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1944-1969 1970

In 1944, Reba Miller graduated from Moody Bible Released Time enrollment
Institute in Chicago, Ill. While there she approached several
mission organizations with a desire to do overseas mission peaked at 600 students and
work. Instead, God led her to Children‘s Bible Mission as a volunteers in Greene County
home missionary. elementary schools
She spent ten years in Tennessee and another eight years
serving in Georgia.

Rev. Szabo An early Released Time class
Miss Reba Miller
In 1967 organized

and started the first
Released Time
Bible Program
in CBM

n 1960 the national office of CBM sent Reba to Central Pennsyl- Judy Virgili
vania to replace Mildred McEvers, the ―Bible lady‖ who had passed
I away. Reba was there until Jerry Traister came and developed the
ministry of Camp Joy-El.
For a time Miss Miller left CBM and served with Bible Club Movement
(BCM). She worked briefly in New York State, but in time she felt the
call back to minister in her home area of SWPA. She didn‘t know it, but
this was a direct answer to the prayers of three ladies in Greene County.
Emma Morris, Sarah George, and Elizabeth White were all praying that
God would send a missionary to work with the many kids they saw in
their area who did not know Jesus.
Upon arrival Reba found a great ally in Reverend Szabo from Clarksville. This influential man in the community
went with Reba to the Jefferson school board to begin the Released Time Bible Program.
The work grew to include most of the elementary schools in Greene County. Miss Miller also assisted Carolyn
Shoup in starting Released Time in neighboring Washington County.
Bible reading and prayer in the public school had been stopped by the Supreme Court in 1963. As Reba visited
churches, looking for volunteers to help with Released Time, she found that people were eager to reach boys and
girls with the Gospel. They signed up to teach, listen to verses, play the piano, ride or drive buses, or walk the
children to and from Released Time classes. Several of these recruits continued to serve the program for more than Mabel Pletcher
35 years.

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