Adults and youth of the Bradford First and Hill Memorial United
Methodist churches experienced the struggles and beauty of Kentucky
while participating in a work camp at Red Bird Mission in Beverly,
Ky., located in the Appalachia region of the southeastern corner of
the state.

During the week-long stay from July 23 to 29, 55 members of the
churches did improvements to the homes of four community residents
and also repaired mission staff housing while staying at bunk
houses there.

Tim Roff, a member of the First United Methodist Church who
helped plan the event, said the group from Bradford helped frame
room additions at three different homes in the community, build a
deck and paint the exterior of a home, install 14 replacement
windows in a staff house, clean and paint the interior of a staff
house, install vinyl trim around school lockers, remove old fencing
and fill holes, haul firewood, work in the craft store, clean
around the mission campus and prepare food for work campers.

Roff said he’s been a youth leader in the church for seven
years, but this was his last official event as a youth leader. He
said in the past, they’ve always just taken youth, but this time it
was half youth and half older people with ages from elementary
school children to 75.

Hill Memorial organizes events every year where they “tag along”
so this year Roff thought he’d return the favor and ask the church
to join them at the work camp.

Roff said a lot of the older people who were homeowners had
experience in average home maintenance, and two people had
experience in construction. He said they had children running power
tools, doing roofing and learning how to use a sledge hammer under
an adult supervisor.

“For something that needed more construction, we had people rank
themselves to see who could be a crew leader,” Roff said. “The
youth really appreciated (the adults showing them how to do certain
things). The girls were excited they were learning how to use a
sledge hammer and carrying lumber and firewood – tasks that boys
normally do – but girls and boys were doing the same stuff.”

Roff pointed out the buildings they put together probably
wouldn’t pass this state’s building codes but were “way above” what
they previously lived in.

“The nearest city’s an hour away,” Roff said, pointing out that
city is about the size of Bradford. “You think it’s remote in
Bradford. Think of the worst place imaginable. There was one family
of six … who were living in basically a shack that was leaning to
the side. It did have indoor plumbing, but the kitchen and bathroom
were in the same room. One wall was carved out with one toilet and
a bathtub with a shower curtain. It had two windows in it. The
water comes in from the spring and out the other side down the
bank.

“There’s no sewage, no leach bed. …We doubled the size of that
home with two 10-by-12 additions.

“One family, we were cleaning up their yard for the first
hour-and-a-half. We cleaned up their yard of pop cans and baby
diapers before we even started putting an addition on.”

Roff said he believes everyone from the youth up learned
something from the trip.

“One girl remarked that she needed a $50 pair of blue jeans, and
after the work camp, she realized she didn’t need a $50 pair of
blue jeans because she realized what she already had compared to
the people of Red Bird,” Roff said. “It’s not about you. It’s about
other people. That’s why you do the mission. It’s not about thanks.
It’s what we’re called to do. You may not like what you’re doing,
but the purpose is to help people.”

Roff said they left at 4 a.m. July 23 to arrive for dinner in
Beverly, Ky., and an orientation that night. With gas, restroom and
food stops, the trip took them 12 hours, using 11 vans, trucks and
cars.

Fundraisers prior to the trip included donations from family,
church members, friends, church groups and the church’s memorial
mission fund; rummage sales; a 28-hour famine; ballroom dancing;
pizza sale; pancake supper; and each person paid part of the fees
to attend.

As a part of the experience, the workers were also given tours
of the Red Bird Mission’s craft store, clinic, clothing ministry
and school. They were also given a taste of Kentucky culture with
the opportunity to hear some native music, hike up the mountains in
the Cumberland gap and visit the original Kentucky Fried Chicken
restaurant and museum.

Roff said the Red Bird Missionary is the largest United
Methodist mission center in the world, helping the Appalachia
people to become entrepreneurs by allowing them to sell their
merchandise at the mission store with no profit to the store
itself.

“The ministry hires locals as a means of support (for them),”
Roff said. “They also give them medical insurance and a small
pension-type plan.”

Red Bird Mission was founded in 1921 in the southeastern corner
of Kentucky to provide education and Christian evangelism
ministries to residents of the area. To learn about volunteer
opportunities and for more information about Red Bird Mission,
visit its Web site.