May 1, 2000
Small church makes big
impact to help teenager with cancer
___By George Henson
___Staff Writer
___SCROGGINS--Baptists in the rural East Texas town of Scroggins believe a small church in a small community can pull off an enormous project, if God is in it.
___When 15-year-old Jared Hicks was diagnosed with cancer, New Hope Baptist Church put together a plan to help him and his family. The church staged a fish fry and silent auction to benefit the family and help pay medical bills.
___Merchants in the surrounding communities of Mount Vernon, Pittsburg, Winnsboro and Mount Pleasant were contacted about making donations of items for the silent auction.
___The congregation at New Hope, which averages about 40 in Sunday School and is without a pastor, didn't know how many people to anticipate, but the turnout exceeded all expectations, said Minister of Music Paul Russell.
___The population of the small town multiplied dramatically the night of March 25, as more than 900 people lined up for a catfish dinner and an estimated 600 more people turned out for the silent auction.
___"We had a line of people from the church to the highway--about 100 yards--that lasted three to four hours," Russell said.
___To keep people in line entertained, the band inside the church moved outside so more could enjoy the music. Tables were set up in the church's fellowship hall and all over the church's parking lot.
___After frying and serving 400 pounds of catfish fillets and conducting the silent auction, more than $30,000 had been raised.
___"The grandparents of the boy were there, and I don't need to tell you there were tears flowing that night," Russell said. "The family was just so appreciative."
___Russell's wife, Billie, said she never had experienced an event like this.
___"I've never been a part of anything so exciting," she said. "You were tired, but you just didn't want to go home."
___People in the community have shown a renewed interest in the church since the benefit, Russell said. "It has done a lot for our church. People have come to church who were here that night, and we know of two other families who are going to come. It's really going to be a big benefit for us."
___Russell is careful, however, to put the source of the success of the benefit in the right place.
___"The Lord really blessed," he said.
___An account for Hicks has been established at First National Bank in Mount Vernon.
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