I have many happy memories of my twenty-seven years
as a teacher at Red Bird Mission High School, but I also have
some sad ones. God was always at work in the bad as well as the
good times. One of my most vivid and unforgettable memories is of
May 18, 1981, the day after Red Bird High School’s
graduation. I went to the school earlier than anyone else because
I had English notebooks to grade. I never reached my classroom on
the second floor because when I walked into the building I
discovered that it was on fire. I rushed out of the building and
started spreading the news of the fire. But being a creature of
habit, I conscientiously locked the door of a burning building
when I left it. (The absurdity of that action did not hit me
until some time later.)The wooden building built in the early 1920's burned very rapidly. Fire trucks came from as far as forty miles away, but there was little they could do except try to save the surrounding buildings. We were able to save the historic Beverly Church on one side of the school by pouring water on it for hours, but we were unable to save the gymnasium near the school on the other side. Community people came to help move materials out of the mobile classrooms and paint from a nearby paint shop. Staff and three generations of Red Bird students were grieving over the loss of our school, but we were also thanking the Lord that there were no students in it.
Before the fire was completely out, the Rev. Ed Ehresman, the Director of Red Bird Mission, said, "We will start school in August." His faith and hope inspired the rest of us. Thus, began a very hectic summer of putting our faith into action.
The news of the fire spread quickly, and help came from the local community and from United Methodists across the country. Local groups and individuals provided temporary buildings and labor to move and set them up. Also any available spaces in the church campgrounds and the girls’ dorm that could be converted into classrooms, offices or cafeteria were utilized. United Methodists from all over the country came with work teams and materials to help. Countless numbers provided financial and prayer support.
Since
our library had been destroyed in the fire, we had to create a
new library that would meet state and Southern Association
accreditation requirements before school started in August. Books
came from everywhere and volunteers appeared to help catalog and
shelve them in one of our temporary buildings. We met the minimum
requirements and books continued to arrive throughout that year.
Several people suddenly found a use for those musical instruments
they had in storage. With donated instruments and a renovated
camp cabin, we had a music department.Because of all the hard work, we were ready for the opening date of school. Some of us were still scrubbing and waxing the floors in our four-room temporary building the weekend before the opening of the school. We began classes with only the teachers having textbooks, but that was soon remedied. For the next two years we were in our unique school with classrooms scattered all over the mountainside. Students were very cooperative in getting to classes on time. The fact that we could see our new school being constructed down in the valley compensated for any inconveniences we had. Our blueprints for a new school that had been on hold suddenly had to be put into use. The events of the summer of 1981 reinforced our appreciation for being a part of the connectional system of The United Methodist Church.