Sharing the Loaf by Mary Vick Roth

Because of her mother's death when she was two years old, Mary was raised by her aunt and uncle who reluctantly allowed her to live with them and their children. The love of God was shown to her through weekend visits with her grandmother. It was her grandmother's love and learning to read at an early age that stimulated her imagination and saved her from becoming a bitter adult. She married at an early age (18) to at last have the family she had dreamed of as a child.
She earned a bachelor's degree in English and education, a master's degree in counseling, and a specialist endorsement all from Eastern Illinois University. She earned a Master of Divinity degree from Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary . She was voted the best preacher in her seminary class and became the first woman to serve a full term as a District Superintendent in the Illinois Great Rivers Conference of the United Methodist Church (formerly the Central and Southern Illinois Conferences).