Issuu

July-August 1985

The Mountain Spirit The M agazine of the C hristian Appalachian Project

Contents From O ur President

Features: D oes A nyone K now W here the Love o f G od G o e s? .............. 4 W h at’s C ookin ’ in Harlan County? ........................................ 16 T he H ope o f a N a tio n .....................................................................22

Departments:

N ew s o f Our N e ig h b o r s ....................................................................8 L e tte r s ................................................................................................... 12 A Thought from the Editor .......................................................... 13 T he C A P C lo se u p ..............................................................................14 A round the P r o je c t........................................................................... 19

The Mountain Spirit T h e M ag azin e of the C h ristia n A p p alach ian P roject Ju ly -A u g u st 1985 V olum e IV , N o. 3 E d ito r - in - C h ie f .................................................... Rev. R alp h Beiting ^ ' t o r ......................................................................................... M a rg aret G abriel Associate E d i t o r .................................................. J . R an d o lp h J o rd a n A dvisory B o a r d .................... M ike M cL aughlin , Leslie B. L arsen J a c k M o rris, Bill Begley C irculation M a n a g e r .................................................................... T eresa R ichey G raphics C o o rd in a to r..............................................D ebbie J . W ilson T ypesetting ..................................................................... T eresa R ichey The Mountain Spiritis published six tim es a year. T h e an n u al subscription price is $5.00. S ubscriptions and o th er cor respondence should be sent to The Mountain Spirit, C h ristian A ppalachian Project, 322 C rab O rch ard R oad , L ancaster K en tucky 40446. C opyright 1985, T he C hristian A ppalachian Project, Inc. All rights reserved. M em ber, C atholic Press Association. T he C hristian A ppalachian Project is a non-profit C h ristian ser vice organization operating th roughout E astern K entucky. T he P roject operates on the philosophy th at “ helping people help them selves is the best approach to A ppalach ian poverty.

‘Behind every good man is a great woman,” is a saying that’s becoming increasingly popular these days. In this issue of ’Mountain Spirit, we’ll introduce to you some great women both past and present who have touched the hearts and lives of scores of people with their love and concern. On page 4, you’ll read about Ora Slone, a woman whose life has been filled with struggle and hardship but still she finds the strength to continue living. On page 16, you’ll find a story about Garrard County’s own Carry Nation—the champion of our nation’s prohibition movement. Also in this issue, on page 20, is a story that’s bound to tempt your tastebuds; it’s time for the Poke Sallet Festival in Harlan County, Kentucky. On the COVER, Ora Slone pauses to reflect on the challenges that face her (photo by Randolph Jordan). On the BACK COVER, a Jackson County couple plants peppers (photo by Keith Gilbertson). BELOW, Carry Nation leads a prohibition rally in up-state New York (ca. 1910).

From Our President

The other morning I received a call to visit Our Lady of the Way Hospital in Martin, Ky. A little two year-old girl was there for treatment of convulsions brought on by a bee sting. I knew little Rachel because she attends the pre-school class in our Mountain Christian Academy. As I visited with her and in the days since her discharge from the hospital, I have wondered what will be her future in the Appalachia of today. How will she grow up; how will she function as a woman in Ap palachia? It isn’t only a question of what Appalachia will do to her, there is also the mystery of what she will do to Appalachia. As I talk to her older compatriots in high school, the segment that seems to be the best endowed academically and socially wants to leave and go elsewhere to find a career, get married and raise a fami ly. If that happens, the role and the lot of women in Appalachia, will become less exciting, have fewer alternatives and less hope. But even if she stays, will she stay to become some man’s “ Old Lady” or “ His Woman” ? Will she in turn train her children that the man is the boss always and the woman is to be his servant? For generations now, mothers have been mainly responsi ble for the male machismo attitude so prevalent in Appalachia. They have brought up and trained their children. They have passed on and rarely challenged the age old role models. The young girl growing up in Ap palachia today undergoes more pressure, and has a lesser chance of achieving the happiness she deserves than her sisters outside of Ap palachia. In my opinion, the greatest single factor at work today offering hope and direction to the young women and the mothers of Appalachia are other women. Many July-A ugust 1985

Fr. B e itin g at the M o u n ta in C h ristia n A cad em y in M a rtin .

of these women must come from outside the Appalachian area. Historically, women from the outside have been a blessing to the women (and all others) in Ap palachia. As early as 1902, May Stone and Katherine Pettie, under the auspices of the Kentucky Federation of Women’s Clubs, came to Hindman in Knott County to found the first rural settlement school in America. They were followed a few years later by Alice Lloyd and June Buchanan who founded the school at Pippa Passes (now Alice Lloyd College). Mary Breckenridge came to Leslie County and at Hyden started the frontier nursing service. They and other women like them brought to Ap palachia a vision and a grace that is impossible to over estimate. In Appalachia today we stand in great need of these “ Outside Ladies” to come to our land and make it their home, sharing with us a vision that will not merely enrich the women, but the whole family of Appalachia. They can and have worked with the women of the area to create a fuller vision of what life is all about and the dignity that each person must have.

There is an element present today in Appalachia that seeks not merely the enrichment of women but the punishment of men, whom they view as responsible for the low esteem of women. If this movement continues and succeeds in directing the future we shall have armed camps that pit men and women against each other on every level. What we need are dedicated peo ple who can restore the age old biblical ideal that while men and women are different and have been blessed by God with different gifts, they are to be partners who love and respect one another and see each others’ gifts incomplete unless they are tempered by and joined to the gifts of the other. The role of women is changing rapidly in Appalachia. What it will be at the turn of the century is anyone’s guess. I can only hope that dedicated women from outside the area will assist those here in bringing about the view of Christ and of God that it is not good for a man or woman to be alone (doing their own thing). They must become one in heart and mind so that the human family may find the love and peace it seeks and deserves. 3

Does anyone know where the love of God goes? story an d photos by R a n d o lp h J o rd a n

The Mountain Spirit

“When a coal miner goes o ff to work, his wife never knows if he’ll be cornin’ back,” said a woman in Topmost. When a mine whistle blasts over the hollows o f Kentucky, there is a moment o f cold fear fo r every family, followed by hours or even days o f waiting fo r the news. I remember when the whistle blew fo r my next door neighbor when I was in high school in West Virginia. When I carried the morning paper, I would see the men go out at about five thirty in yellow vans, their helmets already donned, their faces ringed with black from the day before. Why bother to clean up until Saturday? And even then would it ever come off? And one day, when the whistle blew over Island Creek No. 9, the good Christian father o f ten did not return. Here at Topmost, Robert Slone did not return. His wife, Ora, was expecting their tenth child . . . . The Mountain Spirit March-April 1982 Ora Slone does not remember that day. She can only relate what friends have told her. “ That evenin’,” she strains to recall, “ one of the kids, Kenny Ray I believe it was, went up the road to one of the neighbors’ house. Somebody called up there . . . he come a runnin’ and said somethin’s happened up at the mines! (After that) I don’t know what happened.” At that point Ora knows that she was taken by friends to Our Lady of the Way Hospital in nearby Martin, Kentucky, for treatment of shock. The news of “ the happenin’ at the mine” was not only a shock to Ora but to the child within her as well; she was nearing the end of her tenth pregnancy. The doctors wanted Ora to stay at the hospital overnight, but she in sisted that she return to her Beaver Creek home. For Ora Slone, the long wait for news from the Topmost mine had begun. At approximately 2:00 a.m. on the morning of December 8, 1981, the news came; all eight men involved in the blast had been found . . . dead. Among them was Robert Slone — the man that Ora had promised to love and cherish in a simple ceremony twenty-one years earlier in the home of a local preacher. Ora Slone’s life had changed forever. Born and raised in Knott County, Kentucky, Ora Johnson married the young man with whom she had fallen in love during those late teenage years. It wasn’t until her twentieth year that she married the lucky fellow — a young Knott County man by the name of Robert Slone. Like so many men throughout Appalachia, young Robert decid ed to work in the mines. Sure there was danger, but the money was good and he would be able to provide a good living for the family that he and Ora would have. Eventually his hard work and July-A ugust 1985

determination to be a good provider would enable him to become a supervisor of a mining operation in Wheelwright, Kentucky. Life was being good to him. While Robert worked long and hard in the depths of the earth, Ora did her share by taking care of the children. It wasn’t long after their mar riage that Ora conceived their first child. Born in 1962, they christened their baby girl, Josephine. Josey — as they would later call her — was only the first in a long line of children to come into the world as a result of the love between Robert and Ora Slone. Twenty-one years later, the Slones would have seven children. Two other children would have died in childbirth. Robert had worked at the mining business long enough and well enough in Wheelwright to make a name for himself. His dream, however, was to eventually work closer to his home and family over in the Beaver Creek area. The hour long drive back and forth between Beaver and Wheelwright wore heavily on his work day. It also cut down on the amount of time that he spent with the family that he so desperately loved. In November 1981, Robert heard rumors of a mining operation that was to start up in nearby Topmost — only three miles from his home in Beaver. These new mines were being put in by a man named Orville Adkins. Perhaps Robert could supervise one of the opera tions for Adkins. Could this be the first step in Robert having his own mining operation — one close to home? Things were beginning to look pretty good. Perhaps he could even get some of his relatives to work in his operation. He already had cousins working for the Adkins operation; Ora’s brother was working there, also. Maybe by Christmas, it would be possible. Ora, on the other hand was busy at home. Not only did she have seven children to care for but she was struggling with illness during this, her tenth pregnancy. Life in her home in the hollow wasn’t the best it had ever been but Robert was closer to home now. He would be home from the mines earlier everyday. The man she loved would be with her. Nowhere is the miracle of the creation of life and the mystery of its end more evident than with that time in the life of the Slone family. On the afternoon of December 7, 1981, Robert Slone died; on December 16, just nine days after the death of his father, young Robbie Slone was born. Ora recalls the struggle of bringing the infant into the world and the effects of the struggle on Rob bie. “ He was blue and black all over, . . . black around the eyes,” her voice fading as she stares down at the youngster now asleep on the couch. Three and a half years have passed since that 5

The vigil at the Topmost mine — December 1981.

Ora Slone

cold December when Ora Slone’s life changed forever. She has been forced to start anew — to pick up the pieces and continue living. The suffer ings of Ora Slone, however, did not stop with the death of her husband. How does a woman face the death of a man with whom she is deeply in love and at the same time try to show strength as she continues to live? This would be a time when her children would need her most of all. It’s evident as she tells of the pain in having to say to their two year old, Peggy, “ Daddy’s not coming home tonight.”

“ He won’t even talk about it,” says Ora. “ A lot of people tell me that I should get him help . . . that it would help to let him get it out in the open. He likes to go to his uncle’s — his daddy’s brother. He likes to spend time there. It’s a workin’ on him, you can tell, but he don’t want to talk about it.”

“ She was a fool over her daddy,” Ora remembers as the tears stream gently down her cheeks. What can you tell a two year old child? “ It liked to kill her,” she continues. “ She’d sit up in her bed every night and watch the stars . . . crying for ‘Daddy.’ It was the hardest thing I had to do, . . . telling her that her daddy’s gone. It was pitiful!” Only now is little Peggy starting to climb out of her depression. She’s starting to understand that “ Daddy’s not coming home tonight.” On that day when the mine at Topmost claimed eight lives, it was Kenny Slone, Ora and Robert’s ten year old son, that first ran into the house to tell his Momma that “ somethin’s happened at the mine.” Kenny, in many regards, went into the mines with his father. For Kenny, there is a victory that must be won. “ He can’t read yet,” explains Ora, “ so he says that when he is old enough, he’ll go to work in the mines.” She prays that things will change. Kenny’s older brother, Daniel, is dealing with their father’s death in quite a different manner. 6

The hardships of the Slone family are not limited to the happenings at the Topmost mine or its aftermath. In June of 1982, the family moved to a house in Brinkley, Kentucky, about fifteen miles from their original home on Beaver Creek. The following September, seven year old Tricia Slone was boarding the school bus in front of their home. As Ora stood on the front porch watching, a truck loaded with gravel careened wildly as it headed for the bus. What followed was, through the grace of God, a mild accident. Young Tricia suffered a broken leg while the other children aboard the bus escaped unharmed. What is it about Ora Slone and the dozens of women like her that gives them the power to continue living when life seems to offer them nothing but hopelessness and despair? As one listens to the words and sim ple wisdom of Ora Slone, the mystery begins to disappear. She’s a thin woman. Her face reveals a life of struggle and pain. She admits to looking older than her years. “ I’m forty-three,” she says, “ but I look like I’m fifty!” One can’t help but wonder, with all that she has been through these past few years, why she doesn’t look older. She’s seen “ dogooders” and charitable sources come in and go out of her life since Robert’s death, but she knows that people care for her and somehow this gives The M ountain Spirit

her strength to continue living. “ I guess I get my strength from the Lord,” she admits. For Ora, the Lord has shown his concern for her through the people who touch her life. People like her “ baby brother.” “ He’s more like a father to that one right there,” she remarks as she motions to Rob bie still asleep on the living room couch. Robert’s family has also helped as Ora and the children at tempt to live without a husband and father. The difficulty in having eight children in the house is not in trying to raise them by yourself but in having to be a dual-parent figure — trying to give the children the love of both a mother and a father. “ Taking care of eight kids is easy,” ac cording to Ora, “ but there are times when they need their father. The boys gets pretty rowdy sometimes . . . they need a big brother to take them to ballgames and this and that.” Ora knows, however, that sometimes she must be the one who fills the space left empty by the death of her hus band. “ I went out the other day,” she explains, “ and bought him (one of her sons) a fishin’ pole; my brother’s already took them once over to the dam.” Like alot of more traditional Appalachian women, Ora Slone never learned to drive a car. She had always depended on Robert to take care of the family transportation needs. At the present time, none of the children can drive either. As a result the family has to depend on the generosity of friends, neighbors and the local Hindman taxi service. Keeping in the tradition, Ora will wait un

til the oldest son can get his driver’s license before they think about getting a family car. The death of Robert Slone did not only leave a family of eight children without a father; it also left a woman without a husband. “ There isn’t a day goes by that I don’t think of him,” admits Ora. Not only is there the large painting that hangs over the couch in the living room to remember him by, but there is a memory in everthing that she does. He is still very much a part of her life; it’s very difficult to forget a person with whom you are in love — no matter how many days separate you. “ Yeah, it’s tough,” admits Ora, “ but you can live. You have to cause you ain’t got no other choice.” A few years ago, there was a popular song that asked, “ Does anyone know where the love of God goes when the gayles of November come early?” For Ora Slone, the storms of life have arrived and she has weathered them well. It would be foolish to think, however, that they have not left their mark on her life, their lines on her face. Three and a half years have passed since that December when Ora Slone’s life changed forever. She has been forced to start anew — to pick up the pieces and continue living. Of course there isn’t a day that goes by that she doesn’t think about Robert and the life that they knew together up on Beaver Creek, but those days are gone. She knows now that she must live one day at a time and continue to care for the children that enable her love for her husband to live on. c a p.

T h e S lon e fa m ily g ravesite that o verlook s the T o p m o st m in e.

SLONE M jt M i E S

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Letters

We had the privilege to visit CAP headquarters in Lancaster last spring (1984) and meet your editor, Margaret Gabriel, who is charming! Guy Adams graciously took us on a tour of the whole operation and we were very impressed. It was a joy to participate in the Christmas Basket Program this past Christmas. We send you love and prayers for your wonderful work. The Moun tain Spirit is great! Mr. & Mrs. Richard L. Hess Las Vegas, N V

For those o f you who were looking forward to reading stories written by Margaret Gabriel, our editor, we regret to report to you that she was involved in a serious automobile ac cident on the morning o f May 2, 1985, while en route to her home in Garrard County, Kentucky. Peggy, as she is affectionately known by her co-workers, was listed in critical condition fo r the first few days following the mishap. It is by the grace o f God, however, that at this writing we are happy to report to you that she is well on the way to recovery. For those o f you who know Peggy personally, we, along with her family, thank you fo r the prayers and support that have been offered. Please continue to pray fo r Peggy as she continues her con valescence. — Ed.

I am happy to be able to help peo ple in our country, as well as any other place in the world. Through the dedication of the people of your organization, you are making this possible. Ed Greenburg Honolulu, H I 8

A few years ago we had occasion to visit a dear friend of ours. She is a Franciscan Nun, who spent time working with very poor people here in a small town in Illinois. In this age of ‘keeping up with the Joneses’ it was so edifying to see how they trusted in God and turned to Him, thanking Him for what they had. The sister helped them operate a GIANT thriftshop. Industry was down and the Church was just a small wooden building. I, too, am grateful for whatever we have. The poor are really God’s people. Benita Wilczynski Chicago, IL

I truly enjoy reading your magazine The Mountain Spirit and learning about how the people over there live, and all the good works that are being done. I also enjoy the extra stories that are printed. It’s hard to find good reading material that includes so much real to goodness life matters. I would like to have access to your library! Martha Marolt Del Norte, CO

I so enjoy The Mountain Spirit — each one is like a visit home to Pike Co., Ky., where I was born and grew up. The good folks around Lancaster of whom you write are much like my home folk. Your pic tures and stories of the poor there are so like my childhood, you could easily be speaking of me. You and your crew do a great job there in ‘my hills.’ May God con tinue to bless you is my prayer. Nevelyn S. Stark Chesapeake, VA

I like the name and stories of your quite unusual little magazine. Very informative and the good work you are doing is commendable. Keep it up and may God bless you. I read with interest Kentucky Street Preacher in the February issue of Catholic Digest, and was very proud to know he was ‘our’ Father Beiting of The Mountain Spirit! Frances Orendorff York, PA

I like The Mountain Spirit very much, except it tends to make me somewhat homesick, since I am from Louisville, Kentucky, and have friends all over the state. On Thanksgiving day I used to always go to John Lear’s turkey shoots. Eugene E. Hettiger Columbus, NM I have long had a great concern for the plight of the Appalachian citizens, and have admired the ministries of CAP. The Mountain Spirit gives faces and personalities to an otherwise anonymous group of people, and I appreciate the chance to get to know some of the folks a little better. Keep up the good work, and may God continue to bless you all. Donald K. Hartsuff Redford, M I

Letters to the editor are welcome.

They should not exceed 150 words in length, and we reserve the right to edit them fo r space. Address letters to The Mountain Spirit, Christian Appalachian Project, 322 Crab Orchard Road, Lancaster, Kentucky 40446. The Mountain Spirit

What’s Cookin’ in Harlan County?

by Debbie Fraley Wilson

Photos courtesy of Harlan County Residents

July-A ugust 1985

D o n ’t pull up those wild green weeds by your fence, in your pasture or down by that strip mine road. It could be Poke! Poke is such an important plant that you’ll notice that references to it in this article contain a capital “ P .” For all you city dwellers, Poke is a wild green weed that resembles mustard greens and grows best in disturbed ground. When cooked, it looks like spinach and has a turnip green tang. Legend has it that it cures all kinds of illnesses, when in fact it is rich in vitamins A and C, and riboflavin. During the Depression of the 1930’s, Poke was popular in Eastern Kentucky because the plants were plentiful and grew wild in the mountains. To day people eat Poke, not because they have to, but because they like it. Most admit, however, that its taste takes some getting used to. It’s mighty fine eating if you cook it right. Only the young tender leaves should be cooked, as the berries are highly poisonous when purple and the roots are toxic. 9

Poke has had recipes made for it, songs written about it, a warden appointed to protect it and there is even a festival honoring this magnificent weed. The fame of Poke has become legend. That is one of the reasons why a young businessman by the name of Drew Smith decided to hold a festival in its honor in 1955. Harlan County, Kentucky, will be continuing the 30 year tradition that Mr. Smith started with a celebration that has blossom ed into a week long event beginning the 22nd of June. The festival was originally held at Stone Moun tain Park on Cranks Creek. It was to welcome in spring and to honor one food—Poke Sallet. Large crowds attended the event to enjoy the festivities and to hear their favorite politicians speak. There have been governors, senators and even con gressmen attending as guest speakers. The festival moved across Pine Mountain to the Pine Mountain Settlement School where it was held last year when it was moved to the court house lawn in Harlan. The festival is considered the Harlan County homecoming. Mountain mythology states that Poke eatin’ day is the occa sion of the greatest gathering of mountain folk, with the exception of an ol’ fashioned hangin’. Because Poke is communal property, each year a Poke Warden is elected according to due process of the law; in other words, Gladys Hoskins (head of the Harlan Chamber of Commerce) chooses a person who she recognizes as someone who can take on such a big responsibility and tells them that they are elected. Their responsibilities? They know that people all over love the stuff. Rumor has it that people come in and get Harlan’s Poke and bootleg it to other counties. So the Warden has to make sure that there is enough left for the festival by stopping the bootlegging. Their authority lies not in the written law, but is limited to shaming the culprits. A. A. Dale is serving as Chief Poke Warden this year, and you’ll find him overseeing the picking of the Poke in preparation for the festival. Nearly 500 pounds of the celebrated weed are stemmed, washed and cooked in a certain way as to guarantee maximum flavor and minimum risk. First, the fresh Poke leaves are boiled in water for an hour to rid them of toxins. Then it is drained and returned to the pot, adding fatback grease and salt. Finally, the Poke is boiled in the seasoning for another hour. (An alternate preparation is to fry the first-boiled Poke in a skillet with grease and onions.) Alongside the finished Poke dish, it is imperative to serve white cornmeal cornbread, the rendered fatback slices, a whole Eastern Ken tucky green onion the size of a plum, a hardboiled egg and wash it all down with a glass of ice 10

A w a itin g the d elic io u s P o k e Sallet d in n er.

cold buttermilk. This traditional meal will be serv ed this year on Saturday, June 29. It’s the most important day of the festival and will be held in downtown Harlan. For those of you who just can’t swallow this fantastic green weed, the festival offers a variety of other foods to tempt the palate. Food stands featuring homemade candies and cakes (including the other mountain speciality, Apple Stack Cake), chips and soft drinks, and of course the standard hot dogs and hamburgers are located at various points around the courthouse. Schedule of Events

This year’s festival begins on Saturday, June 22, with a sidewalk arts and crafts show. Beginning at 9:00 a.m. and continuing until 3:00 p.m. numerous handmade items will be available for sale, and several local artists will be displaying their work. On Monday, June 24, the Harlan Countian of the Year Dinner will be held at the Harlan Baptist Church, where the outstanding citizen of the year will be recognized. Then on Tuesday, June 25, the Mountain Heritage Evening will be held at the Harlan Public Library at 7:30 p.m. The lives of Harlan Countians from the early days of settlement through the present will be adThe Mountain Spirit

dressed. Children will have a time alloted just for them on Wednesday, June 26, with lots of games and contests. This will be held at the courthouse square between 9:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. At 5:00 p.m. on Thursday, June 27, the pet show will be held at the square. Bring your favorite pet and join in the fun. A Joyful Noise will be heard com ing from the square on Friday, June 28, from 4:00 p.m. through 9:00 p.m. This is one of the largest attended events of the week long festival, with several talented gospel singers performing for the public. What we’ve all been waiting for is happen ing on Saturday, June 29, and that’s Poke eatin’ day! This fun-filled day begins at 9:00 a.m. on the square with a mini-marathon, Run fo r the Hills, that extends over 3.1 miles. Then you can sit down to a delightful feast, starring the main course— Poke Sallet! There will also be Poke cooking con tests held to see which cook has the best recipe. Besides all the eating, there will be tobacco spit ting contests, clowns, and an antique car parade. Throughout the day you can hear some of your favorite politicians speak. This year’s invited guest speaker is Governor Martha Layne Collins. Perhaps the highlight of the festival is a sing off between two of the most popular singers there— Harlan County Attorney William Murphy Howard against Junior Deaton. Mr. Howard said he was “ hangin’ back and listenin’ to Drew Smith and some others talkin’ about the planned festival and when they said they needed a new song to pro mote the Poke Sallet Days, I volunteered my ser vices.” As a result, the country song containing catchy little phrases about “ Poke Sallet down in the valley, Poke up in the hills,” has become a tradition at the festival. Each year he adds a new verse, and he was the unrivaled success for 28 years until Mr. Junior Deaton challenged him with a new rock-a-billy song in 1983.

f BO O GPOIEKEW OSRA KL LINEGT JR.'S V

W AV . . .

Overcast with political overtones, Howard fumes, “ Worst of all, Deaton’s a Democrat!” He also calls him “ a young upstart” suspected of being “ shipped in from Chicago in the darkness of the night.” July-A ugust 1985

Q.f /r

C lo ck w ise from top left: J u n io r D ea to n p la y in g h is P o k e Sallet B oogie; H a rla n C o. A tto rn ey M u rp h H ow ard ; in 1978 form er G overn or J u lia n C arrol arrives at the festiv a l; and A rthur J o h n so n p la y s the d u lcim er.

On the other hand, Mr. Deaton doesn’t think that “ Murph Howard will ever want to sing again after this year.” He plans to out perform Howard with his “ Poke Sallet Boogie workin’ Junior’s Way.” These two friendly competitors are backed by the local group, “ The Harlan County Ramblers.” After the second go ’round last year, the sing-off ended in a tie, but they both expect to walk off with the title this year. Murph Howard had 500 records of his song published. When asked how many he has sold, he laughed, “ about 35.” Junior Deaton also sent The Mountain Spirit a tape of his song, and it looks like this author is going to have to go to the homecoming (Harlan being her birthplace) and judge the live contest for herself. Harlan County would like to welcome any ar tists, craftsmen, poets, musicians, or exhibitors to display their wares during the festival. For more information on events and entering, contact the Harlan County Chamber of Commerce at (606) 573-4717 and Gladys Hoskins will be glad to give you any information available. They also wish to invite you to dress up in your Sunday best, bring your family and help them welcome in their 30th annual Poke Sallet Festival! CAP. 11

Addie Ledford

Kinnaird Overstreet

Ida Abney

Ora Slone

Judy Harrison

Minerva Gibson

Mary Guinn

The Mountain Spirit

A Thought from the E ditor On the preceding page, we have taken the op portunity to remember the many Appalachian women who have been so kind in allowing us to tell their stories. Among these great women is Addie Ledford who was the first o f our “honoraries” to appear in The Mountain Spirit, (see May-June 1982). Addie and her husband, C. B. Ledford, had been married 78 years when we told their story. C. B. passed away the following year, but Addie is still the surviving matriarch o f the Eastern Kentucky clan. A t 100 years o f age, she now resides in a Garrard County nursing home. In our January-February 1983 issue, Ida McKinney Abney recalled those days o f the one room schoolhouse. The retired school teacher from Rockcastle County, Kentucky, spent nearly fifty years sharing her gift o f teaching with the children o f Appalachia. In this issue, we continue sharing the stories o f the joys and sorrows o f Appalachian women as we look at the lives o f Ora Slone and Carry Nation. Our thanks to these and all o f the gracious ladies who have allowed us to be a part o f their lives. —Ed. A s I look back over the past almost eight years and reflect on the theme of this issue a thought oc curs to me. Many of the customs that are iden tified with Appalachia are continued and kept strong by women of the area. In examining this reality a little further it seems that it is older women who b ear the m ain re s p o n sibility—however unconciously—for maintaining those traditions. The situation makes one wonder what will hap pen to those cultural traits if the younger women place value on other things. When one isolates the cultural trait that is most important in the Ap palachian area, it would have to be strong family ties. Family ties are one thing that have remained important to Appalachian women. While it seems tragic to see food, music and storytelling tradi tions go by the wayside, how much more tragic would it be to sacrifice the family ties that are the backbone of the culture. How much more would be lost? There are elements of modern society that most people agree are responsible for change in Ap palachia. Through television, newspapers and other means of communication, it is increasingly easier to influence the mountains with what is go ing on in more sophisticated places. While the no tion of “ women’s liberation” has not exactly taken root and grown in the mountains, women July-A ugust 1985

are becoming aware of an increase in oppor tunities. Education and job training are seen as more important parts of life. For many genera tions women married and started their families when they were eighteen years old or even younger. Although early marriage is still seen in many cases, it is no longer normally expected for young women. Throughout the nation, the potential of women has been recognized—and put to good use—over the last generation. As is the case for many areas of life, Appalachia is now beginning to catch up. Local women are beginning to catch up; on the one hand, they are realizing their dreams, on the other they are meeting the demands of life. In do ing both, women are rising to the challenges of the latter part of the 20th century, still preserving the importance of family loyalty and other mainstays of the Appalachian culture. The continuation of old programs and the beginning of several new programs thrusts CAP into the forefront of organizations serving the needs of young women in order to help them realize their potential and take on necessary responsibilities. Through the teenage girls’ club many young ladies have learned about the world outside of the Appalachian mountains. The volunteers who have been sponsors for the club are from many dif ferent parts of the United States. This type of con tact is very broadening for the girls, even if they choose never to leave the mountains. Along with the contact they have with each other and the sponsors, the girls are also exposed to the oppor tunités that are open to them. Many young women in Appalachia either don’t know how to attain their goals, or don’t know what is available to them. CAP’s teenage girls’ club points out these opportunities or teaches that goals can be reached. Each of the programs designed for women—the club, the mutual care home, spouse abuse shelters—will strengthen the overall quality of family life and make Appalachian women aware of what is available to them just for the reaching. The continuation of the programs and the beginning of others, will effect hundreds of families now in the region and have the potential of affecting many more families in the future. All over the country, women are seen as the lifeblood of the family. This is especially true in Ap palachia. By helping women to become stronger, CAP is taking strong, firm steps toward improv ing the quality of life in its counties. —MMG 13

The C A P Closeup

the Miracle of CAP by the C A P N ew s Service

Photos by Gabriel W hen someone speaks of miracles, most people immediately think about the works of Jesus or of something peculiar which happens and can’t be explained or understood in scientific terms. For those of us in the Christian Appalachian Project, speaking of miracles could mean a few different things. It might mean a particular kind of oc curence such as one of those mentioned above, or it could mean that people are talking about a very special person—Bertha Miracle. Bertha is an employee at the Little World Child Development Center in Stanford, Kentucky. What started out to be a job that would last “ about 7 days’’ has turned out to be a position that has enabled Bertha to be with the CAP Child Develop ment Center for nearly 7 years. “ Rodney (Bertha’s son who also works at CAP) asked me if I’d be interested in a little job lasting about 7 days in the mail room. I said I’d take i t . . . anything for a job,” Bertha states, emphasizing her desperation at the time. Bertha had worked in the Headstart Program during summers and had also worked at American Greeting Company for a month when she had to quit because she developed a knee problem from working on concrete floors. She submitted her notice to quit and wasn’t aware 14

of anything else that would be available. One night, however, something peculiar happened. “ I was dreaming of going back to work at American Greeting and having to cross strawberry patches and climbing fences and having a hard time getting there . . . so when I finally got there—there was Father Beiting! He was standing there smiling real big and saying, ‘Everything’s going to be alright!’ I thought that was a pretty good dream.” It wasn’t long after that that her son, Rodney, told Bertha of the temporary position that was available in CAP’s Mail Room. Bertha worked for those seven days in the Mail Room when she met Lew Phillips (see The Mountain Spirit March/April 1985). “ I asked Lew if he had anything else (other jobs), such as Christmas wreath work or just anything.” Bertha kept returning to Lew until one day she received a phone call from the Reverend Jack Morris (CAP’s director of human develop ment at the time). He told her of a position available as a cook at the Sunshine Center, CAP’s Child Development Center in Lancaster, Kentucky. “ I said, ‘I can’t cook there! I’ve never cooked for that many people before.’ ” Bertha continues, “ Then Jack said that even he could do it. I said, ‘Well, if you can do it then I can do it!’ ” Bertha The Mountain Spirit

recalls that she’d pray everyday that the Lord would help her have enough food to go around to all of the children. Like the gospel story of Jesus feeding the multitudes, there was always plenty. Bertha’s main reason for taking the job, she recalls, was the hope that she would be able to work with the children that attend the Child Develop ment Center. Her background in working with children in the Headstart program made it possible for Bertha’s dreams to come true. After working as a cook at the Center for about two months, “ Mrs. Miracle,” as she was now addressed by the children, was hired as a teacher. She continued in that capacity at the Sunshine Center under the direction of Kathleen Leavell (Ford) until Bertha was transferred to the Little World Child Develop ment Center located in her hometown of Stanford, Kentucky. “ She’s representative of the Christian Appalachian Project,” observes Sherry Rankin, director of Little World. “ She’s a member of the local community who happens to love the children very much and you can see that the children love Bertha back.” Sherry continues, “ Bertha has one child in her group that has Downs’ Syndrome. This little girl is really special to Bertha. She will come in and say ‘Hi’ to Bertha and not talk to anyone else. One day Bertha took her up on the hill to the nurs ing home and because she was with Bertha she spoke to all of the elderly people. That was really something!” Bertha’s popularity and fame among the children of Little World doesn’t stop once they leave the Child Development Center. She frequently en counters youngsters who once occupied a major portion of her day but have since enrolled in the B erth a M iracle at L ittle W orld

“ T h e L ittle W o rld ” p a in ted b y M in d y M iracle

local school system. Bertha is always eager to greet her former students with a smile and a hug. “ I see a lot of them downtown,” Bertha says with a laugh. “They’ll come runnin’ and almost knock me down ’cause they’re so big, like eight or nine years old. It’s been a while since they were at Little World but they don’t forget ya’.” While Bertha is popular with the kids of Little World, the kids are also popular with Bertha. The amusing stories of “ her children” fill Bertha’s life and she “ could probably write a book” that would promise to be a best-seller. One of Bertha’s favorite stories to tell is of the time when the children of the Center were gathered for their daily prayer. One of the youngsters tugged on Bertha’s skirt and asked that she pray for his grandmother who had recently died. Bertha tried to comfort the young boy by tell ing him that she was sure his grandma must be in heaven with God now. The young boy looked at Bertha seriously and remarked, “ Grandma didn’t go to heaven.” Bertha was quite taken aback by this and wasn’t sure how to respond. “ She didn’t?” Bertha asked. “ No,” replied the child, “ they buried her!” For Bertha Miracle, what began as a dream is being lived out in reality. Her dream of Father Beiting telling her that “ everything is going to be alright,” is lived out in her activities at the Little World Child Development Center. For Bertha, everything is alright! She has a job that she loves and a family that loves and supports her. For the children of Little World, there’s that reassurance that no matter how gloomy a day might be, there will always be a certain miracle that will bring joy and sunshine to their day. For the children of Little World, that miracle is named Bertha. c a p.

July-A ugust 1985

The Hope of a Nation

The Mountain Spirit

by Alm a Lee Harrigan

Photos Courtesy o f Garrard Co. Library

Carry Nation, a name which should strike fear into every drinker, social or not, in the U.S. or the world, was born on November 25, 1846 in Garrard County, Kentucky, a fact which sealed her fate ac cording to her biographer, Robert Lewis Taylor. “ Garrard County, Kentucky, a district of ferocious and nerve jangling piety. Not only had the first church in Kentucky been established there, but the western camp meeting or revival — a form of deistic orgy — was introduced into the area, around 1800 . . . .” Indeed Carry’s family background would seem quite tumultuous to the reader, but Carry herself looked back on her childhood as a delightful time playing on the family farm which was situated on “ Dick’s” River (now Dix River). The family seemed to have some means. Her maternal grandfather, James Camp bell, acclaimed locally for his “ loose wrist” with the brandy and whiskey was an authentic lineal descendant of the Dukes of Argyll. Carry’s childhood home was substantial, a hewed log dwelling of ten rooms, weather boarded and plastered. One gathers that in its day, the Moore home, maintained by a number of slaves, was con sidered an example of frontier elegance. Carry herself wrote in her autobiography, The Use and Need o f the Life o f Carry A. Nation: “ Standing on the front porch, we looked through althea bushes, white and purple, and there were on each side cedar trees that were quite large in my day. There was an old fashioned stile, instead of a gate, and a long avenue with forest trees on either side, that led down the big road . . . on the side of the house next to the cliffs was what we called the long house, where the negro women would spin and weave . . . .’’ It was fortunate for Carry that these women were there to “ mother” the little girl for July-A ugust 1985

A n in v ita tio n to a p latform rally.

her own mother, shortly after Carry’s birth, sud denly announced that she was a lady in waiting to Queen Victoria and then within a matter of days in some mysterious way she herself ascended the throne. According to Robert Lewis Taylor’s biography of Carry, Vessel o f Wrath, Mrs. Moore was encouraged by her indulgent Irish husband so that she soon had all the trappings of royalty, pur ple velvet gowns with trains and a crown of crystal and cut glass that she wore even at breakfast. Her contact with “ commoners” became less and less and eventually she saw no one, even family members, including her husband (the Prince Con sort), without an appointment. According to Taylor one might say that Moore almost exploited his wife’s meglomania. He reports that, “ After one audience with Her Majes ty, he laid in an ornate rubber tired carriage 17

upholstered in crimson plush and drawn by a pair of matched dapple-gray mares with silver mounted harness . . . he added a coachman wearing a high silk hat and a coat of black, purple trimmed broadcloth. Behind the outrageous carrier trotted a negro boy, in mufti, for the purpose of opening and closing gates, and a pair of uniformed outriders paced abreast of the windows. Selecting his choicest slave, a giant called Big Bill, Moore stuffed all that was possible of him into a scarlet hunting coat and sent him riding ahead with a brass hunting horn, to blast out visits of more than routine importance . . . on one occasion she bawled out the ‘Duke of Buckingham’ who was hoeing a patch of onions. She knighted three or four farmers, one of whom struck back, and the Queen stripped an itinerant tinker of all his estates in Sussex . . . . ” It is hard to believe that Garrard County has ever experienced any more exotic behavior. Although as a girl Carry missed out on a loving relationship with her mother, who maintained a “ royal” distance, she adored her father saying, “ If I ever had an angel on earth it was my father. I have met many men who had lovable characters, but none equaled him in my estimation. He was not a saint, but a man—one of the noblest works of God.” Indeed Carry’s father appears to have been a thoughtful and kind man. He was a trader, a planter, and a slave owner. Mr. Taylor says his

chief fault was restlessness, that he was happiest loading the family belongings into the wagon and moving on. Another biographer, Arnold Madison, at tributes the moves, which were frequent after the long stay by the Dix River, to the “ Queen’s” in creasing depression and demands. George Moore found himself being pressured to institutionalize her as had been done to her two sisters and brother. He decided to move on to Danville in Boyle County, hoping a change of scenery and new surroundings would be beneficial. For a time Mary seemed better, but as quickly as she had im proved, she regressed and another move was George’s solution, this time to a farm in Wood ford County. But shortly after that move the Moores left Kentucky forever, going first to Cass County, Missouri, where their land in Kansas, which was on the border, made the farm a war zone between the Missouri slave state and the abolition farming state of Kansas. All of the moves took their toll on Carry who could not understand and suffered gravely as beloved slaves were sold at auction and farewells to beloved friends occurred with ever more fre quency. Carry’s life was never again as com paratively happy as she fortunately remembered her Kentucky childhood. Her adult life was filled with tragedy; an early marriage to a man who died within several years of alcoholism; her daughter

J o rd a n

T h e b irth p lace o f C arry N a tio n as seen tod a y .

The Mountain Spirit

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C arry N a tio n in fu ll regalia.

C a rry ’s secon d h u sb a n d , D a v id N a tio n .

stricken with a scarring and debilitating illness who remained a life-long care; her mother, ironically, living on in a childlike dependence on Carry; and a very unhappy second marriage to David Nation. Carry, however, did find her mission. After a sojourn in Texas, the Nations returned to Kansas to Medicine Lodge, where Carry underwent a religious experience and felt “ divine electricity” pelting down on her head. Carry went into a religious frenzy which lasted several days ending as Taylor says “ in a loneliness and peace occupied by two persons, Carry Nation and Jesus Christ. . . Carry’s attitude in Medicine Lodge became so of fensively self-righteous that her resemblance to the biblical vessel of wrath was complete.” So the young girl who always cherished her hap py days along the Dix River in Garrard County went on to immortality as the “ Vessel of Wrath” who took her ax to whiskey barrels in saloons across the country and fueled the movement which brought about our nation’s experiment with Pro hibition. In her last public speech, shortly before her death nine years before Prohibition began in 1920, Carry told her enthralled audience, “ I have done what I could,” a mild epitaph for a woman who almost singlehandedly knocked the drink from America’s hand for thirteen years. July-A ugust 1985

C arry w h ile co n fin ed in the W ich ita jail.

N ew s of O ur Neighbors

The Big Sandy Family Story by Glen E dw ard T aul

Ten years ago Jean Rosenberg felt a need for preparing parents in Floyd County for childbirth and parenting. The training Jean had received during and after her pregnancies helped to ease many anxieties and lessen many complications. Thinking that mountain families could benefit from the same training, Jean began the Big Sandy Family and Childbirth Education Association (BSF-CEA). From the small beginning in her home, the organization has grown to include Magoffin, Johnson, Martin, and Pike counties in its service area. The BSF-CEA seeks to educate and support families in birthing and parenting. It offers classes in prenatal care and childbirth preparedness, and provides support groups for mothers who breast feed, for parents whose children were delivered by cesarean section, and for new parents. The association also promotes an infant car seat rental program, publishes a newsletter, and offers public information presentations for those interested in learning more about family-centered childbirth. Vikki McGuire, age 26, believes strongly in the organization. “ With my first one (pregnancy), I did not take classes and I didn’t know a whole heck of a lot about anything . . . ,” she said. “ I felt like things could have gone a whole lot better than what they did. So I came to the class for the 20

Photos by Jordan

second baby, which was three years ago.” When she attended them, Vikki discovered that “ even after having a baby, there was a whole lot of new information that was very helpful.” The classes helped Vikki’s family life with her second child. In the ten years that she has lived in Floyd County, Vikki, a native of Michigan, has observed that Appalachian people rely on family and friends more than others who may rely more on doctors and other professionals. To Vikki, the quality of the childbirth and parenting experiences are greatly affected by the lack of accurate infor mation that has been offered to the women of the region. Oftentimes, the expectant mothers do not feel the need to speak with professionals even though they are unsure of the “ way their bodies work through a pregnancy.” Vikki has also noticed that Appalachian men do not seem very willing to help in forming families. They do not seem to view themselves as an integral part of the family unit. It is these cultural traits that the association is trying to change through its concept of Family Centered Maternity Care. Vikki relates a story in which a woman and her husband had a baby girl, but they wanted a son. The husband walked out of the room when he saw the baby. Soon, however, The Mountain Spirit

he returned, “ and the nurse handed him the baby and told him to sit down in the rocking chair . . . . Within seconds he was rocking it and talking to it, . . . at that time you couldn’t have pried that baby out of his arms.” “ If you had taken that same at mosphere,” Vikki said, “ and he hadn’t been there, and the nurse came out and said, ‘You have another little girl,’ and he continues to wait in the waiting room, and he never sees that baby except through a little glass window, when he finally gets to hold it three days later, all of his negative feel ings about having another girl will have set in. Those feelings will affect the way he feels about the child for the rest of her life. Things like that — that’s what we want to change.” The Prepared Childbirth program attracts peo ple primarily from middle income groups. There is greater reluctance on the part of others to attend “ if they can’t pay.” “ They just won’t go,” Vikki said. They will not accept charity. Some families are receiving prenatal care through the local health department. The associa tion receives some referrals from the health department but many people are not aware of BSF-CEA services until the health department tells them about it. “ We have been getting more people from the health department,” Vikki said, “ but still the majority (of the people that we serve) will be from the middle income group.” J ea n R osen b erg g ives a p resen ta tio n on prep ared ch ild b irth .

July-A ugust 1985

The association has made a special effort to reach pregnant teenagers and young mothers. When Vikki began teaching about two years ago, few teenage moms chose to take the courses and prepare themselves. The reasons may have been fear or shame, but because of the increase in teenage pregnancies BSF-CEA updates its library and information folders which are available to the public. “ I really am glad that more and more of them are feeling free to come to the classes,” Vikki said. “ Some bring their moms, some bring friends, and some bring the father of the baby even though they aren’t getting married.” Whatever they do, I think it’s really good that they come because teenage pregnancies especially need the information that we give,” she said. “ They are the ones that tend not to eat the best and take the best care of themselves. So the more they can find out about the way their bodies are working, the less afraid they’re going to be and the better start they’ll give their babies.” The association has encountered some obstacles from the medical and local communities in its at tempt to make maternity care more family oriented. In addition to allowing the husband to see the baby immediately, BSF-CEA has been working to allow brothers and sisters to see the baby. “ You know they are not allowed to see their kid brother or sister until three days after the fact,” Vikki said. “ And if you have a two or three-year old at home who has no idea why Dad’s staying away so much . . . (because he’s at the hospital seeing the newborn). The small child doesn’t realize that; so we’re trying to get things like sibling visitation, or to where kids can at least come and see mom. We’ve been pretty successful in doing things like that — and things like husbands being allowed in the cesarean deliveries which was a big taboo around here for a long time, too, but here lately that’s been changing.” Most of the organization’s opposition has come from the medical community. One hospital has been family oriented in every way while the others have been less family oriented. Local physicians, as a group, have failed to give any cooperation in the association’s efforts to hold a family centered maternity conference. “ They weren’t too willing to talk to us,” Vikki said. The local community is supportive in starting projects, but are less sup p o rtiv e fin a n c ia lly . W henever BSFCEA approaches large businesses or industries in the area for support, the businesses offer any of their resources except for financial help. The association has received an excellent response to its infant car seat rental program. “ I was just really surprised at all the different help we got,” Vikki said. Different community organiza tions like women’s clubs and kiwanis helped with 22

V ik ki M cGuire, Coordinator at BSF-CEA.

fund raising. “ We probably couldn’t have done it single-handed because it is a really big thing.” The demand for car seats is great. “ I just never dream ed the program would be needed as bad as it has been,” Vikki said. Many low income people can not afford to buy them. The association rents the seats for nine months at $5 and with a $5 deposit, which is refunded when the seat is returned. The seat is returned after nine months because by then the child is ready for toddler seats, which the association does not have. The association’s annual budget is nearly $20,000. Its revenue comes from non-profit organization grants, private contributions, class fees, dues, and subscriptions. Other necessities such as classroom space and publicity work are donated. Prestonburg Community College donates classroom and office space and the teachers’ salaries. A fee is charged by the college for the prenatal and prepared childbirth classes. The fees are on a sliding scale “ so that we can get everbody,” Vikki explained. It is based on a person’s ability to pay. For those who cannot afford it “ we just don’t charge them, and for those who can, they get the basic rate.” For example, when a husband is laid off from work, BSF-CEA tries to absorb their fee, and many times the college says, “ let it go.” Regardless of who calls on the association, they are encouraged to attend as many classes as possi ble and learn as much as they can. Everyone’s goal is to have a healthy, happy baby. The Big Sandy Family and Childbirth Education Association will do anything to help families and the medical community cooperate in accomplishing this goal. As the association con tinues to grow, develop and touch thousands of lives, the people of the Big Sandy region will no doubt benefit from the expertise, friendship and support that is offered to them by neighbors such as Jean Rosenberg, Vikki McGuire and all of those who work at BSF-CEA. CAP. The Mountain Spirit

Around the Project

by the C A P N ews Service

M o v in g O n

W hat Y ou D o n ’t K n o w A bout W ills C an H urt Your H eirs . . .

LANCASTER—Kate Weigand, former CAP Volunteer, past direc tor of Little World Child Develop ment Center, and most recently, Coordinator of Volunteers, has resigned. Kate’s resignation, which was effective May 31, 1985, was tendered after many months of discernment and discussion. Kate assures us that it is with deep sorrow that she leaves CAP, but she feels that the Lord is calling her to another place at this point in her life. Kate has been accepted into the community of Benedictine Sisters at Blue River, Kentucky.

Find Out W hy. Request Your Free Copy Of:

Kathy, as she is known by her friends in Pittsburgh, Pa., came to CAP in 1977 after leaving a job at the Chrysler Corporation. She has made Lancaster her home since. Before leaving CAP, Kate sent a let ter to her friends working in various aspects of the Christian Ap palachian Project in order that they might know of the joy which Kate experienced while a part of the CAP family. The Mountain Spirit was given a copy of this letter and has received permission to publish it: It has been my privilege over the past six years to be a member o f the C.A.P. Family. When I came in August o f 1979 as a volunteer, I wanted to share my gifts and talents with the people o f the area, my volunteer community and the C.A.P. family in general. But there was a problem. I wasn’t aware o f what I really had to offer. During the course o f these last six years, C.A.P. has helped me to grow as an individual and discover these gifts and talents. In many ways I was challenged in areas I had never dreamed possible. I feel I am leaving with much more than I came with and much more than I gave. And why, because people like Father (Beiting), Mike (McLaughlin) and July-A ugust 1985

K a te W eigan d says g o o d b y e.

Doyle (Fortney) believed in me. People like my volunteer communi ty supported me. People like Ellen Burke and Kathleen Leavell en couraged me. And people from the main office had a good sense o f humor. The verse from Isaiah, “Fear is useless—what is needed is trust” has become a part o f my life. Oh that the Lord would bless one Christian organization with so many beautiful people. Keep up the good work, continue to “dream the im possible dream” and know that you are all very much a part o f my life. May you all be blessed with good health, love o f family and friends, and with the knowledge that “with God all things ARE possible. ” Love, Kate

Much of what you know about wills may be misinformation that has been floating around for years. If you think, for example, that wills are primarily for rich people, or the elderly, you may be the victim of a common misconception. The helpful booklet offered below will ex plain how your will can save your heirs from costly delays and con fusion. Send for your copy today. CLIP AND MAIL Christian Appalachian Project 322 Crab Orchard Road Lancaster, Kentucky 40446 Please send without obligation, your booklet, “ 37 Things People ‘Know’ About Wills That Aren’t Really So.” Name ___________________ Address __________________ City______________________

The Mountain Spirit extends to Kate our best wishes for a blessed and joy-filled future at Blue River.

S tate_________ Z ip ________

around the project . . . continued

T een age G irls’ C lub Goes to A ndrew Jack son LANCASTER AND MOUNT VERNON—Forty to fifty teenaged girls from five counties attended a week of camp in Jackson County this June. The girls are members of the CAP sponsored club for teenag ed girls. “ There are five aspects to the club,” said Katy Kerris, a CAP volunteer who serves as club moderator in Rockcastle County. “ We try to cover service, social, spiritual, recreation and education. Sometimes education is hard. We mainly cover that at camp.” The theme for the week of camp activities this year was, We Are the World. The Bible School sessions all centered on the song title, as well as the thematic aspects of the week’s activities. In addition to daily Bible school classes, the girls had swimming and aerobic dance everyday. As the ser vice aspect of the week, the girls fix ed the hiking trails around the camp. In mid-week they made a trip to CAP’S houseboat, The Daniel Boone, where they had an overnight outing on Dewey Lake. The education for the week dealt with dating, relationships and in timacy. Guest speaker Donna Lemmle-Jordan, from the Fayette County Health Department, spoke with the girls about growing in a mature and maturing relationship. Many of the girls in the club are “ graduates” of the regular camping program. Others have heard about club activities from their friends and asked to join. Now in its fifth year, the group grows stronger as the girls involved continue to add their own views and personality to the group activities. 24

L ew and Georgia P hillips in the CAP lunchroom .

C A P ’s F irst R etirees On Wednesday, May 1, the volunteer community in Lancaster held an appreciation dinner for Lew and Georgia Phillips. These two dedicated employees of CAP retired as of May 31, 1985. Lew supervised the home repair program in Lan caster, while Georgia was employed in the receipts and donations section of the Christian Appalachian Pro ject. The couple is the first to retire from CAP. Lew came to CAP over ten years ago and started at the Camp Nelson site. Georgia came to CAP about nine and a half years ago and began working in the Christmas wreath program. The dinner was held at the new volunteer center on Lexington Street in Lancaster. This house, originally a private home, had been renovated by the Home Repair crew. The final result is a home that the volunteers are proud to call their own. This project is truly a part of Lew that will touch volunteers for many years to come. The staff of The Mountain Spirit extends to the Phillips many wishes for a long and blessed retirement together.

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around the project . . . continued

Spouse A buse Shelter O pens

FLC W elcom es M u tu al Care H o m e

FLOYD COUNTY—The Chris tian Appalachian Project opened its third spouse abuse shelter in early June. Two women from the big San dy area were waiting to enter the shelter the same morning it opened. The shelter is large enough to house fifteen to eighteen people, about six women and their children. Seven women native to the area are serving as staff for the house. “ I’m looking for people’s ability to be empathetic,” says Brenda White, CAP’S spouse abuse coor dinator, “ and someone committed to this kind of work.” Most of the staff have counseling experience or training. Counseling is an integral part of the program in CAP’S other spouse abuse shelters. When a spouse enters the program, there is a two to three day cooling off period, and the people enter a counseling pro gram, meeting two or three times a week. There are parenting classes and a group therapy session which each meet once a week. Clients are required to make their own deci sions about their lives. They are neither encouraged to leave the family nor to go back. Approx imately 60 to 70% of the shelter clients return to their situations, and about 20% of those relationships become non-abusive. “ The shelters play a big part in those im provements,” says Brenda. “ We see that counseling is made available to the abuser and refer victims and couples to comprehensive care.” Just the presence of an alternative for abused spouses has made a dif ference in the com munities. “ Sometimes the lack of an alter native forced people to stay in bad situations,” Brenda said. The presence of spouse abuse shelters gives people an opportunity to change their relationships—or their lives—for the better. July-A ugust 1985

MOUNT VERNON—In the next couple of months CAP will be lay ing the groundwork to open a mutual care home on the grounds of the Family Life Center. The home will be equipped and staffed to care for single mothers and their new babies.

C lo w n in g arou n d at D ev e lo p m e n t C en ter.

C h ild

C A P C oes to H isel HISEL—This small community located in rural Jackson County will be the site of a Child Development and Community Recreation Program for teenage and school age children. CAP has begun a concerted effort to begin outreach programs in Jackson County and resulting from this effort is the start of the Parents Are Teachers Program and the Home Repair Program in the county. The Child Development and the Community Recreation activities are being implemented as a “pilot pro gram” in hope that a full time Child Development Center may be established this fall. Jackson County communities have been served in a limited capacity by the Headstart Pro gram, but because of Hisel’s geographic isolation, service to this community had been non-existant. The Christian Appalachian Project will be working in conjunction with the Headstart Program in order that no duplication of services may occur.

There was one home operating in the Central and Eastern Kentucky area until recently. It closed because of a lack of funding. This left a tremendous need in the area for the type of program CAP is interested in operating. “ I talked over the need with Father Beiting and Mike McLaughlin,” said Moe Mercier, CAP’s director of human develop ment. “ It’s the kind of family oriented project that we feel is im portant.” The home will receive mothers ag ed fifteen to twenty-four who are being released from the hospital with their new babies. “ We’ll be working with the babies’ fathers, too,” Moe said. “ In about half of the cases the fathers are still an important part of the pic ture. They love their children and want to share in the responsibility for their upbringing.” Moe said that there are group ses sions for family members as well. “ Sometimes the mothers’ grand parents have become the parenting force, and we need to keep those ties strong and reinforce the good values that people have learned from their grandparents.” Moe is currently making plans to hire a program manager who will then formulate the program and job descriptions; when the staff is hired, everything will be in place for the operation of a strong viable pro gram. 25

Special Report

A p p alach ia: A V is io n for A ctio n Since the days of President Johnson’s War on Poverty, Appalachia has progressed to the point that people are no longer isolated. The people of the region share in the conveniences and prosperi ty that most Americans enjoy today. Beginning in the mid-1950’s a concerted effort was made to bring Eastern Kentuckians and other Appalachians into the Twentieth Century. Organizations like the Eastern Kentucky Regional Planning Commission believed that the region’s economy needed diversification, that it should be less dependent on coal for its sustenance. They believed that roads were the key to further development of the region. The roads are now in place. With the help of the Appalachian Regional Commission, modern highways such as 1-65, 1-75, the Daniel Boone Parkway, and the Appalachian Highway in Ohio made other parts of the nation accessible to Appalachians. Despite these changes, however, much of Ap palachia still experiences intense poverty. In the present era of advanced communication and transportation, the people of Appalachia are still finding that their political bodies, educational systems, health care facilities and their basic quali ty of living are far below national standards. A great number of people are still dependent upon government handouts and private charities. Ap palachians have arrived at a critical point in their history. A decision must be made: will this moun tainous land continue as a depressed region or will it forge ahead into the hope of tomorrow? The Christian Appalachian Project, under the direction of Fr. Ralph Beiting, sponsored a sym posium on Appalachia’s future at Berea (Ky.) Col lege, June 6 and 7, 1985. “ Appalachia: A Vision for Action” gave a forum for leaders in business, education, health care, government, religion, communications, and other professions to address the issues affecting A ppalachia’s future. “ Our purpose is to define problems, discuss trends, and determine possible directions for bet tering life in Appalachia,” explained Fr. Beiting. Through the sharing of ideas and visions on Appalachia, “ we are hoping for two results;” he continued, “ one, to provide a catalyst for another major survey of the region; two, to pro vide a clearer focus for work in Appalachia.” The symposium began on June 6th with a ban quet and keynote address by Dr. Thomas D.

Sym posium panelist, K y . Lt. Gov. Steven Beshear.

Clark, a noted historian of Kentucky and the South. Appalachian folk singer Jean Ritchie pro vided the evening’s entertainment. The following day, June 7, panelists from the fields of health, religion, government, industry, education, and communications joined to discuss issues concern ing economic and community development, religious and spiritual growth, education, com munication, and health care. Fr. Beiting served as moderator for the discussion. The symposium offered four sessions that focused on the following issues: “ Development: Realizing Appalachia’s Potential,” “ Knowledge: Equiping Appalachia’s Fundamental Resource — Its People,” “ Health: Providing for the Com monweal,” and “ Spiritual Growth: Religion and the Creation of Community.” Each session in cluded remarks by panelists, which were followed by a general panel discussion of the topic followed by questions and comments from the audience. The Mountain Spirit will provide complete coverage of the symposium, “ Appalachia: A Vi sion for Action,” in its September-October issue. The Mountain Spirit

In Memory of John W. Mason 1934

—

1985

On May 19, the CAP family lost one of its most beloved, caring and spirit-filled members. John Mason passed away at the Garrard County Memorial Hospital as a result of an apparent heart attack. John, a native of Garrard County, Kentucky, joined the Christian Appalachian Project in the spring of 1976 and began working at the Camp Nelson site. John’s proven talent and ability to get things done “ no matter what the task” gained him a leadership role in CAP as it began to market and develop Appalachian crafts. John remained in this position until late in 1984 when he left CAP in order to manage the two small businesses which he had established in the Lancaster community. Although John left CAP’s employ, he remain ed, nonetheless, a popular member of the CAP family. Frequently, John would stop by the Crab Orchard Road office to joke, laugh, share a smile or simply to visit with his friends. In reflecting on John’s passing, those who knew him share a com mon memory: he did anything he could to help those in need. Indeed John knew of and lived the Gospel message: Come, you have my Father’s blessing! Inherit the Kingdom prepared fo r you from the creation o f the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, thirsty and you gave me drink. I was a stranger and you welcomed me, naked and you clothed me. The members of the CAP community grieve in the loss of a dear friend. At the same time, however, we rejoice in the knowledge that he is now living in the fullness of the presence of the Lord. We pray that the Lord Jesus will bless and comfort John’s wife, Pat, their sons, Todd and Greg, and all who are feeling the loss of our friend and brother in Christ.

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C H R IS T IA N A P P A L A C H IA N P R O JE C T 322 CRAB ORCHARD RD., LANCASTER, KY 40446 The Mountain Spirit