DAVID ADAMS speaks with former US Olympic highjumper Trish Porter Topmiller, now an author and in-demand speaker, about her book on the life of her father – Chuck King, his struggle with opioid addiction and journey to Christ, as well as her own remarkable story of faith in the midst of tragedy…
Former US Olympic high-jumper and world record holder, Trish Porter Topmiller recently published a new book King Here: Never Too Old, Too Rich or Too Anything to Meet Jesus, about the life of her father, Chuck King, a successful businessman who found Christ during a battle with opioid addiction but who ended up taking his own life at the age of 82.
Porter Miller, who lost her first husband Pat and 15-year-old son Connor in a plane crash just a few years before her father’s death, spoke about why she wrote the book and who she hopes will read it as well as her own journey of faith in Christ…
Congratulations on the book. Why did you decide to write it?
“Thankyou….I was speaking at my dad’s funeral and when I looked back on his life, I saw he had all these great experiences and he had changed so much…And I’m like, ‘Wow, this is pretty incredible’. So I wanted to write them down. As I’m writing them down, the whole thing expanded and I decided I needed to do a small book for my family. And then when I sent it to a publisher friend of mine, he’s like ‘Oh, no, no – this has to go out to more than just your family, it will really touch a lot of people’s lives.’ That was the real reason I started writing it, just because it’s an incredible story that I wanted to share.”
Trish Porter Topmiller with her father Chuck at her wedding to her second husband James Topmiller in 2016. PICTURE: Supplied.
Who do you hope will be the readers of this book?
“I think a lot of Christians already read it because it’s encouraging, it’s inspiring, it gives them hope and it gives them practical tools to be able to share Jesus with their friends and loved ones, and encourages them to pray. But I also hope that people who don’t know Jesus will read the book and then, as a result, draw closer to Him or have a chance to meet Him…My hope is that people will also give it to friends or family who don’t know Jesus. And then even people who have addiction issues…”
“[W]hat I tend to do and what I hear other people do is [say] that ‘Oh, that person could never meet Jesus; they would never come to church’. And we write them off. And who are we to determine who God is going to touch? God has put a void in everybody’s heart…so we just need to…talk and be willing to be open…because we can’t write anybody off.”
And that, of course, is one of the big themes – addiction (and opioid addiction in particular). That’s obviously a big issue – how do you hope this story will be received in that regard?
“I hope it encourages people to realise, maybe, how they’re impacting their family. I’ve had one person that I know who was using opioids and who’s been addicted to other drugs in that past – and he said when he read my book, he realised that he had been beginning down a bad path with the opioids and he stopped…And for people to be willing to get help, to realise, ‘Man, maybe I do have a problem and I do need to get some help’.”
And I guess one of the big lessons out of the book is that it doesn’t matter if you’re wealthy, it doesn’t matter what your live has been like, opioid addiction is something that reaches into all strata of society?
“Yes, it does. And it reaches young and old. So often, people think that it’s just the 20 to 30-year-olds who became addicted to opioids or you visualise…someone who looks terrible or who is doing horrible things. It can happen to the 72-year-old man too…And it can happen to the very smart, the very successful. It can really happen to anybody.”
And in the same vein – something you touch on in the book also is that Christ can reach you, that it doesn’t matter how rich you might be or how old you might be or what qualifications you bring or don’t bring – that all becomes irrelevant in the journey with Christ?
“Yes, the ‘never too old, too rich or anything’ to meet Jesus – that is the premise. And I think that what I tend to do and what I hear other people do is [say] that ‘Oh, that person could never meet Jesus; they would never come to church’. And we write them off. And who are we to determine who God is going to touch? God has put a void in everybody’s heart…so we just need to talk and be willing to be open because we can’t write anybody off. We have a big, big, God who can do amazing things and He can do miracles to [reach] people. And that’s what we need to remember.”
And I guess that’s been important in your own life – and you touch on some of the aspects of your own life in the book, including the horrific loss of your husband and son in a plane crash and then, the loss of your step-mother and your father as well. But you also touch on some of the triumphs – your success as an athlete for example. How important has faith been to your own journey?
“Well, when I lost my 15-year-old son and my husband of 20 years in a plane crash in 2012, I could not imagine getting through that without my faith in Jesus. And knowing that we will see them again. That first night after I found out about the accident, my 11-year-old daughter [Shannon] and I, we stayed together in her room. And in the middle of the night, she said ‘Mom, I know they’re in Heaven, I know they’re in a better place and I know we’ll see them again someday because of their faith in Jesus. And just having that hope…that we will see them again one day.
“And then just the daily ‘getting through’ each day. I had a friend who told me, ‘Trish, you’ve obviously been through such horrible times. I want you, as life is going crazy and throwing you all over, [to] take your right hand and bring it up to your left hand like you’re praying and say ‘I trust you Lord’. That was my visual that I had going forward, it was ‘OK, Lord, I trust you and I am just going to cling to you through all of the trials that I’ve gone through and know that you are there with me, each step of the way’.”
And in that sense, [your story] is an incredible story of resilience. How did you come to Christ yourself?
“I had just graduated from highschool – it was right before I turned 18 – and I really didn’t know what I was going to do with my life. So I went out to a little cabin in the woods in California to be with my aunt and uncle and I slept outside that night…and I was just kind of ‘God, I have no idea what to do – please help me’. And then next day I was talking with my aunt and uncle and they started telling me about Jesus and then they ended up saying, ‘Do you want to pray to receive Jesus enter your heart and life and let Him lead you?’ And I was like, ‘Yes, that’s kind what I did last night, but yes I want this’. So it was neat – God really brought me to the right place, a little cabin, and there I accepted the Lord and we prayed for Jesus to become my Lord and Saviour.”
Obviously yours is a high achieving family. How does that pursuit of those sort of things interplay with your faith?
“So for me, I felt God really had given me the talent of high-jumping so I wanted to become the best I could be so that’s really where it started. And then when I went back [to compete in the US and World Master Championships] when I was 40, I felt I really wasn’t done yet. I wanted to see what I could do and, with that, see how I could impact others and just be the best that I could be with the talent that God had given me. And then it was really fun because I ended up writing my first book [Rekindle Your Dreams] so I had an opportunity to share Jesus with more people through my story, which I just love.”
Trish with her father Chuck at the 1988 Olympics in Seoul, Korea, where Trish represented the US in highjump. PICTURE: Supplied.
If there was one big lesson in write the book about your father – or perhaps a new revelation – that you came away with, what would that be?
“I think it’s really praying for other people and, just what I said earlier, that we have a big God who can save anybody and we need to be open for that – He can use miracles, He can use people along the way – but not to write anybody off.”
And lastly, we heard this week that US basketball identity Kobe Bryant and his 13-year old daughter Gianna were among nine people killed in a helicopter crash. Given your own experience with a tragedy of this nature, do you have any words of comfort for family and friends now faced with this tragedy?
“My heart aches for Vanessa Bryant, her children and all the other families. It’s amazing all the prayers and outpouring of love for them. I know this is not how you thought your life would be and [is] the most difficult thing you’ve ever been through. You will always hold them in your heart and the loss of a child is pain beyond understanding. I’m sure you don’t want to get out of bed or do all of the things you are being asked to do. Please, take care of yourselves. Be kind to yourselves. Accept help and express to those around you if you need help. You don’t need to be strong and do everything. Grieve together as a family. Celebrate their lives, love and laughter. You may not feel like it now but you can get through this. I did by the grace of God. I am praying for you too. I hope you know you can cry out to God, He hears your cries and sees your tears. He is always with you and loves you so very much. You are not alone.
“For close friends of the lost there are many ways you can help. Organise meals, drop off food/water/paper plates/drinks supplies without needing to talk to the family. Cards, food and support after the one month period when all gets quiet. Offer to drive the other children, let the moms sleep in. For those around the world, keep praying for the families. If you feel like doing something more you can earn money or donate to Kobe’s favourite charities After-School All-Stars, and Make-a-Wish Foundation in their honour.”
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
