LITTLE ROCK, AR - When it comes to greeting church members each Sunday morning, no one is more committed to the craft than Bert Dempsey, who has held the prime double-door spot for greeting at Solid Rock Church for the past 18 years. Every Lord's Day, Dempsey awakes before dawn and begins a ritual of stretches and calisthenics to ensure his mind and body are tip-top shape for shaking hundreds of hands.

Finally, this Sunday morning, his intense training was put to the test. A first-time visitor who was running late slipped by him and made a beeline for the foyer doors as the greeters all stood around chatting by the welcome center.

But Dempsey was ready. He sprang from his post with lightning speed, closing the thirty-yard gap between him and the visitor in seconds, according to onlookers

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