Meet Brenda Frye, FCM Roanoke Thrift Store Assistant Manager

"If we can't do anything else, we can lift each other up."

In Luke 12:22-31, Jesus reminds His disciples to lean onto Him in times of worry rather than being anxious. Jesus lists the ways in which He provides for the ravens, then says, “Of how much more value are you than the birds!” Here Jesus uses this comparison to remind us of how great His love is for His people. If He provides even for the birds, He will certainly provide for us. The power of God’s providence is evident in the lives of all Christians, including Brenda Frye. 


Brenda Frye is the assistant manager of the Four Corners Thrift Store in Roanoke, Alabama. She was raised in Chambers County in a Christian household. Through her parents, she learned the importance of depending on the Lord. At age 18, she was baptized. Looking back on giving her life to Christ she says, “When you hear God’s word, it penetrates your heart. It reveals your true inner self, and then you know that you need salvation.” 


Brenda and her husband raised four daughters. Through trials and challenges, she wanted to show her daughters the importance of depending on God’s providence, just as her parents showed her. Now blessed with a close-knit family, ten grandchildren, and a fourth great-grandchild on the way, Brenda continues to live out her faith by surrendering her worries to the Lord. 


God’s faithfulness is evident in Brenda’s life through how God brought her to work at Four Corners. For most of her life, Brenda worked in factories. The work was physically challenging and took a toll on her health. In 2009 she was able to start working at the Goodwill in Roanoke. Once the Goodwill closed down, she was discouraged in her search for a new job. Through moments of depression, with nowhere else to turn, Brenda chose to continue being dependent on the Lord. 

"Let your requests be made known to God"

 ~Philippians 4:6 

Philippians 4:6 says, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.” Brokenhearted, Brenda made her requests known to God. She would often return to the parking lot of the closed down Goodwill for moments of prayer. Sitting in her car, she prayed, “Lord, please send somebody to open this building back up. Send us something here in Roanoke.” In all of God’s faithfulness, He heard her prayers and answered them.


One day when she drove to the parking lot to pray, she saw a man in the building. She recognized him as Gary Clark, a former Director of Thrift Store Operations for Four Corners. She went to the door to ask him what was happening to the building. He told her that they were opening Four Corners Thrift Store and about how the store was to help fund mission work. In that moment, she was reminded how great a provider the Lord is. Gary set up an interview for her and she went home, eager to share the news with her family.


She recounts the blessing saying, “God not only answered my prayer. He didn’t just send an average store here. This was a missions minded store.” She was grateful to find a workplace where she could glorify the Lord and be surrounded by people that were faithful in supporting one another.


Brenda has now worked at the thrift store for 14 years. “We have had some of the best people work here,” she says. “When you go through anything in your life and they hear any word about it, they're gonna come up here and they're gonna check on you.” 

“If we can’t do anything else, we can lift each other up.”

She recalls the time last year when her son-in-law passed away from a heart attack. Four Corners founder and board member, Jimmy Sprayberry, came to mourn alongside her. He had previously gone through a loss in his family and was able to use his grief to help Brenda walk through hers. “Everybody has a story, and it isn’t always happy,” she says. “If we can’t do anything else, we can lift each other up.” During Brenda’s time working at Four Corners, God has used her to lift up those around her just as she has been lifted up.


There are many customers in the thrift store that she has built close relationships with. She’s learned the interests of the frequent customers and can often predict what they are looking for when they enter the store. She is grateful for the ability to help customers in need of items we often take for granted, such as shoes. Just as others have helped her mourn a loss, she has been able to use her job to help customers grieve as they come in looking for clothes to wear to funerals. Her connection with the customers has been a way for her to spread the love of Christ and continue encouraging others to rely on His sovereignty.


Through Brenda Frye’s story and the work she does at Four Corners Thrift Store, we can see how faithful the Lord is in caring for his children. God can use our hardships to strengthen our reliance on Him as well as to give us a testimony to lift up others with. It is such a blessing to see how God has used Four Corners as a means for his perfect provision. 

By Rachel West

June 2025

"And my God will supply every need of yours according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus," Philippians 4:19