Yes, I want to help provide shared family memories across generations.

Name____________________________ Address__________________________

Phone___________e-mail____________

Enclosed is my check for: _____________

Make checks payable to Mt. Horeb-Rankin-Bradshaw Church Property, Inc (Please detach & return in enclosed envelope)

I would also like to dedicate my contribution:

In memory of:_____________________

In honor of:_______________________

Rankin Clan Reunion Permanent Address Dr. Melanie Hodgson

446 West Old A.J. Hwy. New Market, TN 37820

A WEE BIT O’ HISTORY

Mount Horeb Presbyterian Church was organized by Union Presbytery in 1841. The first four elders were Richard Bradshaw, John Newman, Jr., Christopher Rankin and William Rankin. For the first ten years, the congregation met in a log schoolhouse until the church building was constructed in 1851.

In 1874, Southern Presbyterians bought the building and land for $200 and they met there until the church closed in 1925. The building continued to be used occasionally as a schoolhouse and for community activities.

Mr. Horeb Church has been standing on Dumplin Valley Road in Jefferson County TN for a century and a half. The building has been the gathering place for church services, Sunday school picnics, weddings, summer Bible schools, funerals and community gatherings. Since 1949, the church has been the home of the annual Rankin Clan Reunion.

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At present, the Mount Horeb Rankin-Bradshaw Church Properties, Inc. retains full responsibility ( using separate accounts) for the care and upkeep of both the cemetery and the church building. The monies for this comes from offerings taken at the annual reunion. The cemetery fund covers mowing and maintenance; the church building fund covers operational expenses such as annual reunion notices mailed to families and friends, mowing, electricity, drinks and ice, bagpiper, gifts, and porta-john rentals. Neither account carries a balance that can fund the repairs needed at this time.

Our goal is to raise $60,000. Please return this attached form with your generous contribution . Future generations will then have the opportunity to create their own memories of coming together as a family in the church “in the valley by the

wildwood.” Thank you for your gift and for caring.

At the 2008 Rankin Clan Reunion, family and friends were concerned about major deterioration in this historic building. A committee was

formed to assess and prioritize needs and costs.

The committee, with the help of an historic architect and restoration professionals have pinpointed three

major areas of immediate need:

Painting the church’s exterior

Repairing the foundation

Restoring structural integrity.

The families of today live in a very mobile society. As family members move away, the knowledge,

stories, and memories of the Rankin clan tend to fade. Continuity for our extended generations is important to link the past to the future. We are fortunate to have our annual reunion at Mt. Horeb Church and to share this

common history.

Those of us who have attended the Rankin Clan Reunion since childhood share memories of the hymns, the delicious food, the ice chest of cold drinks, the fellowship, the chance to make connections among ancestors and the church itself. The huge oak tree that shaded the church and the “dinner on the grounds” is gone, but we must keep the

church.