Redeployed by Surrendering
For decades, Cheryl Hunter was a force in the McDonald’s empire. She climbed the corporate ladder with excellence, rising to Director of Operations overseeing parts of seven states. Eventually, she purchased and ran three McDonald’s restaurants of her own in North Carolina. Her operations consistently hit top performance metrics, her team thrived, and by all external measures, she was a success story.
But quietly, something deeper stirred.
Cheryl began to sense that winning in business was costing her in ways that mattered more. Long hours, late nights, and a calendar dictated by profit left little room for family, for stillness, or for the deep joy she craved. “I was doing all the right things on the outside—chaplains in the business, Bible studies, sharing the gospel with employees—but my heart was in McDonald’s,” she says. “It had become a kind of god to me.”
Then, an unexpected moment of loss jolted her awake. Despite being highly qualified and well-positioned, Cheryl was passed over for a fourth restaurant. At first, she blamed the corporation. But during a time of prayer and reflection—while reading Counterfeit Gods by Tim Keller—she realized God was using the disappointment to realign her affections. “I had made my career an idol. It was clear I needed to let go.”
That clarity led to a bold decision: to sell her restaurants and surrender her next chapter fully to God. “I didn’t call it retirement,” she says. “I called it redeployment. Because I believe God has something for us to do until the very end.”
What followed was not a pause—but an explosion of purpose.
Cheryl entered what many call the “second half” of life. Through the Halftime Institute, she began a season of exploration—testing “low-cost probes” to discover where her experience, skills, and heart aligned for impact. She quickly discovered her sweet spot: the intersection of business strategy and nonprofit mission.
She began mentoring nonprofit leaders through organizations like Mission Triangle and coaching individuals across both corporate and ministry sectors. Her gift for clear thinking, operational excellence, and servant leadership became a lifeline to emerging leaders. “God showed me that the skills He honed in me through McDonald’s—working with people, thinking strategically, stewarding resources—could multiply far beyond the restaurant industry.”
Cheryl’s influence soon extended globally. She joined the board of Esperanza, a microfinance organization serving the Dominican Republic, and partnered with Hope International. “I saw people take a $200 loan and build a business that fed their family and their community. It reminded me of the best of McDonald’s—creating systems, avoiding waste, maximizing impact—but on a grassroots, transformative level.”
One of her favorite stories involves a man who raised chickens, sold them door-to-door in the morning, and turned unsold poultry into meals by noon. “I saw McDonald’s-level efficiency in a village economy,” she says. “And I got to cheer him on.”
But perhaps the greatest shift wasn’t in what Cheryl did—it was in who she became. No longer the CEO at the center, she embraced the quieter, deeper influence of a sage. “I’ve learned that the person I’m coaching is the expert in their life. My job is to listen, ask good questions, and draw out what God is already doing.”
Now in her 70s, Cheryl’s life is bursting with joyful impact. She coaches young entrepreneurs across continents. She teaches leadership in India. She mentors nonprofit founders finding their feet. And she does it all with the light touch of someone who’s learned the secret of trust.
“This is the compounding return of the Kingdom,” she reflects. “You invest in one person, and years later, they’re investing in five more. A coaching call in Tunisia leads to a connection in Saudi Arabia. A skill learned in a drive-thru applies in a village in the DR.”
She’s also poured into her family. Cheryl has adopted children from Korea and China and even adopted a 25-year-old young man who needed a mother. “It started as a joke and turned into one of the greatest joys of my life.” Her adult daughters now work in nonprofits, and her grandchildren are learning the principles of generosity and stewardship she modeled for decades.
Cheryl’s advice for other successful leaders considering a shift? “Surrender earlier. Don’t wait until your success starts to cost you what you love. God doesn’t need your performance—He wants your heart. And when you open your hands, He’ll use everything you’ve learned to bless others a hundredfold.”
Finishing well, for Cheryl, isn’t about slowing down—it’s about pressing on with new clarity. “I’m not done. I’m just redeployed. And this time, I know exactly who I work for.”