Mt. Vernon to Evansville; Distance = 15 Miles; People Met = 14+
Our hike out of Mt. Vernon proved less than promising at the start. Cindy has a cold which she blames on me simply because I caught one first. It’s not like we are ever in close proximity or anything. The day was overcast and biting once again. We expect that for winter but we don’t have to like it. Then we soon discovered the official ADT route was closed off by a private industrial complex. A young man stopped us and said he was just a maintenance man and he would hate to see us get in trouble. So we turned around and lost over 2 miles to the day.
Yet just when you think the deck is stacked against you an ace turns up. Our “ace in the hole” was Hawg ‘N Sauce, located on our alternate route. We asked if we could take a 5 minute break in the warmth of their establishment, while we contacted Ky about the change in our route. Of course, we added that we were hiking 5,000 miles across the country. First they gave us huge cups of hot chocolate. Then they prepared cheeseburgers and French fries for us. We left with a Hawg ‘N Sauce T-shirt for Cindy and cap for me. I pointed out that, with us being from Connecticut, not many people would be dining at their restaurant after seeing their apparel on us, but they wanted us to have it anyways. I’ll wear the cap proudly … when the weather gets warmer.
Hawg Crew: Lavon, Jessie, Katie and Nikki
The Menu
I talked and performed at the Trinity UCC in Mt. Vernon, plus I got to sing in a choir again. For the children’s sermon I gave a quick report of our visit to Hedges School in Mt. Vernon. This former elementary school now provides space for a variety of nonprofit organizations, which benefit from being in close proximity to each other. The Red Cross might steer people who’ve received emergency care to the Food Pantry to address more long term needs. Parents can bring their kids to the Park and Recreation center while getting some assistance at Family Matters.
We zoned in on to nonprofits, the Food Pantry and the Cross. They had similar stories of growth in response to escalating needs. The Food Pantry started in a Baptist Church, moved to the larger Presbyterian Church, before arriving at the Hedges School. Along the way they went from assisting 50 families a month to over 600. They have a few things in common with other food pantries we’ve seen: they are governed by a ministerial alliance, they have vibrant local support in the absence of government support and their clients give back once they are able.
Food Pantry Director Erin Hollinger
The At the Cross Mission has an inspiring story behind it. Pastor Hyman Myers had a restaurant as a side business that was going under. After earnest prayer it came to him that he needed to be giving out food rather than try to sell it. He now oversees a community meals program that feeds 100 people a night, four nights a week. Being a pastor is a 24/7 job to begin with, and that is particularly true when your ministry brings you in constant contact with people fallen on hard times. Pastor Hyman reported two instances where he talked people out of suicide. Since embarking on this mission the parishioners at his Church of the Nazarene now come from a less fortunate segment of society, but he wouldn’t have it any other way.
Pastor and Chef Hyman
Like the Food Pantry, the people served by the Mission escalated over the past four years. Both are a testament of what community kindness can do for their own, while yet providing sobering testimony that the need for such kindness is constantly growing.
While we may not have found any UCC churches to stay or speak at in the Evansville area, we did get Evansville media interested. The ABC affiliate WEHT 7 covered us, in addition to the previous newsprint articles. Speaking of which, we got a lot of beeps from people today who undoubtedly saw the article in the Evansville Courier Press. Jesse did a good job. Meanwhile, the caution we met up with from Evansville UCC churches has dissolved for points eastward from there. Thank you, Indiana!
Other Photos
Coffee Hour at Trinity UCC
James knew us from the newspaper article and announced us as celebrities
I always prefer the ones I eat to be dead
Many of my ancestors are from Indiana – Boonville to be exact. And my great-Grandfather went to Seminary in Evansville, IL. It really is a small and very down-home country we are lucky enough to live in! And you are fortunate to be meeting these wonderful people the way you are – though you may not feel so lucky in the rain and the snow! Summer’s coming! Love, Nancy
Greetings Nancy,
So far the most snow we’ve seen was in Colorado back in October. We’ve seen but a little in Kansas, Missouri and Illinois. We’ve yet to have any in Indiana.
Kirk