Loyd Family Christmas Letter 2025

In John’s own words this year…

see names at the end of our letter

Just a short family update for this year to let you know we are alive, well and older in Beavercreek, Ohio.

 Jan stepped into the year “with Christ confident hope” as she shared her lifetime review, “Stones of Remembrance,” with the ladies of Patterson Park Church, in spite of battling an ongoing case of pneumonia. Two groups of ladies consistently meet with Jan, online and face to face for encouragement in their grace walk with the one who dwells within. Plus, she fellowships almost daily with others who look to her for friendship and input.

This December Jan is going through cataract surgery through Christmas into the new year.

In addition to serving as a deacon at Patterson Park Church, John continues to weekly lead a group of “old retired guys” which originally started as a group of “working guys.” Currently they are slowly following Jesus’ life and ministry through a blended harmony of the gospel narratives, seeking to experience the new life which He promised. John’s health is stable, no longer needing blood thinners for non-existent afib, as revealed by his pacemaker data.

Both Jan and John have had fellow sojourners transition to heaven this year: three of Jan’s dear connections and one of John’s comrades from the men’s group.

Jan and John enjoy occasional Dunkin’ dates together. Family gatherings and visits also enliven our lives. We have also discovered that listening to podcasts on road trips and in the evenings lead to in depth conversations with each other. Doing crossword puzzles together proves that two old brains are better than one.

Jeremy and Cortney and family live busy lives in the town next to us in Ohio. Jeremy continues as a freelance and employed graphic designer working from home. Cortney is a local realtor and boys basketball coach for an AAU team and most recently for the freshman boys bb team at Carter’s high school. Carter, a junior in high school, continues to play basketball as well on the JV and varsity teams, making use of his Loyd height. He seems to be headed toward engineering at this point, having built his own computer. Evan is a sophomore locally at Wright State University in music education. He has spent much of his spare time teaching at a local high school and online, and performing on quads for the Bluecoats DCI (Drum Corps International) for two seasons and recently for RhythmX indoor competition. 

Beth and Nate are near St. Louis where Nate is employed in contracting and Beth just started as paraprofessional aide at “the littles’” elementary school. Claire, in 3rd grade, is having a great experience on a winning soccer team. William, in 5th grade, enjoys martial arts and creatively invents future video games. They both engage in jigsaw puzzles with us. Eli, now a freshman in high school, excels in soccer, cross country and track. He too has the Loyd height. Kaden, a sophomore at Illinois State University, majors in music composition and plays the clarinet. He too has participated in drum corps competition, playing the mellophone with the Troopers DCI two years in a row.

Dear friends,

we invite you to celebrate with us the arrival of Jesus, in whom “was life and the life was the light of men.”

Jesus came so that we ourselves might have his abundant life within us.

We rejoice that God has shone in our hearts with the light of his life-giving presence.

(John 1:4, John 10:10, 2 Corinthians 4:6)

Left to right: Eli, Kaden, Beth, Nate, William, Claire, John, Jan, Carter, Cortney, Jeremy, Evan

With love in our Immanuel,

John and Jan Loyd