By Lorrie Ross
Staff Writer
Missions. The word means various things to different people. For Clay County’s Hinton Center, missions apply to groups of people who travel from other states to serve Clay County and the surrounding area. Even Hinton Center’s mission statement mentions missions. “Inspired by Jesus Christ, Hinton Center serves individuals, congregations, and rural communities through retreat ministries, educational opportunities and mission outreach.”
During a ten week period in the summer of 2022, at least 600 volunteers arrived at the Clay County retreat center for mission work. From the end of May through August 4, teams of church members came from Georgia, South Carolina, Virginia, Kentucky, Wisconsin, Florida, Kansas, Indiana and even other parts of North Carolina.
In a tradition which has been going on for about 60 years, much of the mission team work was on local homes. According to Hinton’s Director of Program Ministries, Reverend Dawn Martin, mission teams worked on 34 homes with 150 jobs this summer. These included nine accessibility ramps, 13 decks, 15 sets of stairs and 12 gutter improvements. “We gave away more than 100 smoke alarms, carbon monoxide detectors, fire extinguishers and blankets,” Martin said. “They also completed yard work, painting and staining, cleaning porches, completing safe and healthy homes checklists and more.”
A letter dated August 23, 2022 from a local homeowner expressed the gratitude felt by many.
Hinton Center staff and volunteers,
I want to express my sincere appreciation for your renovation work on my home in Hayesville. Your hard work and loving attention to repairing my porches and rails, pressure washing my home and driveways, replacing window screens, painting and installing new gutters was very much needed. This was all work I could not have done myself without your willingness to help and your outpouring of Christian love. My special thanks to the youth who were so willing to give their time and effort to this work on my home. It was a beautiful and needed job well done. With love and many thanks. May God bless. Dave W.
Young people played a part in much of the work. Along with several college students who served on Hinton’s summer staff, more than half of those involved in summer mission work were young people aged 12 and older. Several were younger than 12. Many youth learned special lessons from the opportunity to serve.
Reverend Martin explained, “Our theme was “You Belong” every person is important and we all have a role we can play in the community. We spent a lot of time talking about our perspectives and how we don’t always know the entirety of what someone else may be going through.”
A couple of the young men reflected about their experience. “I learned that what you see on the outside doesn’t completely reflect a person’s story,” one said.
Another youth participant named Spencer said, “I learned that you can show God through whatever you are doing. I also learned that there are so many opportunities to help people around our church as well.”
Martin continued. “Participants also experienced our rural poverty simulation, which we created to highlight some of the issues of rural poverty. While many struggles of those who live in poverty translate from rural to urban, many do not, such as transportation and travel time or distance,” she said. “Did you know that your zip code can be a better predictor of your health than even genetics? We also focus on the assets of a rural community, such as the interconnectedness and culture.”
Summer guests also enjoy Appalachian Culture Night, which Martin said is a staple at Hinton during missions. This summer included:
• Musician Lee Knight
• Beekeeper Jonathan Hargus
• The Possum Pack, dancing and music
• T-Claw from the John C Campbell Folk School, dancing and music
• A visit to the Cherokee Homestead Exhibit
• Weekly trips to Chinquapins for ice cream
Reverend Martin ended, “We know that the work we do for our neighbors not only impacts their lives, but our community as a whole. Healthier homes mean a healthier community. We not only want to see our community strengthen, but our hope is that volunteers who come to Hinton Center take a piece of Hinton home with them. Maybe it’s a renewed sense of helping others, a better understanding of what it might be like to walk in someone else’s shoes, or a new skill.”
Hinton Center is already booking mission teams for 2023 with the theme “Mission Re-framed.” Go to https://www.hintoncenter.org/ministries/mission-outreach-and-service/ or call (828) 389-8336. Hinton Center is at 2330 Hinton Center Road in Hayesville.