" Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed, for his
compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your
faithfulness." --- Lamentations 3:22-23
Birthdays since we let met: Chris Rawls - Dec. 25, Tommy Broughton - Dec. 25, Renee
Smith and George Abshere - Dec. 28, Norma McCoy, Betty Grace, Michelle Weaver, James Gill and Alexis
Whitlock - Dec. 30, Mateo Martindale - Jan. 1, Aletha Broughton - Jan.
2, Martha Welker - Jan. 3, Charlotte Abshere & Xavier Henderson -
Jan. 4, Delbert Moring - Jan. 5, Billy Wilson - Jan. 6, Deborah
Huddleston and Doris Kee - Jan. 8, Ricky Sanders - Jan. 9
Christmas has come and gone. Happy 2014.
Changes
at the West Saline Community Center: with the advent of a new regime,
all building locks have been changed after the alleged theft of some $45
in new locks from the office... a room for which only two officers had
the padlock key. Currently, until the outside locks have been changed,
all outside doors are chained. Room renters who need access to their
storage rooms should contact President Nikki Warner at
870-884-0664
or Secretary/Treasurer LaVetrice Gill at 352-8527 between 7am and 6pm. A
meeting last Sunday afternoon left it undetermined if storage renters
will be issued new passkeys. Sorry folks.
Some other changes probably coming down the pipe: people
reserving the WSCC for events will probably have to pay a cleaning
deposit up front to be refunded after the event should the meeting space
be deemed properly cleaned. More on that after the next board meeting,
which is Jan. 12 at 2pm.
Written by Belinda Brown, a well-known Cleveland County historian and posted online at:
http://argenweb.net/cleveland/index.html concerning Hebron Methodist Church:
"The Methodist of this community began meeting in the 1860's in the
Gravestown School building, which was located about one mile east of the
present location of Hebron Methodist Church.
In 1884, Amanda Urquhart and Mrs. Kate Fraser gave land for the
church and cemetery. Mrs. Urquart died in 1887, Mrs. Fraser in 1908.
No one knows where the name "Hebron" originated. It is imagined that
the founding fathers of the church selected the name from the Bible.
There is no record of the community being called "Hebron" before the
organization of the church.
The first Hebron methodist Church was built in 1884. The original
church building bruned in May 1917. While the church building was being
rebuilt, the congregation met in a brush arbor constructed in front of
where the church now stands.
After crops were layed by that summer of 1917, 3 men of the church
got up at 3 a.m. and made a trip by wagon to Warren. Southern Lumber Co.
gave them 3 big loads of lumber to rebuild the church. The men were
Fred Childress, Robert Merrill and Evan Marks. During the summer
months, the men of the community met and built the new church, with the
ladies bringing food to serve. The new building was near enough
completed by cold weather that fall to begin having services in it.
The first church had two front doors, with three rows of seats, two
isles. The new building has double front doors with one isle in the
center of the church. The present church has had additions of 3 Sunday
School rooms, then a fellowship room with a kitchen and 2 bathrooms.
later a metal building was purchased and put behind the fellowship room
for more class rooms. A concrete porch, with cover has also been added.
Siding has been put on the outside of the church. Inside, paneling has
been added over the beaded ceiling on the walls.
A very inspirational tent meeting was remembers as being held around
1920. A large tent was set up on the grounds of the church, with a large
crowd of people coming on horseback and by wagon.
Hebron was originally part of the New Edinburg Circuit. Later was
taken into the Kingsland Circuit. L.C. Gatlin was pastor of the church
when it burned. Some of the other pastors that were remembered were:
Hugh Revely, H.A. F. Ault, John Simpson, W.T. Bone, W.D. Golden, C.R.
Andrews, Harold Scott, Richard Poss, W.C. Almstead, James Beck, Edgar
Outlaw, L.C. Wax, Robert Johnson, Elam Turner, William Paul Woolley. The
last two each served 10 years.
Some of the first members of Hebron Methodist Church remembered were:
Mrs. Kate Fraser, Mrs. Amanda Marks Urquhart, Sampson Rogers, John
Jones Mitchell, J.L. Mitchell, Frank Owens, Ellen Jane Mitchell, Will
Owens, Helen Rogers, Sarah Graves, J.E. Davis, Anna Lee Marks, Amelia
Marks, Melissa Marrill, Kathryn Tolfree Marks, William Wolf, John W.
Lavillian, Susan Carson Morgan, Jackson Hamaker, Fannie Marks, H.S.
Harris, Arkansas Rogers, S.M. Owens, Maggie Graves and L.A. Childress."
And so the wheel of time turns. Go Eagles.
