A Boy Scout hut sits at Abernethy United Methodist Church (UMC) in Burke County. The Barnhardt brothers were locals from the town of Rutherford College who headed off to World War II — one was killed in the line of duty, the other upon return helped build the hut in his honor.
The building hasn’t been used by the Boy Scouts in 30 years and is employed sporadically by the church in various ways. In 2024, Abernethy UMC applied and was chosen to participate in the NC Rural Center’s Connect Church.
The year-long program comes with a coach and helps churches identify existing assets and how they can be used to further a community mission. An idea emerged during monthly conversations, and through a Shark Tank-like exercise at the NC Rural Center, it was put to the test.
A space that was once a Boy Scout hut is now in the beginning stages of renovations. With a $10,000 grant from The Duke Endowment, the building will be renamed the The Barnhardt House, still honoring the fallen soldier, but with a new mission geared to serve the community needs of now.
Connect Church and the need for buy-in
Dr. Kaury Edwards had been the pastor at Abernethy UMC for one year when he applied his church for the program. He moved to the area from Kentucky, where 44% of United Methodist Churches requested to disaffiliate in 2023.
When Abernethy UMC was selected as a finalist in the Connect Church program, Edwards got members of the church — specifically those whose families and ancestry are rooted in the area — to come and hear what the program would entail.
He knew congregational buy-in was imperative to the success of whatever mission was to come next, and having these members hear from someone at the Rural Center was crucial. Dr. Darren Crotts, Faith in Rural Communities program manager at the center, came to the town of Rutherford College.
“He impressed kind of everyone that was around the table,” said Edwards. Crotts himself used to serve as a pastor in the UMC Western North Carolina Conference. The church was one of 21 chosen for the 2024 cohort.
Abernethy UMC had eight people from the congregation participate, and the first kick-off meeting was with the entire cohort in January of 2024. Edwards said Abernethy UMC and two other churches were part of an experiment within the program, and they would meet together monthly, rotating locations. There was a summer check-in regionally, and his church traveled to Winston-Salem to listen to the experiences of other churches that were in the same process.
A pillar of the program is looking around the congregation and doing an inventory of resources.
“That was a beautiful process for us because we we were able to look at our congregation and say, ‘Who is it that we have? What are the gifts and the talents that we already have that we may not even be aware of?'”
Dr. Kaury Edwards, Abernethy United Methodist Church
Edwards reflected that it was like pulling back a veil, seeing people and honoring their gifts. There are “talents that God has given them that they weren’t maybe using already for the kingdom, and (by) inviting them into the process, (we are) utilizing those gifts for the transformation of the world,” said Edwards.
Some congregational talents included a retired teacher of masonry, who now builds houses, an interior designer, and the Boy Scout hut. The wheels started to turn for the cohort — how might they use what is right in their congregation and backyard to help the community?
The renovations, led by members of the church, and plans are just beginning for the old Boy Scout hut, now Barnhardt House. It will be a revitalized space to serve as a community outreach center for the town of Rutherford College.
Hopes are to use the kitchen to share meals and teach cooking classes. Through the project, they are going to transform the building into a Red Cross certified shelter so when it becomes too cold outside for unhoused individuals, they can have a place to find refuge.
In updating the building, the goal is to create regular gathering spaces for support groups, community fairs, and everyday recreational activities.
Edwards is excited about all the possibilities.
“It’s going to be an opportunity for us to continue to connect deeper into the community that way,” he said, “to foster a greater sense of connectedness in a time of disconnected reality.”
Editor’s note: The Duke Endowment supports the work of EducationNC.
Behind the Story
This is the first feature in a five-part series on the NC Rural Center’s 2024 Connect Church cohort. Be on the lookout for more from Hannah Vinueza McClellan and Caroline Parker.
