Revive Hope in Appalachia | Crossroads Missions

“We have served in Appalachia since 2006. We believe it is time to make a deeper commitment to the people of Appalachia.” These statements were distributed inside a pamphlet about our Revive Hope initiative within the Appalachia field. Two simple sentences, but they hold years of dedication and dreams for many years to come.

Handing out flyers for summer programs in Maytown

The Need

Appalachia is a beautiful, unique, and proud area. The mountains are more than just scenery. For those that grew up in this area, these hills represent livelihood, provision, and protection. Brent Handshoe has lived in the area all his life, and explained how Appalachia provides unique gifts, but also has its difficulties.

“I feel like I’m very lucky to have learned a simpler way of life,” shared Brent, “a way to survive in ways that some people may not understand. We’ve always had the ability to grow our own food in the gardens, or hunt in the hills for anything that we needed that may sustain us.” The majority of the towns in this area were built by coal companies in the 20s-30s, and while they were active the area grew in population and economic development. But once the companies left, families were stuck.

“A lot of the people that’s left here are in some economic hardships, and so we’ve taken care of each other the best we can, but there’s still a lot of need,” Brent explained. “There’s not a lot of opportunity for our next generation to thrive here. So we have a lot of people that move out of state to seek better opportunities to support their families. We have a lot of families that are stuck here because they may have been injured working in those coal mines.”

Those that remain include children with nowhere to go. There is little to do for a child in these back roads, and no public transportation to get them to community events. Brent remembered riding the church bus as a child to attend Sunday School and VBS. That outlet was important for him, and he hopes to bring that back for this generation.

“The children here just need a place. And so that’s what I’m hoping the church can become, is an open door for the kids in this area to come enjoy a movie night or a refuge for whatever they may be suffering at home or just a safe place that they know that someone can care about them.”

Summer programming

CJ has long shared that dream of a community outlet for the children of Appalachia. Every summer volunteer groups help organize and lead programs for kids surrounding our base in Maytown. Volunteers hand out flyers detailing a full summer of themed events and spend evenings showing love to those kids through games, conversations, and crafts.

Long-time volunteer Brent Leehman shared, “when you’re here in the summer, the kids aren’t in school. So not only do we help build things and repair things, but we play with the kids in the afternoon, and we do all kinds of fun games and just do life with them. That’s a unique part about the way CrossRoads does ministry.”

Spending the entire summer with this community gives you a larger perspective of the growth and impact these events make on entire families. Former intern Clancy was especially impacted by this perspective: “By the end of the summer you know these kids and families and feel a connection to them. You want them to be happy and successful. Being an intern gives you a chance to impact them but what happens is that they impact you even more. Almost all the people you meet will have a story to share with you and by listening your whole worldview can change.”

Reviving Hope for the Future

“It is a huge need in our community to see ministries and organizations come in and do things with our students to build relationships with them, to let them know that they’re valued, to express the love of God in front of them and show them what that looks like, on a regular basis.” explained former local pastor Ricc Conner.

Community needs expand past volunteer season. Children especially need a consistent example in their life of a Christ-like lifestyle. This is a role (or several roles) that CrossRoads Missions Appalachia is looking to fill. Our Revive Hope initiative is focused on “partnering with area churches, ministries, and organizations to improve the standard of living, raise expectations, and find hope in the grace of Christ for families in Eastern Kentucky. Through community events, home repairs, and facility renovations, we facilitate opportunities to build relationships that connect both participants and community members to live their lives in continuous worship and service to Jesus.”

In short, our goal is to provide needed services across construction, community development, and children’s programming in order to be the light of Jesus to this underserved region. To accomplish this, we need a team of dedicated believers to become part of the community.