Mission of Hope: Delivering Hope to Families in Rural Appalachia
For nearly a quarter of a century, the Mission of Hope, a Christian-charity based in Knoxville, has been Extending the Hope to the most distressed rural communities in Appalachia, more than half of which are in Kentucky.
Sadly, MOH’s help is needed even more today than when the group launched its first event in 1996 when it served 150 children. In the ensuing two-plus decades, life in the mountains of eastern Kentucky and Tennessee has grown only more difficult. More children and families need help – and hope – that MOH brings year-round to these communities.
Because of that bulging need – and thanks to the growth of MOH – this school year the organization will serve more than 12,000 students at 28 schools with its Back to School Program.
MOH sends teams of up to two dozen volunteers that meet a truck filled with school supplies. Over the course of a few hours, children select a backpack that is then filled with notebook paper, pencils, pens, crayons, scissors, folders and topped with a bag of hygiene supplies and a Christian Tract, if desired.
Emmette Thompson and school children with their backpacksEvangelism is one of the seven branches of MOH’s tree of life. (Please see story on facing page.)
MOH works with a staff of only two full-time and three part-time employees – but is aided with up to 1,000 volunteers who help gather all the donations that fill the MOH warehouse.
Overseeing the operation is MOH Executive Director Emmette Thompson, who has led the charity since 1999. A former executive in the healthcare industry, Thompson gave his life over to Christ before joining MOH.
Thompson received the Congressional Record of Honor three years ago. But his proudest achievement is the work accomplished by Mission of Hope.
“I’m not a pastor but God gave me a great opportunity to follow a servant path,” Thompson said. “I’m trying to be a vessel of God’s love and this Mission means a whole lot to me.”
It means just as much to the thousands of children and families that MOH has touched down through the years. Mission of Hope is dedicated to changing the lives of people of rural Appalachia by breaking the cycle of poverty through education.
In the High School Scholarship Program, 87% of recipients are the first ones in their family to graduate high school, and 96% are the first to attend college or a technical school.
“I want to believe with all my heart that for the majority of those who are the first to graduate from high school in their family, that they will encourage their children to not drop out of school,” Thompson said. “I really believe that.”
Belief plays a central role at MOH – belief in a higher power. MOH hosts six major Evangelical outreach programs throughout the year to spread the gospel.
“As we’ve been blessed to blossom over the past 22 years, I truly believe it is a privilege to serve those in dire need where we go,” Thompson said.
“But nothing is more important that we’ll bring on a Mission of Hope truck than letting those we serve know that God loves them and Jesus is their greatest Hope.”
MOH Scholarship Success Story: Courtney Gilbert
Since 2009, Mission of Hope’s High School Scholarship Program has helped more than 100 needy students realize the dream of attending college, an important step in breaking the cycle of poverty that plagues much of the area that MOH serves.
Not surprisingly, these students are grateful for the opportunity. A typical success story is Courtney Gilbert, who graduated from Leslie County High in 2016.
With the money and support she received through the Scholarship Program, Courtney completed a two-year nursing degree at Hazard Community College and is currently studying for the state boards.
She plans to work as a family nurse practitioner in a clinic or an ICU setting.
“MOH has been an enormous blessing in my life,” she said. “It has financially allowed me to pursue an education in a career where I can help others.”
Courtney was one of 13 high school seniors to receive a $2,500 MOH scholarship that also includes a laptop computer.Along with the scholarship money, recipients are paired with a mentor. That was indispensable, Courtney said.
“The support system gave me a shoulder to lean on when I needed encouragement during the times I didn’t think I could make it through,” she said.
“Being a MOH scholar has been a life-changing experience for me. I have gained a new family, a circle of close friends who are there to solely lift others up and encourage each other.”
Mission of Hope also endows the Bill and Michael Williams Family Scholarship at Alice Lloyd College in Pippa Passes, Ky., and the Dedrick Andrew (Andy) Courtney Scholarship at Lincoln Memorial University in Harrogate, Tenn.
MOH’s Mission is Like a Tree With Seven Branches
- Day-to-Day Resource Distribution: Working with mountain ministries year-round, MOH provides clothing, furniture, appliances, food and hygiene products.
- Healthcare: MOH partners with rural healthcare clinics, helping coordinate volunteers and underwriting program needs.
- Back to School: In an annual ritual welcomed by 28 rural elementary schools, MOH’s back to school program provides 12,000 schoolchildren with much needed supplies.
- Evangelism: MOH is a Christian-based charity and brings a religious message with every delivery.
- Construction: Responding to the needs of mom-and-pop ministries, MOH dispatches volunteers to make home repairs and build wheelchair ramps for rural residents. As Thompson likes to say, “We fix the widow’s porch.”
- College Scholarships: Since 2009, the Hope Scholars Program provides $2,500 scholarships and laptops every year to 13 high school seniors. (Please see story on facing page.)
- Christmas Crusade: Working with those same 28 schools, MOH provides Christmas presents, food, clothing, hygiene bags and Bibles, if desired for 18,000 children. A group of volunteers lays out Christmas toys in the school gym and volunteers accompany the children as they pick out their favorites.
Strike Up the Band: MOH Donates Musical Instruments
When Emmette Thompson mentioned in passing to volunteer Gwen Wilkinson that Mission of Hope wanted musical instruments to donate to schools, he was talking to the right person.
Unbeknownst to the MOH Executive Director, Wilkinson formerly worked at a musical instrument distribution company – KHS America in Nashville.
Wilkinson wrote a letter to the president, who approved the request. Wilkinson then hopped into a MOH truck and returned from Nashville with a cargo of musical equipment.
MOH volunteers unloaded harmonicas, kazoos, ukuleles, fly whistles, shakers, drumsticks, mallets, a tuba, flute and all kinds of percussion equipment including marimbas, which are too expensive for most high school bands. MOH estimated the donation at $65,000.
The instruments arrived a year ago, and distribution began last fall. By December, 12 high schools bands were making music with new equipment.
For the students, the donation rocked their world, Willkinson said.
“Band members were brought together and told there was a surprise coming,” said Wilkinson, a corporate accountant who has volunteered at MOH for four years.
“The kids were ecstatic and overwhelmed. And they all took turns playing the marimba.”
Donating the instruments augments MOH’s commitment to education as the best way to break the cycle of poverty.
“Belonging to the school band can really help with academics,” Wilkinson said, “and it’s a reason for a lot of kids to come to school.
“This helps the school and the community be better.”
Thanks for your support and for helping extend The HOPE
Donate Online: www.missionofhope.org.
The Mission of Hope is an officially licensed 501c3 non-profit ministry.
Mail Donations To:
Mission of Hope
PO Box 51824
Knoxville, TN 37950
(865) 584-7571
Toll Free:
(877) 627-1909