Rutherford Weekly

OUR 23 rd YEAR • ISSUE NO. 12 • MARCH 26, 2015 RutherfordWeekly.com 828-248-1408 FREE FREE 16,000 COPIES DELIVERED EVERY THURSDAY 16,000 COPIES DELIVERED EVERY THURSDAY ACE EQUIPMENT ACE EQUIPMENT SALES & SERVICE SALES & SERVICE 126 Park Lane Drive 126 Park Lane Drive Rutherfordton, NC 28139 Rutherfordton, NC 28139 Behind BB&T Bank Behind BB&T Bank 828-286-9781 828-286-9781 STARTING AT STARTING AT $ 2799 2799 THE GAME THE GAME CHANGER CHANGER *SPECIAL *SPECIAL FINANCING FINANCING By Allison Flynn • allison@rutherfordweekly.com By Allison Flynn • allison@rutherfordweekly.com SISTERS WORKING TOGETHER TO LIFT UP THOSE WHO ARE DOWN GENEALOGICAL SOCIETY TO SHARE RENOVATIONS GENEALOGICAL SOCIETY TO SHARE RENOVATIONS WITH PUBLIC DURING OPEN HOUSE Patsy Andrews and Susie Davis look over an old Ellenboro School newspaper that belonged to Davis' mother. Old newspapers, artifacts and other items for those doing research on their families is housed in the The Genealogical Society of Old Tryon County Library located at 319 Doggett Road in Forest City. Members of the The Genealogical Society of Old Tryon County and the community are invited to see recent upgrades to the genealogical library building at 319 Doggett Road in Forest City during an open house on Saturday beginning at 2 p.m. Among the renovations that have recently been done to the genealogical library is the boarding up of a front window that served as a display window when the building was a dress shop. This has allowed for better climate control for the documents housed within, said Alice Bradley, who heads up the Society. "We've taken out the display window and stage area - it has been boarded over and insulated, which has provided a better, consistent temperature in the building," Bradley explained. "We are the repository for some old papers, and we were able to move those into a back room. It's opened the space up quite a bit." The restrooms also had work done and a fresh coat of paint. Those repairs were provided by volunteers who drive up from Spartanburg, S.C. The library generates a lot of traffic, Bradley said, and attracts folks from across the United States who are looking for information on their relatives. "Rutherfordton was one of the main trails in the past, and we really had a lot of people through here," she said. "Some settled here or nearby when Rutherford County was still known as Tryon County. Last year we had people visit from 17 different states." More local folks also discover the library each year, and membership into the Society is $20 for an individual and includes 3 newsletters and use of the library and aid with research. There are other renovations Bradley said the Society would like to do to the library, but those will have to occur as the money becomes available. The Society does receive grant funding for the library from the county, but is primarily sustained through Society memberships and private donations. Formed in 1972, the Society's library was first located in the Old Tryon Room in the library on the campus of Isothermal Community College. In 1983, it moved to the third story of the former bank building at the clock in Forest City, which served as its home until 2007, when it relocated to Doggett Road. "In the summer of 2014 we had a member offer to let us borrow money to purchase this building and make payments for it," Bradley explained. "So we've found our permanent home, and finally converted Mozelle Smith's dress shop into a library." In addition to touring the library to see the renovations, those in attendance at the open house will hear from a guest speaker Robin Lattimore, whose presentation will be a surprise, and enjoy refreshments. For more information on the event, contact The Genealogical Society of Old Tryon County at 828-247- 8700. Debbie Briscoe Smith knows firsthand what it feels like to hit rock bottom, a place where you feel there is no one to help or care. It's a place she doesn't want to return to, and one she strives to lift others from. "If I'd had someone to tell me 'I'm here for you, and I'm going to help you' I wouldn't have experienced the depression I did after being diagnosed as HIV positive," Smith said. Her experiences led Smith to form an HIV/AIDS ministry. The name, she said, came to her as she realized that God kept placing other women in her path. "Someone said, 'You know, we are all sisters in Christ,'" she said. "So that is how we became Sisters in Christ Restoration and Recovery Ministry." The ministry which seeks to help the homeless and others began out of Smith's home, and then to a building behind Granny's Bakery in Spindale, a space quickly outgrown, Smith said. Now the ministry is located in an old restaurant building at 514 E. Main St., across from Tri-City Motel in Spindale, which also houses the ministry's homeless shelter. "We searched for a building for a while, but this was the only parking lot that we prayed in," Smith explained. "This is the location we need to be in." The location is one that's central to another part of the ministry's service - providing food to those who reside in local motels. "We housed 34 people in motels for the month of January," Smith said. "The shelter can house 40 men." Those who are homeless who don't meet criteria for other area shelters are welcomed at Sisters in Christ. "We don't judge you by what's in your system. We have to have an open mind about everyone who comes in," Smith said. "Once you're here, though, you have to follow our guidelines." Among those guidelines is to attend Bible study twice each day, attend church on Sunday and that you have to want help in order to be helped, Smith continued. "You know within a week if they truly want help," she said. "I believe every person who steps through these doors can change … until I know they don't want to." All the work provided by Sisters in Christ is done by volunteers. There are no paid employees. The outpouring of community support for the ministry has been overwhelming, Smith said. "This building was nothing but a shell, and God provided everything we needed in two weeks." But there is still work to be done, Smith said. The ministry is always in need of food donations for the community food pantry it maintains, cots for those in the shelter to use and deep freezers. Donations of items can be made at the shelter each day between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monetary donations are also needed; those can be made at Woodforest Bank (located inside Walmart). The ministry will continue to grow, Smith said. "Whatever the need is in the community, we will try to meet it." More information on Sisters in Christ Restoration and Recovery Ministry can be found online at Facebook. com/SistersInChristRestorationRecoveryMinistry. Pruett Walden Memorial PANCAKE BREAKFAST Sat., March 28 Family Life Center at First United Methodist Church 341 East Main St., Forest City 7:00AM-11:00AM Patsy Andrews and Susie Davis look over an old Ellenboro School news t y c s t t b o b p Members of the Sisters in Christ Ministry, led by Debbie Briscoe Smith (third from left). You CAN CAN support LOCAL LOCAL businesses by getting your work done LOCALLY! LOCALLY! It's YOUR choice and it's NC Law! 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