This is part of a series of staff spotlights at American Bible Society. We hope you enjoy getting to know our staff members, who are using their gifts to advance the gospel of Jesus Christ around the world.

Today, meet Amanda Sypherd, who serves as the Hero Squad program manager within our Armed Services Ministry. In this role, she helps more than 13,500 Military family members engage with God’s Word.

Tell us a little about yourself!

I grew up in the church and had a wonderful family who was rooted in the Word. I decided to attend a Christian college—Messiah College—and that was where my own faith began to develop. I graduated with a major in elementary education and a minor in psychology. Shortly after college, I experienced more of a spiritual awakening and was baptized.

How did you come to work at American Bible Society?

After graduating, I dove into teaching and spent a few years in the classroom. I loved my students but knew that teaching was not God’s long-term plan for my life. Next, I worked in international education and eventually corporate HR. That was when God very clearly spoke into my heart that I was supposed to be in ministry. I had no idea what that looked like, but I knew I needed to take a small step of obedience.

Before I was prepared to leave the corporate world, a friend of mine, Lindsay, had been trying to recruit me for American Bible Society with little success. But after I heard God’s call to ministry, I decided to follow up. I took my first administrative role at American Bible Society three years ago this February! The position was such a lifegiving role and so different from anything I experienced in the corporate world.

About two years after coming to American Bible Society, I had the opportunity to move to the Armed Services Ministry to help build their new Hero Squad ministry and lead as the program manager. This role has proven to be the perfect fit for my previous career experience. I use the skills I developed in education, customer service, recruiting, and HR. In retrospect, I can see how God has cultivated my heart for this work through a series of seemingly unrelated jobs!

What is Hero Squad?

Hero Squad is a program that serves Military kids and their families. We create custom curated boxes, much like the subscription boxes that are so popular today. Four times per year, Military families receive their camouflage boxes filled with devotionals and fun gifts designed to encourage families to draw closer to the God of the Bible while also drawing them closer to one another. Each box has a seasonal theme inspired by Scripture and models how to engage with God’s Word. Best of all, the program is completely free thanks to the American Bible Society partners who give to bless our Military families with God’s Word.

How does it work?

When a new family enrolls in the Hero Squad program, they receive a welcome box. This box includes age-appropriate Bibles for each family member, as well as their first devotionals that are age and gender-specific. Kids also receive a Hero Squad t-shirt and a silicone bracelet to remind them that they’re part of a bigger community! And parents aren’t forgotten in this community; they receive a mug and coffee along with instructions on how they can use these boxes to disciple their families in God’s Word. Thereafter, families receive seasonal quarterly boxes for as long as they meet the program enrollment criteria (active-duty Military families in the continental U.S. with children between 3-17 years old).

What is your role as the Hero Squad program manager?

My day-to-day responsibilities include planning the themes and Scripture activities for our Hero Squad boxes and working alongside vendors, designers, and writers to create the devotionals and other materials we include. To date, we’ve written and published 25 devotionals, which have been well-received by families! As examples, our first seasonal box, Summer Seeds of Life, included a planting activity that reminded families of Matthew 13 and the Parable of the Sower. Our fall box included a gratitude jar, which families filled with paper leaves containing blessings they were thankful for in the spirit of Psalm 100! With every box, I get to put my teacher hat on and figure out ways to engage families in the Word. I have a lot of fun!

Beyond box planning, I work with our warehouse to oversee distribution to over 3,000 Hero Squad families. I’m also the first line of contact for all our families, so I answer questions, build relationships, and offer prayer support for our roughly 7,000 Hero Squad parents. Finally, I collect and document stories and testimonials. This helps us tell our donors how their gifts to the Hero Squad program are impacting real families.

How do you see Hero Squad’s ministry fitting into the broader mission of American Bible Society: to help people experience God’s love through his Word?

Before this role, I had no previous experience with Military families. But now, I chat with Hero Squad parents every day. From them, I’ve learned that this ministry is meeting a felt need for Military families. I’ve heard heart-wrenching stories of the sacrifices these families make. Many of them are picking up their entire lives and moving every other year. Parents watch their kids struggle with the hurt associated with these transitions. There are so many obstacles: finding good schools, making new friends, and wrestling with separation during deployments.

The Bible can become a source of constant strength and encouragement for these families. Through Hero Squad, they have a tangible way to engage in the Word. We’re using our current cultural trend of subscription boxes to deliver the Bible right to people’s front door. Hero Squad moms have told me how their kids literally jump up and down when their box arrives. There’s nothing better than knowing these kids are excited to learn more about God! And it’s beautiful to serve those who have been serving us so well by providing them with the Word of God.

What’s your favorite thing about working at American Bible Society?

This has been my favorite career opportunity. American Bible Society has been a place for me to build sweet relationships with other believers. And what other opportunity would we have to engage with and speak about the gospel daily? It’s a beautiful gift—very fulfilling and very lifegiving.

Would you share your favorite Bible verse with us?

My favorite verse is Philippians 4:8 (GNT): “Fill your minds with those things that are good and that deserve praise: things that are true, noble, right, pure, lovely, and honorable.” How true is it that we fixate on what we don’t have? But the Lord has been stirring in my heart that the best thing we can do for ourselves and others is to focus on all the good things God has provided. In fact, this verse is going to be the theme of our upcoming summer Hero Squad box! My hope is that it blesses our Hero Squad families as much as it has blessed me.