her younger children Jayden, Maryelle, and Dixy.

Character

“This sounds super cheesy,” Fisher added, “but it's all I have ever wanted: to be a wife and be a mom.” Even before she met her husband, she took the initiative to fulfill her other dream of being a motherly figure first. “So I bought my own house and started my career. And I started as a preschool teacher. So I have been at Hosanna Lutheran Church for 13 years come August 1, and I started as a preschool teacher, and I absolutely loved it because like I said, I wanted to be a mom. And so in any given year, I would have from 20 to 60 students, depending on how many classes I took on. And I absolutely loved being a teacher! Plus, I get to teach them about the Bible. So there you go.” Fisher believes she began to change when she learned a simple lesson: “Not everybody is going to like you and it's okay. When you get older, you realize what matters and what doesn't and that's one of the things that does not matter. I mean, you still want to do your best and be a respectful person, but I do not let other people's opinions or hurts affect me and who I am. I am more strongly rooted in who I am.” There are still a few traits of the “2005 Danielle” remaining, including bright yellow fingernail polish. “I still wear my heart on my sleeve,” Fisher admits. “And I'm very passionate about family and friends like back in school.”

Hope

“I thought I was going to be a stay at home mom–that was my plan.” Life had other ideas. After her time as a preschool teacher, Fisher took on a new role in children’s ministry at Hosanna for several years. “But the more children we kept adding, the harder that got. Hosanna is a very large church, and so there's a lot of opportunity to serve families here. Then an opportunity came up in our Journey’s Ministry.” According to the Hosanna website, “Journey’s offers a variety of Christ-centered life groups for adults and children dealing with life’s hurts, habits and hang-ups.” Fisher describes her new position as an opportunity to serve the greater-Mankato area and works with a team of peers on Tuesdays rather than trained clergy. “Knowing how messed up and ugly the world can be, it is a safe, beautiful place to be. So I get to lead the Kids & Youth Programming.” Her life experiences now give her the empathy for others also going through suffering. “I wish I would have had Journey’s when I was a kid growing up. I wish that I had this unconditional support.”

Having found her husband, her family, and her people, Fisher looks forward to a future where she can travel with her husband once the kids get older, but in typical fashion, she looks even farther ahead to having grandchildren. “Riley often reminds me: ‘you know mom, if we each have four kids like you did, you're gonna have a lot of grandkids.’ And I love it. Yeah, I already love dreaming of that.”

No Shame

Having once been called out for a lack of scruples, Fisher understands the stigma of judgment. “Small town life has its ups and its downs, but through it all, it develops your character and who you are. I just encourage people who are hurting or who need help not to not to feel shamed or like they're not doing life right. Life is just hard. So make sure you get your people. And make sure you're getting the support that you need in the right places.”

Looking back on her high school experience, Fisher remembers the lights in the darkness. She credits her teacher and volleyball coach, Mrs. Sue WIlde, for “being very supportive in the classroom but also outside of the classroom; she genuinely cared. (Guidance Counselor) Mrs. Langworthy was somebody who supported you educationally but so much more. As a person, I never felt like she looked down upon you for who you are. She let you be who you are, no matter how bad.” Now, Danielle Fisher seeks out the hurt and lost on a regular basis, and has some advice for current high school students: ““You think so many things matter in high school, but looking back at that time, they don't. I encourage you to endure hardship well, find your people - the ones who give and receive life with you, and know your true identity in Jesus with JOY through it all. Recommended before your 30’s so that you can experience the full life you were created to have sooner, but you can change the trajectory of your life whenever you are ready! ”