IN THIS ISSUE
nn Bound by Love nn Lifelong Service nn Respite for the Soul nn SongFarmers
Vol. XXXVII / Summer 2018 Vol. XXXVINo. No.1 2Spring Fall / Winter 2017
AGING IN Appalachia
CAP’S INNOVATIVE & MULTIFACETED RESPONSE TO THE PROBLEM OF HUNGER IN APPALACHIA A Publication A Publication of Christian of Christian Appalachian Appalachian Project Project
editor’s letter
M
y mother is blessed. At 86 (nearly 87), she is surrounded by friends, family, and a community that help her navigate the complexities of aging. She’s had multiple surgeries in the past few years, but her network has been there to make sure that she has nutritious meals, that she gets medicine, and that she makes it to her doctor’s appointments. Her home is safe, warm, and dry, and the small repairs that are needed are completed in a timely manner. My mother is blessed. Twenty minutes down the road from my mother’s house you’ll find Christian Appalachian Project’s (CAP) Grateful Bread Food Pantry where Rockcastle County High School students pack commodity boxes to provide supplemental nutrients to elderly residents in the county with low incomes. On page 12, you can read more about the program. Forty minutes down the road from my mother’s house you’ll find the home of Judy Stevens. She has a supportive network and community, but needed help to get a wheelchair ramp built to assist her son. Students from St. Anne’sBelfield School joined with CAP through YouthFest to provide a safe and sturdy ramp. On page 15, you can read more about their experiences. These two stories are just a sample of those that you will find in this issue of The Mountain Spirit. It is a small sampling of the blessings that CAP is able to provide to elderly Appalachians who do not have the support network to provide them. CAP is that network for so many people in need and we are able to do this because of our generous donors and volunteers. Thanks to you, blessings abound. With gratitude, Sarabeth Brownrobie Editor-in-Chief & Creative Director
Cover photo by Erin Kingsley who served in the Elderly Services Program and was a member of the Jackson County volunteer community from 2015-2017. Kingsley attended Union College in New York.
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christianapp.org/MtSpiritGive | SPRING / SUMMER 2018
Spirit OUR MISSION
Building hope, transforming lives, and sharing Christ’s love through service in Appalachia. EDITOR-IN-CHIEF & CREATIVE DIRECTOR Sarabeth Brownrobie CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Tina Bryson, Bridget McCormack Sarabeth Brownrobie Tanzi Merritt CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS Tina Bryson, Julia Love Sarabeth Brownrobie Sharon Patrick CONTACT US
By phone: 859.269.0635 Toll-free: 866.270.4227 Email: publications@chrisapp.org Website: christianapp.org Mail: Christian Appalachian Project P.O. Box 55911 Lexington, KY 40555
SUBSCRIPTIONS
The Mountain Spirit is published twice a year. The suggested donation is $20.00. Subscription requests and other correspondence should be sent to: The Mountain Spirit Christian Appalachian Project P.O. Box 55911 Lexington, KY 40555
Copyright 2018, Christian Appalachian Project, Inc. All rights reserved. Christian Appalachian Project is a nonprofit Christian service organization operating throughout Appalachia. Christian Appalachian Project is recognized by the Internal Revenue Service as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization and is qualified to receive tax deductible contributions.
Contents FAITH
COMPASSION
5 Bound by Love
23 Aging in Appalachia
9 Women of Faith
26 Respite for the Soul
Christian Appalachian Project observes Day of Prayer with moving service. Annual retreat gives women a chance to slow down and recharge.
SERVICE 12 Grateful to Assist
Local teens help combat food insecurity by packing boxes with nutritious foods.
15 Walking Humbly
Judy Stevens serves her community, and we are able to serve her through a YouthFest work project.
19 Lifelong Service
Volunteers of all ages are a part of the CAP family. Meet five of our volunteers.
An overview of the challenges faced by our participants as they get older. Family caretakers get a much needed break thanks to CAP’s In-Home Respite Program.
ARTS AND CULTURE 28 Pride of Place
Appalachian roots music group Zoe Speaks reunites for new album.
31 Stitched Together
The Quilting Bees build community through fiber arts.
32 SongFarmers
Community music jams spring up over the United States to celebrate acoustic music.
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Transform Lives Including Your Own Christian Appalachian Project volunteers serve people in need in Appalachia through educational programming, home repair projects, elderly services, hunger and poverty relief, and much more.
Serve for a month, a summer, or a year.
Christian Appalachian Project
christianapp.org volunteer@chrisapp.org 800.755.5322
faith
And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. COLOSSIANS 3:14 (NIV)
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Bound
BY LOVE
t feels like a family reunion. Hands clap on backs and laughter rings out above the pleasant rumble of familiar conversation that fills the gathering space of the Louis T. Foley Mission Center. Each person present has made the choice to “put on love,” as Colossians 3:14 urges. On days like this, it is evident that they have been bound together by this love for God, their communities, and Appalachia. Since 1996, the Christian Appalachian Project (CAP) family has come together to observe the National Day of Prayer on the first Thursday of May. This year, CAP staff and volunteers made a temporary retreat from their daily service to meet in Floyd County on a perfect spring day. “Prayer changes things,” said Aaron Thoms of CAP’s Operation Sharing Program as he welcomed the crowd gathered there. Heads throughout the packed space nodded, and murmurs of agreement could be heard. SPRING / SUMMER 2018 | christianapp.org/MtSpiritGive
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faith
(previous page) Teresa Waters leads the closing prayer. (clockwise from left) Jim Wallace lights a prayer candle for Appalachia. CAP President/CEO Guy Adams, guest speaker Dr. Terry Swan, and Randy Burns have shared bonds at Lindsey Wilson College. Employees write prayers for CAP to celebrate CAP Day of Prayer. Mike Loiacono leads employees and volunteers in singing “No Longer Strangers.” We at CAP see and live that reality every day – on home repair sites, in child development centers and summer camps, in the homes of the elderly, in the Grateful Bread Food Pantry and Grateful Threadz Thrift Store, in our interactions with each other, and in countless other ways.
“Terry Swan is a Lindsey Wilson icon,” said Randy Burns, CAP’s director of major gifts. Burns is also a Lindsey Wilson alum and former director of alumni relations. “For him to have been so instrumental in the history of a place I love so much puts him in a special place in my heart. Now to have him share his heart and love for God’s people with Throughout the day, talents and wisdom were shared by a my new CAP family is very special.” variety of individuals – a long-term volunteer, a program director, a community volunteer, a philanthropy officer, “Gathering together in unity, in worship propels an orgaand Dr. Terry Swan, professor of religion and dean of the nization toward right things,” Swan concluded. “You find chapel at Lindsey Wilson College. Each song, reflection, out where God is working and moving, and you just join and message was a gift of the Holy Spirit. When they were God there. It is the Holy Spirit that catapults an organizajoined with the prayers of the entire CAP family, the day tion toward great things. The impetus that pulls everyone truly became a celebration of God’s presence in human together is in the person of Christ who lives here among service programs, in Eastern Kentucky, and in Appalachia. us and guides us.” n 6
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Amanda Gadd was given a rousing standing ovation after sharing her story at CAP Day of Prayer. Amanda’s powerful story about overcoming difficult odds brought many to tears.
AMANDA GADD: A TRANSFORMED LIFE I have often said – give me a soap box and I will sing the praises of Christian Appalachian Project (CAP), so here I am. I am from Mt. Vernon in Rockcastle County. I am the mother of three wonderful children and recently became a grandmother. My oldest son Jeremy is 28 and retired from the United States Marine Corps. He is married and lives in Kentucky. He is the father of my 2-year-old grandson. My daughter Sarah is 26 and also married. She lives in Tennessee, and is a self-employed business woman. My youngest son James Allen is a growing 8-year-old, who is full of life.
years. But I got my start many years ago in 1993, when my son Jeremy was enrolled in CAP’s Child Development Center (CDC). Parents served as volunteers to help around the center with cleaning, supervising children in the classroom and on the bus. I helped with whatever needed to be done. During this same time, my daughter Sarah was enrolled in the Infant/Toddler Program. The teacher came to our house for one hour a week to interact with Sarah and prepare her for preschool. When she became old enough, she also attended the CDC. During these years of preschool, I attended parenting classes and job readiness training – any activity or program I felt would help me better myself.
ing skills to Judy Bruner. I watched her for hours at a time interact with my son, who was very emotional and very needy. He would cry and have tantrums when I left him at school. I remember she would get on her knees, down to his level, to console him. She would talk calmly to him, reassure him that everything was okay. I wanted to be like her – loving, patient, and kind. I wanted to have that kind of influence over his negative behavior. I knew and felt she cared and loved him, just as I did. I trusted her with my babies fully. Judy Bruner was the first CAP relationship that I formed in what I call my “CAP Family.”
I have been a CAP volunteer and participant for 25 years and counting. I currently do my volunteer work at I was a young mother who did not I do not have a formal family supCAP’s food pantry and thrift store have a role model for how to parent port system, such as parents or siband have been there for the past five my children. I owe my early parent- lings. For most of my teen years and SPRING / SUMMER 2018 | christianapp.org/MtSpiritGive
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faith worked herself up to the position of lead counselor. So now my youngest son, James, has grown old enough to begin going to camp and history repeats itself. He counts down the days until summer camp rolls around again. Not only have I been fortunate enough to build my own relationships with CAP, my children have their own connections and memories.
Amanda and her daughter Sarah at a CAP Women’s Retreat. early adult life, I formed my family through CAP employees who I respected and admired. They helped me to find myself and encouraged me to do great things. Some of the biggest milestones in my life have been shared with my CAP family, such as continuing my education because I dropped out of school in the eighth grade. I received my high school diploma through CAP in 1994. Keith Gilbertson was my teacher. He would come to my house weekly to help me study. He would bring me books and supplies. He would always encourage me to do my best and to consider going to college, which I did. I attended Berea College for three years. On the day of our GED graduation ceremony, Keith was the only family member I had there to support me. But I was okay with that, even though it was not the norm. I knew 8
he believed in me. He was proud of me and he was my CAP family.
For the past few years, Sarah and I have been going to the Women’s Retreat, hosted at Camp AJ. It has been a time for us to reflect on our friendship, as well as building new friendships. It has also given us the opportunity to look at how far our family has come from years past, and look ahead to where we want to go and who we want to be as productive individuals. I know in my heart, without my CAP family, without their guidance, encouragement, and non-judgmental love, my life would and could be very different. I have many stories like these. Some are of a more serious note and some are full of laughter, but all of them are important, all of them make me who I am.
As my children grew and went on to school, I continued to volunteer at the CDC until I was fortunate enough to find a good job to better my life for my children. Throughout the years, there were times of struggle and hardships to which I would reach In an article I read recently, CAP’s out to my CAP family for support President/CEO Guy Adams stated, and direction. “We make a difference one individual, one family at a time.” I am that one inOne of the really amazing programs dividual. My family is that one family. my children have attended was at Camp AJ. Both Jeremy and Sarah CAP builds hope! CAP transforms went to camp every year throughout lives! CAP shares Christ’s love through their childhood. They were always service! excited and counted down the days to next summer. As my daughter That is why I am a participant and grew to be an adult herself, she be- that is why I choose to have my CAP gan to realize what a positive impact family. camp was for her, as a child, and returned to be a camp counselor. She Together we can do great things! n
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faith
Women OF FAITH T
Retreat Provides a Time to Rejuvenate and Focus on Spiritual Renewal
he serenity of the lake and the mountains of Christian humdrum of life,” she said. “It gives me an opportunity to Appalachian Project’s (CAP) Camp AJ calls the forget about that for awhile.” women of the surrounding counties to come find rest. Gloria Christy is one of those women who made In the busyness of her day as she takes care of her housetime to attend CAP’s 15th annual Women’s Retreat. hold, it can sometimes be difficult to find the time or the “It gives me a chance to get away from the everyday things space to just do something that revitalizes the spirit. The that I do with the cooking, the cleaning, and the everyday retreat provides opportunities for participants to focus on
Prayer has been an integral part of the Women’s Retreat since the beginning. Women at the 6th Annual Women’s Retreat take time to pray for one another. SPRING / SUMMER 2018 | christianapp.org/MtSpiritGive
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faith self-care. It is a way for CAP staff to provide a respite for women who are so used to taking care of everyone else. Christy sat at her table quietly stitching the word “Faith” on her small piece of canvas. A memento that she can take home as a reminder of what it has taken for her to overcome life’s circumstances. “I have heard many women say this is their only opportunity to have time to themselves and not have to cook, clean, or babysit,” said Robyn Renner, who started the first women’s retreat in 2004. “It is an opportunity where they can be pampered instead of pampering others. Throughout the years, women who have attended the retreat have made a special bond with the other women from different counties, and they keep in contact throughout the year. It is oftentimes like a family reunion as they look forward to CAP employee Rebecca Napier assists a participant in the next year’s retreat.” making a beaded cross constructed out of nails. Each activity is designed to provide hands-on experiences for attendees. Camp AJ is the perfect spot for a retreat. It sits on nearly a
hundred acres, including a five-acre lake nestled into a holler with two mountains rising on either side. The women can enjoy fishing, sitting by the campfire, canoing, walking the trails, or just relaxing surrounded by the beautiful vistas provided by the Appalachian Mountains they call home. It is a great place to just be still. The first retreat was attended by a small group, but each year the event has grown and organizers usually anticipate 40 to 50 women to attend from McCreary, Rockcastle, Owsley, Jackson, and Clay Counties. It is always scheduled in May. “I heard about it from a friend,” Christy explained, “and I’ve told several friends since then. I tell them what a blessing it is and how much fun it is. I really enjoy seeing the friends I’ve met before, and meeting new friends each year. It is something I look forward to from one year to the next.” “These women are like family,” Renner added. “We have been through some difficult times, with many women dealing with the death of a loved one, dealing with drugs in their family, dealing with so much pain. This is a time they can come and take care of themselves and get revived.”
Everyone is given gift bags when they arrive. This year, young women from Distinguished Young Women of Kentucky assembled the gift bags and included journals and handwritten notes of encouragement. 10
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Renner and Christy agreed that the music is something that also connects the women who attend whether as part of the formal programming or impromptu singing on their own time. “These ladies love to sing and they sing for hours
Participants look forward to the makeover portion of the retreat every year which includes fancy hats. Gloria’s beauty shines against the natural backdrop of trees at Camp AJ. in the evening. I just sit back and listen. I love watching them bond together.”
sit down and talk with one of the ladies about her life, as she and I had gone through some of the same things,” she recalled. “Sadly, she passed away this last year, so I was “The singing is really uplifting, and we sing a lot of old blessed to have gotten to know her. It is amazing how peoones like ‘I’ll Fly Away’,” Christy explained. “I enjoyed ple come in and out of your life. God is sure in control.” my first women’s retreat so much that I’ve come back for nine more years. The different crafts, the different speakers Both Renner and Gaffney understand how special it is that – we’ve heard these stories of the Bible all of our lives, but the retreat is celebrating its 15th year. Renner explained, “I sometimes you can incorporate it with what’s going on in am so glad we have continued to have the retreat because it is your life and the people around you. It just gives you a special. I love the bond they have among each other, as well drink. When you leave, you’re rejuvenated.” as the relationships built between CAP and these ladies.” This year the retreat focused on CAP’s core values of faith, service, and compassion. CAP employee Tina Bryson spoke about being a woman of faith. She took the stories of women in the Bible and related their experiences to her own faith story. Women of faith trust God and follow Him even when it doesn’t make sense. Bryson has lived those lessons in her own life and encouraged the women to endure through trials and tribulations because living a life of faith can bring great blessings. Vickie Gaffney, CAP Family Advocacy coordinator for Mt. Vernon fondly remembers her first retreat. “I got to
There is no better advertisement than Christy. She summed up her experience by simply saying, “There are a lot of happy times here. A lot of relaxation. Renewing your spirit. It’s just awesome, and we always look forward to it. The day we leave we think, well has a year passed yet? Are we back here yet? Once you come, you know you’re hooked! You just have to be here to get a view of the whole thing. I plan on coming back as often as I can, as often as my health will let me. I’ve been through a lot these past few years, but I don’t want to stop. What the Lord wants us to do is keep going and keep telling people about Him, and there is no better place to do that than here.” n SPRING / SUMMER 2018 | christianapp.org/MtSpiritGive
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service
GRATEFUL TO ASSIST B
rown corrugated cardboard boxes stacked high on pallets around the warehouse were filled to capacity with boxes of uncooked pasta, bags of pinto beans, and cartons of lactose-free milk. On either side of a row of tables, Rockcastle County High School (RCHS) students mingled their conversation and laughter with volunteers from Christian Appalachian Project (CAP) as they prepared for the monthly distribution of commodities to elderly residents in the county who are low income. The Honors Club students, clad in t-shirts and jeans; one with a baseball cap flipped on backwards, bantered back and forth as they arranged items for the assembly line that would soon run like a well-oiled machine. One by one each student took his or her place in line to pick an item, pack an item, slide the box. Pick an item, pack an item, slide the box until full. Hand to classmate, place on stack. Move to the back of the line. Then repeat.
The students replicated this process over and over until one box became two, and two boxes became ten, and ten boxes became the 180 commodity boxes filled with supplemental food. Helping earnestly in the background was Elizabeth Stevens, their faculty advisor. Stevens has been surrounded by CAP’s mission for more than two decades. Her mother, Sharon Goff, is the current manager of CAP’s Child and Family Development Center in Mt. Vernon and has worked for CAP for 24 years. This was the second time Stevens brought her students to CAP’s Grateful Bread Food Pantry to serve. “It’s important for students to be involved in their community,” she said. Stevens believes it is important for her students not only to excel academically, but also to be given opportunities to learn the importance of community service right in their own backyard. “Volunteering with CAP allows my students to have first-hand experience in
(left) Students from Rockcastle County High School Honors Club fill commodity boxes (right) which may include a variety of foods, such as nonfat dry and ultra high-temperature fluid milk, juice, oats, rice, pasta, peanut butter, and dry beans. 12
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This is the second time that educator Elizabeth Stevens (left front) has brought her students to CAP’s Grateful Bread Food Pantry to serve. working with members of their own county. It is a very humbling experience when students are able to see problems like food insecurity that they may not have known existed in their own hometown.” One of those students, RCHS senior Joy Frith, has helped at the food pantry before with her church. She represented her school at last year’s Hunger Walk, an event created to raise awareness about food insecurity. “When I became involved with the Hunger Walk, that’s when I started to realize that there are a lot of people in our community that struggle with food insecurity,” Frith said. The food insecurity rate for Rockcastle County is 16.4 percent with nearly 3,000 people living in food insecure homes. “I like to volunteer in my own community because I know there are a lot of people that struggle with poverty, that struggle with putting food on the table,” Frith said. “It’s a real hands-on experience and it’s good to know that our efforts are helping people.” Hunger and food insecurity issues exist in every community in the Unit-
ed States. A report released last year titled, “The State of Hunger in America,” found that nearly one out of every 10 seniors in Kentucky is food insecure, that means those seniors are unable to consistently access or afford adequate amounts of food. According to the Appalachian Regional Commission, of the 13 states that make up the Appalachian region, Kentucky has by far the worst poverty rate. Sadly, 20 percent of Eastern Kentuckians do not know where their next meal is coming from. “What we are doing right now,” Frith said passionately, “just being here and being able to help people out who don’t have access to enough money for food makes a difference.” “My students have learned that Rockcastle County is home to many, many people who are considered food insecure,” said Stevens, also a biology teacher at RCHS. “It may be family members, neighbors, or even their classmates. It hits home for a lot of students because they realize that this problem is very local and many times we tend to think it is in other parts of the country. My Honors Club students are problem-solvers. If anyone is going
The Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP) works to improve the health of people who are at least 60 years of age with low incomes by supplementing their diets with nutritious United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) foods. Food packages include a variety of foods, such as nonfat dry and ultra high-temperature fluid milk, juice, oats, ready-to-eat cereal, rice, pasta, peanut butter, dry beans, canned meat, poultry or fish, and canned fruits and vegetables. According to Feeding America, CSFP serves about 595,000 people with low incomes each month, and is the only USDA nutrition program that provides monthly food assistance specially targeting seniors with low incomes. The program is designed to meet the unique nutritional needs of participants, supplementing diets with a monthly package of healthy, nutritious USDA commodities. With one in 12 households with seniors at risk of hunger nationwide, CSFP prevents seniors who are vulnerable from having to choose between food and other basic needs. Most participants either pick up their monthly CSFP box at a local sponsor like Grateful Bread Food Pantry or have a designee who is authorized to pick up for them. CAP also delivers food packages directly to the home of some participants, an important program feature for seniors with limited mobility.
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service to help find solutions to some of these problems, like food insecurity, I firmly believe it will be my students. They are able to see firsthand what is going on and will be able to take that knowledge and find solutions.” A firsthand experience was exactly what these young volunteers received. After assembling boxes, they stocked shelves and shopped with additional families that visited the pantry. Jackson Cromer, also a senior, learned from his experience. “People at CAP are a blast to work with and it just feels really good to be able to see the need being fulfilled,” he said. Cromer is glad he has had the opportunity to make food scarcity more visible. “Hunger is a problem and there are a lot of people who care about it and are willing to work with programs
like CAP. This has made me want to keep serving others because hunger is not just an isolated problem that happens in our community.” CAP also benefits when community volunteers get to meet people in need up close, and when they make a commitment to help. “I like seeing students serve at the pantry because it gives young people an opportunity to help make an impact in the fight against hunger in their own community,” said Sherri Barnett, manager of the pantry and coordinator of the annual Hunger Walk. “When they volunteer at the pantry, these high school students have the opportunity to meet and serve people in need that are dealing with hunger issues on a regular basis.”
benefit from academics, but from real -world experiences that shape their worldview. “I hope my students will see the importance of being involved in their community. I hope that they will take the knowledge from these experiences and try to help meet the needs of the people we see around us. Our children are the hope for the future. I hope that my students will value people in all walks of life and that we as a society need to help each other out as much as we possibly can.”
As the warehouse was tidied up for the next day’s food pantry visitors, there was a sense of accomplishment that filled the warehouse. Not just 180 boxes filled, but 180 lives impacted by a small group of students. Every small act of kindness makes Stevens, like any good educator, a difference. Well done Rockets! knows that her students don’t just Well done. n
MISSION TRIPS
SHORT-TERM TRIP LONG-TERM IMPACT
Week-long (Sunday-Friday) mission trip opportunities for church, school, and corporate groups, ages 14 and up. We need your help to make homes safe, warm, and dry for people in need. Your group will transform lives, including your own! contact us at 14
groups@chrisapp.org
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service
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WALKING HUMBLY
t was 1959. She was 17 and married. She delivered the first of her three sons in the hospital. They told her he had a cut on his lip, but that was a gross understatement that did not prepare her. When they laid her newborn son in her arms she saw that his cleft lip and palette were so severe that she described her son as having half a face, no nose, no mouth. But on that day, not only was a child born with special
needs, but an even stronger advocate was birthed. She would fight tirelessly for her son, Kenneth, and every child with special needs in Floyd County and the surrounding community from then on. “I thought my heart would stop,” said Judy Stevens, as she passionately told a story she has recounted many times. “From the time he came in the world,
I knew that having a special needs baby was going to be a lifelong process, but my baby was my inspiration, the motivation to reach out to other children with special needs.” Kenneth had his first plastic surgery when he was just six weeks old. That was the start of a long journey for his family. As Kenneth has gotten older, he has increasing mobility challenges.
(left to right) Judy Stevens and her sons Kenneth and Sam. SPRING / SUMMER 2018 | christianapp.org/MtSpiritGive
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“This ramp has been a godsend. Most of the time I had to move him on my own, and it was getting dangerous because we couldn’t move him in the wheelchair.” Sam Stevens This has created a need for better access in and out of their home. “I prayed to God to give me a wheelchair ramp,” Judy said faithfully. “God gave it to me.” The answered prayer came in the form of volunteers from St. Anne’sBelfield School in Charlottesville, Virginia. The freshman class and their chaperones traveled to Appalachia as part of Christian Appalachian Project’s (CAP) YouthFest 2018. One team spent the week building a wheelchair-accessible ramp for the Stevens family while other student teams served on additional elderly housing projects. St. Anne’s-Belfield has been participating in YouthFest since 2013. Their annual visit to Eastern Kentucky is known as Doug’s Trip, a community service program for their ninth-grade class. “We want our students to experience a culture and lifestyle that is different than the ones they are accustomed to in Charlottesville,” said Bob Troy, a faculty member at the school and the trip coordinator. “Our students get to see that limited material resources are not (in and of themselves) an impediment to happiness. In many ways, Doug’s Trip helps put our material advantages in perspective. Their experiences on the worksites give them a new view of what they 16
gone. It was an unmitigated disaster,” Sam recalled. “They had to bring the stretcher to the foot of the steps. We had to carry him to get him to the stretcher. Time was of the essence when the ambulance came to get him. Having this ramp is a game changer.”
Seven students and two teachers worked to build the 68-foot ramp. can accomplish when they work to- All of their preparation paid off and gether to pursue an important goal.” they were able to start and finish the job in four days. In order to prepare for the week, students participated in Hammer Camp “We have been so impressed with at school for training with hand tools. them,” Sam said. “They started each They also undertook fundraising day off in a prayer circle. One day, alsoandundertook activities to support the trip. They one young man prayed that God put those skills to good use as they would allow him to do quality work. dug post holes, nailed 2x4s, and It’s been such an incredible sight screwed spindles to the ramp. The watching these young people put hammering and drilling could be their heart and soul into making life heard in the background as Sam, a little bit better for my brother. I Kenneth’s younger brother, contin- couldn’t thank them enough.” ued their story. Two of those young people were Alec “My mom has dedicated her entire Freedman and Cheryl Oppan. “You life, since she was a teenager herself, can learn a lot about yourself and to Kenneth who was the catalyst be- those around you,” Freedman said. hind her work to help children with “Even when things seem to be going special needs,” said Sam, who moved wrong, look for the good in each sitin to help his mother. “This ramp has uation. There was definitely a strong been a godsend. Most of the time I element of relationship building on had to move him on my own, and this trip. We are now closer as a class, it was getting dangerous because we and that will help the whole school.” couldn’t move him in the wheelchair.” Oppan added that the trip was a The members of the Stevens family life-changing experience. “I didn’t were familiar with the work of Chris- expect to make a difference in sometian Appalachian Project after hearing one else’s life,” Oppan said. “I learned people in the community talk about that wherever you go, there is going CAP. Judy, as always, found out more to be people in the world who are not as fortunate or wealthy, but it is up about how to help her son. to you whether you want to make a “We had to tear down the other change in their lives and help somewheelchair ramp. It became dan- one in unimaginable ways.” gerous and we had to take it down. The ambulance had to come to get One interaction that impacted Oppan Kenneth once while the ramp was was an encounter with Judy who told
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(above) Students work on the upper portion of the 68 ft. ramp installed on the Stevens property. (left) Jacob Stoner, a St-Anne’s Belfield faculty member, and Alex Freedman anchor a post. to her life of service and compassion. “So what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” (Micah 6:8 NIV)
them it was possible to have as little or as much of God as they wanted. They just needed to decide. “She inspired me and made me realize how important God is in our lives,” Oppan said. “She told us that in the end it matters how much God impacts our lives. He can be the hope
“God has walked with me all through my life,” she said. “If nobody else was there, God has always been a permanent help that I could count on anytime. When others failed to come through, I and joy in our lives or the listener of had that relationship with God. our problems and struggles.” “I can say beyond a shadow of a doubt, Judy lives her faith and never misses if I never live another day, Kenneth an opportunity to talk about God’s Stevens’ existence in this world, alwork in her life. She sat on her tered, changed, made my life better,” piano bench in her home tucked away in she said defiantly. “And the lives I’ve a holler. Behind her was a hand-painted touched for all of these years, he was sign on rustic wood that is a testament the main influence in my life.” n SPRING / SUMMER 2018 | christianapp.org/MtSpiritGive
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service
DOUG’S TRIP: A LABOR OF LOVE Each spring ninth grade students at St. Anne’s-Belfield School take part in Doug’s Trip, a week of service in an area of the country in need of assistance where students’ energy and empathy will have a genuine impact. Douglas Wardle was a rising leader at his school. He had been elected co-president at the end of his junior year. Douglas saw the inequities in the world and stood up for people in need. He wanted to change things. Among his contributions to the school was advocacy for service learning. Douglas realized that these efforts helped build school community as well as assist others.
PHOTO COURTESY ST. ANNE’S-BELFIELD SCHOOL
During the summer of 2006, he and his mother took a community service trip to Nicaragua with other students from his school. He loved the trip where they built houses for families. After long hours of building, they would stay in the community where they were working. Douglas played with the local children and spoke Spanish. Before that trip was over, he had decided to return the following summer. In July 2007, he and his father went to Nicaragua again to build houses. During that trip, Douglas collapsed and later passed away from a brain aneurysm. His senior classmates dedicated their class gift to the freshman class and it was named Doug’s Trip after Douglas. The first year, students traveled to Pass Christian, Mississippi to aid victims of Hurricane Katrina. Over the years students have returned to the Mississippi Gulf Coast, as well as traveled to the Appalachian Mountains in Kentucky. Working with Christian Appalachian Project, students have built ramps, replaced windows and siding, installed drywall, and painted. Douglas’ parents have participated in the trip for the past four years. Last year, his sister participated as well.
Nancy and Bill Wardle honor their son with their dedication to YouthFest and Christian Appalachian Project.
bedridden. The plan was to have the participant come outside on the last day and use the ramp. That happened, but not as planned. On that last day, the participant had a medical emergency. The ambulance was called. Since the ramp was finished, the emergency medical professionals “We are so honored and proud to have the school recog- were able to bring the participant down the ramp to get nize our son Douglas in this way,” said Nancy Wardle. to the ambulance. “When you lose a child, your one hope is that they will not be forgotten. Through the dedication of trip leader “What’s incredibly special is that there are things that Bob Troy, the administration and staff at St. Anne’s- happen that remind us of our son Douglas,” said Bill Belfield we feel that Douglas has remained a role model Wardle. “He wanted to right the wrongs. He wanted to for students.” fix things. He wanted people to respect others. To see the young people from St. Anne’s-Belfield coming here and The work of the ninth graders has had an immediate im- seeing some of those same things [in them], it has just pact. One group built a ramp for a participant that was been extraordinary.” n 18
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service
Lifelong Service
V
irginia Black and Terri Pennington from Kentucky. Dennis Bertram from Minnesota. Jay and Sandra Dresser from Georgia. They come from around the nation, but their hearts are bound together through their love and service to Christian Appalachian Project (CAP). All of them are over the age of 65, and all volunteer their time in fulfilling CAP’s mission of building hope, transforming lives, and sharing Christ’s love through service in Appalachia. Black and Pennington drive 60 miles round trip every week to sort donated items that arrive in packages from other states at CAP’s Grateful Threadz Thrift Store. The long-time friends then spend their day steam cleaning clothes so that they are ready for customers. The staff at the store work diligently to give customers a great shopping experience where people can keep their pride and dignity. Black is 80 years old. She first encountered CAP at the doctor’s office where she worked. Now as a retiree, she volunteers in order to give back to the community. She’s in good health and wants to keep active. Volunteering is a way to achieve that, plus help a cause, like CAP, that she believes in while also helping people receive services that impact their lives. Black sees it as a win-win all the way around. SPRING / SUMMER 2018 | christianapp.org/MtSpiritGive
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service “It’s so uplifting,” she said. “We work in the back doing a little bit of everything and we go out into the store to talk to people. Nothing feels like a job. It’s so easy. When you’re willing to do something, and it’s interesting, it’s not a job. And, they let you work at your own pace. Older people work at their own pace, and as long as you’re dependable I don’t see anything wrong with that.” Pennington, who retired from her greenhouse business, especially enjoys helping women search for a particular item that they need. “It’s a blessing to serve the community; It’s my biggest pleasure. God wants you to have a mission, and I think this is a purpose, especially for the volunteers.” Sherri Barnett, manager of Grateful Threadz, appreciates the dedication of community volunteers like Black and Pennington. “If it were not for our community volunteers we would not be able to operate Threadz with such high standards for our customer experience. Virginia and Terri are such uplifting and encouraging ladies. They are a blessing to our staff, other volunteers, and our customers. They help us in so many ways – with sorting, steaming, and regular duties that have to Virginia Black was recently featured on CAP’s Facebook page be done – in order to keep the store running efficiently and was excited when her grandson in Colorado sent her a and effectively.” message about it. Dennis “Bert” Bertram had been a long-time CAP financial supporter. He knew the mission. He knew the ministry. He knew the needs. “We all have different life experiences that set the tone for what the Holy Spirit is leading you to do. My whole family was farmers. I remember when a neighbor broke his leg and my dad dropped everything to help him put his crop in – even before he put in his own crop. As kids we didn’t understand that, but I look back and I see what the Holy Spirit was telling me.” Although he had been volunteering his carpentry skills in other places, he felt the Holy Spirit was calling him specifically to work in Appalachia.
Bertram and his team worked on the home of a widow who supports her teenage nephew and herself by driving a mail delivery truck. She lives in the home that once belonged to her parents and economizes in the winter on her electric bill by heating with a coal stove. Volunteers helped this family by building a roof over the deteriorated porch, replacing a window in the living room, and repairing the floor and walls in her kitchen.
Mike Wallace, housing manager for Rockcastle, McCreary and Jackson Counties, depends on volunteers like Bertram to help repair or rebuild the more than 350 homes of seniors living in poverty. Throughout This year he traveled from Minnesota to volunteer on- the year, their homes are relentlessly assaulted by the site with CAP for the first time during WorkFest, CAP’s sun’s melting heat, winter’s gripping cold, and the rain, alternative spring break service opportunity for college snow, sleet, ice, and wind. Wallace and his team of crew students. But when he arrived in Eastern Kentucky, an leaders multiply the number of families they can assist unexpected snow storm left worksites closed for a full when volunteers like Bert come to Eastern Kentucky day. “It was a bummer that we couldn’t work, but it to serve. seemed to me that it drew people closer together. I’ll remember this trip for a long time and I’m sure that the “Bert’s energy level matches the students and he serves as kids will too.” a positive example for our younger volunteers,” Wallace 20
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talent that He’s given to us. I figured it out the other day, and I’ve worked at WorkFest for 72 weeks.” Jay especially enjoys working with youth and has built long-lasting relationships with many of them that have been a part of his work crews. “I enjoy teaching them, more than anything. And showing them a lifestyle of service. I had a youngster at YouthFest this year that had worked with me last year. He understood me and he told all the kids ‘Jay is going to make you work, but if you work, he’ll love you to death.’” Over the years, he has had both long-term and short -term Americorp members and volunteers continue to regularly correspond with him by email where they can share updates about their lives with each other. Sandra, Jay’s wife, brings her own passions and gifts to her role as a volunteer with CAP. “I really enjoy cooking, especially cooking for groups. They’re just so enthusiastic CAP President/CEO Guy Adams talks with Dennis “Bert” and appreciative of having a good meal,” she said. “I’m Bertram, a donor and volunteer, about CAP’s mission. not a carpenter so there’s no way that I’d even be compesaid. “He is very open about how his life has taken a tent enough to work on Jay’s crew! Keeping involved in higher road due to his faith in God. We appreciate his helping other people is rewarding in itself, and there is flexibility and how conscientious he is about doing things no end to what older folks can learn to do.” right. We need more volunteers like Bert who are willing to share their construction skills in order to make homes She added, “We volunteer because we get rewards just for elderly participants safe, warm, and dry.” from the interactions and knowing that we are sharing our gifts. We get so many blessings. It’s not the reason Bertram agreed that serving at CAP impacted him and why we volunteer, but it’s a byproduct that’s very near that others should consider volunteering as well in or- and dear to our hearts; knowing we can make a differder “to help someone who needs help, who is living in ence in someone’s life with our skills and our attitudes.” a home that isn’t warm, dry, and safe. I think it’s a good idea for anyone to volunteer.” Older volunteers like Virginia, Terri, Bert, Jay, and Sandra are an integral part of the CAP community. Like Bertram, Jay Dresser and his wife, Sandra, also They have found their own way to serve people in need started out as donors. They owned a retail shop and in Appalachia through monthly service as community donated clothing to CAP during the holidays for Christ- volunteers, short-term and long-term volunteer oppormas distribution to families in need. The Dressers have tunities on construction sites or the kitchen crew. They been volunteering with CAP since they retired in 2000, steam clothes, cook and serve food, share wisdom, repair including WorkFest and YouthFest, CAP’s alterna- homes. They build hope and transform lives. tive spring break service opportunities for college and high school students and short time volunteer projects Jay’s devotion closes each WorkFest orientation, and he ever since. quotes from James 2:14-17, “Faith without works is dead.” But he also leaves them with these words of wis“The Lord calls us to volunteer. End of discussion,” said dom that resonate with the heart of a volunteer, no matJay, who has served as a crew leader at WorkFest for 18 ter what your age. “You’re going to go home and when years. “I’m serious as a heartbeat! I’ve got time and I’ve you look back, you’re going to have more blessings than got talent, as does my wife, and we are called to use that you left behind.” n SPRING / SUMMER 2018 | christianapp.org/MtSpiritGive
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MAKE A CHARITABLE GIFT AND RECEIVE AN INCOME FOR LIFE
Christian Appalachian Project
The Charitable Gift Annuity Program
A charitable gift annuity is a contract between you and CAP. In exchange for cash or other assets (stocks, bonds, mutual funds, etc.) of $10,000 or more, CAP guarantees to make fixed payments for the rest of your life (and the life of a second beneficiary, if desired). Remaining assets are used to further the mission of CAP.
âœ
Have questions? Call:1-866-270-4CAP (4227)
Please use the following information to calculate my charitable gift annuity: Name (Mr., Mrs., Ms., Miss) ___________________________________________________________ Address___________________________________________________________________________ City_____________________________________________________ State___________Zip________ Telephone (_____)_________________________________________ Birthdate:______/_____/_____ Amount of Gift Considered $___________________________ Frequency of Payment Desired: qAnnual qQuarterly qMonthly Second beneficiary? qYes, name:___________________________ Birthdate:______/_____/_____ Primary and secondary beneficiaries must be 65+ • All information provided is confidential. Please Complete & Return Form to:
Christian Appalachian Project, Planned Giving Department, P.O. Box 55911, Lexington, KY 40555
compassion
AGING IN Appalachia P
overty isn’t new, particularly in Appalachia. As recently as 2015 the Appalachian Regional Commission reported that more than 25 percent of residents in Eastern Kentucky live below the poverty line. And sadly, the rate of senior poverty in the state, at 11.2 percent, is the third highest in the nation. Christian Appalachian Project (CAP) works every day to transform the lives of these seniors. “The average income of the majority of our participants is about $750 per month. That is the income for individuals that receive supplemental social security income,” said Teresa Gullett, manager of elderly services and elderly housing in Johnson, Martin, Floyd, Knott, and Magoffin Counties. “They often struggle with having funds for food, utilities, home repairs, transportation, and medical supplies.”
access to reliable transportation to local healthcare facilities, much less to more specialized and advanced treatment options not located in the community.
a better chance of being able to stay in their own home and maintain an increased quality of health,” Gullett said. “But sometimes their health issues limit their mobility and that is when our housing staff steps in to “We provide transports to various build accessible ramps or to make agencies which gives our participants other needed repairs to the home.
21% of married Social Security recipients and 43% of single recipients aged 65+ depend on Social Security for 90% or more of their income. SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION, 2016
Healthcare costs naturally increase with age. Chronic conditions are more prevalent in seniors, while costs for treatments, medications, and health insurance continue to rise. Seniors in rural areas such as Eastern Kentucky face additional challenges. Often, rural areas lack high quality and specialized health services, and seniors may have no SPRING / SUMMER 2018 | christianapp.org/MtSpiritGive
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compassion
The 2.1 million older adults on Supplemental Security Income (SSI) receive, on average, just $435 each month. SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION, 2016
These repairs provide our participants with homes that are safe, warm, and dry so that they can enjoy their homes with reduced concerns of injuries.”
“I know it may sound worn, but our goal really is to make sure homes are safe, warm, and dry,” Wallace said. “We have a waiting list for home repair assistance. We have supplies and funds available, but we need Housing is one of the most con- more skilled volunteers to help lead cerning issues for seniors in East- these projects. If we dedicated all ern Kentucky, and the issue isn’t of our labor resources to repair the always about affording the rent homes of our elderly participants, it or mortgage, but rather the fina would be 2021 before all of them ncial strains of on the current home repairs and waiting list would upkeep as well be served. And One-third of senior as modifications still there are households has no for disabilities. new calls to our money left over each office every day month or is in debt “Our participants inquiring for the after meeting essential are connected to first time about Appalachia begetting on the expenses. cause it is where wait list. There is INSTITUTE ON ASSETS they were born a great need.” AND SOCIAL POLICY and raised. It’s where they raised CAP is meeting their own families,” said Carolyn those needs, not just in the housing Lindsey, manager of elderly services program, but in a variety of areas. in Rockcastle, Jackson, and Mc- The Elderly Services Program proCreary Counties. “Many own their vides home visits, transportation homes and land and they will not for errands and doctor visits, home leave it. Their spouse may be buried repairs, and advocates for special there and they will not leave them circumstances that may arise. While either. There are memories there. So some seniors are living without we meet them where they are.” family nearby, many others are in the position of caring for family Mike Wallace manages all of the members, including adult children housing projects, including home with health issues or grandchildren. repairs for seniors in the same service areas as Lindsey. He feels a spe- “Seniors face a variety of challengcial burden to get homes repaired es in addition to housing,” said because for every elderly partici- Lindsey, who has managed elderly pant that is helped, there is another services in her community for 19 senior in need waiting to be added years. “Sometimes it’s a lack of serto the home repair list. vices or it could be loneliness. At 24
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other times, it might be financial issues due to health challenges or caring for loved ones.” Lindsey concedes that these issues would be similar for any person growing older in America, but they seem particularly impactful for seniors in Appalachia. “I think these challenges are more exaggerated in Appalachia because of the geography. It is hard to live in the mountains,” she said. “There is a lack of transportation and access to services are even more of an issue in Appalachia due to isolation. It seems like many of our elderly participants outlive their families or their families have moved away in search of better jobs.” Gullett agrees and sees, like Lindsey, that the issues facing CAP’s elderly participants are inter-related. Declining health and lack of transportation can lead to social isolation, which can in turn have an additional negative effect on health. “An important thing that we do is to just sit and listen,” said Gullett, who, like Lindsey, has served seniors in Appalachia through CAP’s services for nearly two decades. “But we work to build those relationships. Some seniors might not see anyone other than us more than once a month. We make them feel loved, which some may have lacked for years. And at the end of a long day, seeing the accomplishments we have helped them achieve and
the smiles on their faces is worth more than money.” Those interrelated issues continue when you consider that lack of transportation not only contributes to isolation, but impacts seniors when it comes to food security as well. Food insecurity is another serious issue that seniors face. Feeding America reports that more than 5 million seniors in the U.S. ages 60 and over struggle with In 2016, 2.8 million households with seniors age hunger. Many rural areas lack adequate 65 and older experienced food insecurity. or affordable food retailers. As a result, nearly 15 percent of rural households COLEMAN-JENSEN, A., RABBITT, M. P., GREGORY, C., & SINGH, A. (2017) are food insecure, meaning they lack reliable access to a sufficient quantity of affordable, nutritious food. Seniors and hunger is built on the foundation had no children and lived in an old can be hampered from reaching avail- of trust gained by developing mean- barn that had been converted into a able food, even in food pantries, by ingful relationships. dwelling after his childhood home had lack of transportation. caved in. It took years for a CAP team “I truly believe that you cannot assist to gain his trust because there were so The Kentucky Association of Food someone with their needs if you don’t many that had taken advantage of him Banks reports that Kentuckians ages 60 first form a relationship with them in the past because of his limited eduand over make up 20 percent of weekly by listening to their stories and being cation and some disabilities. food pantry visitors throughout the committed to being in their lives,” state, but could be increased if trans- Lindsey said. “The companionship He had always worked on his parents’ portation barriers did not exist. Addi- and relationships that are formed with farm and rarely went into the commutionally, nearly 43 percent of seniors our caseworkers is what makes CAP’s nity, so he was very shy and withdrawn in Central and Eastern Kentucky who work life-changing. Honestly, the when they met him, but his blue eyes are eligible to receive Supplemental most rewarding thing about serving and his smile could melt anyone’s heart. Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) our participants is the look on their As he allowed CAP to become more benefits do not participate in the faces when caseworkers arrive for visits active in his life, they learned that he program due to enrollment barriers, – huge smiles that show that they had once played the banjo, but at some making assistance with the enrollment know they have someone to visit with point, it was taken from the home. process an increasingly valuable ser- and talk to. Our participants consider vice. The United States Department of our caseworkers part of their family When CAP moved him into what he Agriculture’s Commodity Supplemen- and the amount of trust they have in called his “mansion here on earth,” the tal Food Program (CSFP) supports them is uplifting.” employees and volunteers gave him the many seniors by providing staples on first birthday party he had ever had. a monthly basis, but many seniors, just Gullett shared a story that demon- A volunteer purchased a banjo for him as with the SNAP program, either do strates just how elderly services truly and he entertained everyone at his not know how to navigate the enroll- does transform lives. One of her great- party. It was a truly memorable day. ment process or are resistant to accept- est memories is of an 85-year-old paring these benefits. ticipant who received a warm, safe, and “This is how we provide our services,” dry home for the first time in his life. Lindsey summarized. “It’s how we Lindsey knows that meeting the build those relationships, how we needs of elderly participants in He had been assisted by CAP’s Elderly go above and beyond. This is what Appalachia like healthcare, housing, Services Program for many years. He we do.” n SPRING / SUMMER 2018 | christianapp.org/MtSpiritGive
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compassion
RESPITE
A
for THE SOUL
visit to the Hills is like a visit to grandma’s house. Southern hospitality on display. Freshbaked brownies sitting on the counter. Chilled water and Cherry Ale-8 waiting in the refrigerator to refresh the body. But what Renee Thomas brings to the Hill family each month is respite for the soul. Mary is the primary caregiver for her husband of 49 years. Sherman has Parkinson’s and is in the early stages of dementia which require around the clock care. Renee comes twice a month (about six hours each visit) which allows Mary time to go shopping, to doctor appointments, or to get her hair done. When Mary was 10 years old, she ended up in the hospital and was so struck by the kindness of her nurse that she decided then and there that she would become a nurse too. “She was so good to me,” Mary said. “We were from a poor family. Twelve in all. Eleven of us grew up then on Daddy’s farm. We didn’t have much, but we had each other and we had good times. We made the best of what we had. The Lord blessed us and all 11 of us graduated from high school.” Mary took the life lessons of taking care of those you love and making the best of tough situations with her into her married life. 26
Mary’s husband Sherman worked as an educator in the prison system to help inmates get their high school diploma in order to improve their opportunities when they were released. He retired when Mary had a stroke in order to care for her. When she recovered, Mary could not return fully to her career as a licensed practical nurse, but her compassion for others led her to Christian Appalachian Project. Mary was providing in-home respite services to a local family whose mother, Barbara, had Alzheimer’s, but she knew that they needed more help. Mary saw a flyer on the bulletin board at the senior center about CAP’s In-Home Respite Program. She connected Barbara’s family to CAP.
give her full attention to him. After five years, Mary left Barbara fully in the care of Renee. Later, Mary would need more help with Sherman, and Renee has assisted the family with in-home respite care for the past three years. “It is a godsend,” Mary said, when she sees Renee coming up to the house. “I don’t know what I would do without her and the supplies CAP provides.”
The increased medical expenses have been a strain on the family’s limited resources, but Renee helps with necessities through CAP’s Operation Sharing Program. Through the program Renee is able to obtain hygiene Before Mary could finish her story, products, personal care items, and Sherman chimed in with the love household goods for the Hills. and gratitude of a life partner fully embracing the marriage vows “to have “I also find gifts for participants’ birthand to hold, from this day forward, for days, wedding anniversaries, and even better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, Christmas baskets,” she said. “Sherin sickness and in health, to love and man is unable to get out of the house to cherish, until death do us part.” to get Mary a gift or a card so this is one of the things I can do to help him “I couldn’t make it without Mary,” Sherman said. “I tell you the truth show appreciation. By helping SherMary, if it wasn’t for you, I’d be dead.” man do these things, it brings a smile to Mary when she returns home.” Barbara became CAP’s first in-home respite participant and Renee was Renee helps Sherman write thank you her caregiver. Mary and Renee got to notes to Mary and gifts to assure Mary know each other. When Sherman’s that he loves her and appreciates all health began to decline, Mary had to that she does for him.
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Scripture verses to him because he is no longer able to read it himself. “Doing what I do, I realize how hard it is not only for the caregiver, but for the loved one too,” Renee added. “When I arrive at my participants’ home I never know what’s beyond that door. God gives me the strength to face each day no matter what my participants are going through. I give God the praise. My reward is seeing their smiles when I arrive, the peace in their eyes knowing that help has arrived and they will find some rest if for only a little while.” Renee has been a certified nursing assistant for 22 years. She’s been with CAP almost 10 of those years. She has been providing in-home respite care to individuals with disabilities and seniors for nearly six years.
Renee Thomas (center) helped Sherman Hill present this pillow to his wife Mary as a thank you gift. “Renee comes twice a month and it gives me the opportunity to go to the grocery store,” Mary said. “I usually take a side trip to Goodwill. Or I’ll go to the beauty school to get my hair done. Or I go to my own doctor appointments. When you’re a caregiver, 24 hours a day, sometimes just to be able to get in the car and drive somewhere by yourself is a blessing.”
me a better caregiver,” Mary said. “Having the help allows me to keep him at home instead of a nursing home. When Renee is here, I don’t worry about him. I know that she will take care of him.”
Renee knows the value of treating each patient with dignity and helping them live life as fully as possible. She knew that reading Scripture was important “Renee listens to me when I’m down. to Sherman, so she helped secure for She encourages him and she encour- him the largest Large Print Bible she ages me. Giving me that break, makes could find. Now, she has to read the
All of their stories are interwoven: Barbara, Mary, Renee, and Sherman. “I see them all as family,” Renee concluded. “They treat me with respect, invite me into their homes. They show so much love that I can’t help but feel like part of the family. They open up to talk to me and I listen to what they say. “I feel like I’m at home in all the homes I serve,” she added. “My participants are good to me and thank me all the time for what I do to help them. They bake me brownies, give me cards, hugs, and kisses, etc. It’s not just a job, it’s who I am.” Which brings us back to brownies. Things that make family life sweet, warm, and comforting. Much like the warmth and comfort provided by caregivers like Renee. These are moments of true respite for the soul. n
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arts & culture
Pride OFplace
T
he music of Appalachian roots band Zoe Speaks is added. “We sang a lot in church and sang when we were firmly grounded in the mountains. Music was always working. I grew up with roots in the traditional music woven into the fabric of everyday life. of Appalachia.”
“At all of our family gatherings, any kind of work we were doing – breaking beans or picking peppers – there was always singing,” said Mitch Barrett, a folk singer born and raised in Eastern Kentucky. “In the stripping room when tobacco time came, it was just stories and singing.”
Both Barrett and Gover have strong opinions about what it means to be Appalachian. They agree that stereotypes about Appalachia sell. People are rewarded for pedaling the narrative that stories about oxycontin abuse and violence are the only stories worth telling about the region.
Carla Gover agreed. “It was similar for me. I’m from down in coal country, and my mother is from Clay County,” she
“One of my missions became to give a more accurate and dignified portrayal of what Appalachian music is beyond
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stereotypes,” said Gover who moved to Central Kentucky for college. “It was a time I really began to see my identity as an Appalachian. I had to examine some of the stereotypes that we all deal with, and the ways in which I had internalized a lot of the stigma. It made me have a determination to reclaim, with pride, my heritage, instead of feeling like it was a liability.” Barrett echoed that sentiment as a native Appalachian growing up under the weighty shadows of stereotypes. He recalled the first time he felt pride about being from the region when he attended summer camp at Christian Appalachian Project’s (CAP) Camp AJ. “We were just three kids in the holler,” he said. “With both parents working, the CAP camp came along and was a lifesaver for my parents. It really influenced my music, and it influenced my outlook upon the world. I could see a bit bigger picture. Father Beiting had already established this respect for Appalachian people, so CAP counselors showed us respect. They respected us for being Appalachian – we weren’t just poor kids to them.”
It’s a crazy world we live in Bad news all around Brothers and sisters If we’re going to make a difference We’re gonna have to stand our ground And be a drop in the bucket And a bucket in the pond And the pond fills the river And the river rushes on And every rivet swells a river Until the power can’t be stopped And what becomes a mighty ocean Started as a drop - Drop in the Bucket, Zoe Speaks
Both musicians are working to create a more accurate portrayal of Appalachia through their work in local schools. Barrett was traveling the country giving presentations and showcasing Appalachian folk music in places as far away as California, when he realized that there were children just like he had been that needed to know their own roots. “I realized that if there’s any place we need to educate people, children especially, about being from Appalachia, and instilling some pride about our culture, it would be back in Appalachia,” he said. Barrett contacted The Kentucky Arts Council and started to focus his work in Eastern Kentucky. “I base my teaching on instilling self-esteem in the students and helping them to be proud of being from Appalachia. I point out that these things you hear, the stereotypes that you hear, and these people who get famous for writing books and movies about it, that’s not your culture. There are drug problems and alcohol problems all over the world, not just in Appalachia. The things you should be proud of are our stories, our songs, our dances, and our family values.” (above) Both Gover and Barrett spend time in Appalachian schools teaching students about their musical heritage. Gover explained why teaching children to write their own music is also important to both of them. Some venues (facing page, from left to right) Members of the band Zoe “treat roots music as if it is static, or a museum piece. Speaks: Zoey Barrett, Arlo Barnette, Mitch Barrett, Owen My mother would make up her own verses, or change Reynolds, and Carla Gover. SPRING / SUMMER 2018 | christianapp.org/MtSpiritGive
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arts & culture the song if she wanted to. I think when you have ownership of something, you feel like it’s your own to change. I think it’s important to write in order to show that music is evolving. As music evolves it crosses boundaries. I believe that we have to be respectful in that process, but it should happen.”
a loving and creative relationship as band mates. They emphasize that divorced families, blended families, and step families can get along. Gover explains “The fact is that no matter how insular your community, you are going to know divorced people, and we just want to model that lots of kinds of families are okay.”
“It has to stay relevant,” Barrett added. “So these days The blending of their family has included the addition of you’ll hear hillbilly rap and stuff like that. It’s cool.” their daughter Zoey’s fiancée Arlo to the band. The two of them met at a music camp where Gover was teaching Zoe Speaks has also evolved over the years. Once married, and soon began dating. “It’s like the music’s coming full Barrett and Gover toured for a decade together and later circle,” Gover said. “The new generation has embraced pursued solo careers. After a reunion concert, they found it. Zoey’s been around the masters of Kentucky fiddling themselves making music together again. A fan told them, since she’s been born, so it’s kind of beautiful to see her “I love you and Mitch. I followed your solo careers and step into that and come on stage with us.” n loved you both, but there’s just something about when you two sing together.” They agree. Although divorce FIND OUT MORE is always difficult, they have worked together to create www.zoespeaksmusic.com
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heir lives have become stitched together as they join every Tuesday at Christian Appalachian Project’s Eagle Child and Family Development Center (CFDC) to sew quilts for donors, nursing homes, older members of the community, cancer patients, and hospitals. While they stitch, the women of “The Quilting Bees” laugh, cry, and celebrate with each other. Brinda Campbell, program manager of the CFDC, said that the process of quilting is as comforting to the women as the finished quilts are to the recipients. “A lot of ladies in the community have experienced loss of a loved one,” Campbell said. Joining the quilting group has given them friendship and someone to talk to. Some of the ladies in the group are alone most of the time. This gives them friendships, socialization, and something to look forward to each week.”
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GATHER TOGETHER
“Once upon a time, America was built on the real, organic front porch music of families.The front porch was the grand pulpit of hometowns and a gathering place for neighbors. The SongFarmers movement is an effort to rebuild that musical spirit apart from what we think is the music business.” Michael Johnathon, folksinger and host of the WoodSongs Old-Time Radio Hour
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t had been an unusually cold spring in Kentucky, but patrons found plenty of warmth when they entered the Lexington Public Library. Before they reach the inner doors, sounds of music and laughter enticed them towards the community room. Inside, like a hidden treasure, patrons discovered the local chapter of SongFarmers which is dedicated to sharing “front porch roots music” wherever folks decide to gather. There are over 40 SongFarmers chapters across the country where musicians come together to share stories and songs at community jams. SongFarmers is an offshoot of the wildly popular WoodSongs Old-Time Radio Hour, a worldwide, multimedia celebration of grassroots music. SongFarmers seeks to bring roots music from the broadcast arena into the classroom. After performers are featured on WoodSongs, teachers create lesson plans that can be downloaded from the website for other teachers to use in their own classrooms. In the archive, there are lessons featuring Bela Fleck and banjo music, as well as the Preservation Jazz Band and New Orleans-style jazz. Attendees at a national gathering for SongFarmers had such a great time that they asked to start local groups.
Many different instruments are played at SongFarmers jams Michael Johnathon, folksinger and host of the WoodSongs such as harmonicas, tambourines, and even ukuleles. Old-Time Radio Hour, explained why SongFarmers is so SPRING / SUMMER 2018 | christianapp.org/MtSpiritGive
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Music is a great way for everybody to come to the table and find common Ground. Bryan Klausing, SongFarmers Chapter Leader meaningful. “Once upon a time, America was built on the real, organic front porch music of families. The front porch was the grand pulpit of hometowns and a gathering place for neighbors,” he said. “The SongFarmers movement is an effort to rebuild that musical spirit apart from what we think is the music business. Music was never intended to sell anything. It’s heart, spirit, passion. It’s friends and families and guitars and banjos. It’s love. It’s what music is really for.” Tracey Louise Miller started a chapter in Crab Orchard, Kentucky after hearing about them at a WoodSongs taping. “It builds community,” Miller said. “It lets young people have a chance to share their talents in a comfortable setting. They don’t have to worry about peer pressure too much, they just come along and play. They get to know who we are and we share in the history of music.” “There is a long history of people gathering on front porches and at picnics in the parks to play music,” said Bryan Klausing, a SongFarmers chapter leader. “We have a rich history of that in the Appalachian Mountains with music that came from the region. In this digital age, we are getting inundated with so much media. This is an opportunity to reconnect with one another. There is just something about having a wooden instrument and being in a room full of other musicians that you just can’t get from trying to learn music through a YouTube clip.” The strategy is working. One chapter that exemplifies the SongFarmer community is Tellico Plains, Tennessee, population 941. It sits on the edge of the Appalachian Mountain Range. “Tellico Plains is a really small community and they average between 50 and 100 people coming out for SongFarmers,” Klausing said. “We’ve been really pleased with how quickly it has grown and really addresses the need and want for that kind of thing. Music is a great way for everybody to come to the table and find common ground.” n FIND OUT MORE www.songfarmers.org 34
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