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This year marks the 26th consecutive year that Hickory Grove United Methodist Church has sponsored the Annual Founder’s Day Celebration on the 3rd Saturday of October. Most of the folks that originally started this County-Wide Celebration have gone on to live in Heaven, and they are certainly missed.
But a whole new generation has continued with the Celebration and this year, the event will take place on Saturday, Oct. 15, and it all begins by 8 a.m. As usual, the program and all the booths will close down by 2 p.m., and that is when the Circuit-Riding Preacher will arrive to give his Annual Message. Brother Tim Blanton will be dressed just like the old-time preachers who rode endless days on horseback or mule-back to reach the small rural Methodist Churches in North Florida and South Georgia. This writer does not believe that Pastor Tim could ride from South Carolina to Pinetta via horseback, so we can just imagine that trip which many preachers made about 100 years ago.
There will be old-time Gospel Singing on the official Hickory Grove Singing Stage, starting at 9 a.m. The singing will run through 2 p.m. when it is time for the Pastor’s message.
In years past, folks from as far away as Hawaii, Arkansas, Mississippi, Georgia and all over Florida have attended Founder's Day. Many folks come from surrounding counties. And enjoy a great day at church with good food and even better fellowship. Don’t forget, the Pastor’s Message is always a highlight for Founder’s Day.
There will be food galore, starting with Bobby Joe’s Famous Venison Chili, prepared by son Michael and of course Bobby Joe. He has been in charge of the “Chili Booth” for nearly 25 years. Cousin Mary Lou’s Country Kitchen will be making hot and buttery biscuits in the kitchen on wood burning stoves, and you can put cane syrup, jelly or ham and sausage on the Biscuit. Whatever you choose, it will be great.
Tim Sanders will be boiling sweet corn in the shuck in big pots and you dip it in melted butter, and it is good as it gets. You might want to put some salt and pepper on it as well.
Thanks to Willie Agner and son Willie Jr. (BoBo), they have provided the church with green peanuts, which the church members picked off about a month ago, and they will be available at Eugene Williams and Charles Wooten’s Boiled Peanut Booth. The Agners have grown the peanuts for the church for the past 15 or more years, and we are certainly indebted to Willie and BoBo for so generously donating part of their farming crop to our Church.
We will also have the Country Store up and running at this year’s Founder’s Day and there will be toys, crafts, and all kinds of jellies and jams made by folks at the church. Do your Christmas shopping early and take a sack full of goodies to give as Christmas presents.
The cane syrup mill will be up and running also, making the delicious elixir we all love to put on pancakes and biscuits, pure cane syrup. Not too bad for sopping smoked sausage either!
There will be chicken and rice, more commonly called Chicken Pileau served up at Hickory Grove. It is cooked in old-fashioned black iron wash pots, and the end produce will be absolutely fantastic. There is no charge for the Chicken Pileau, but a donation box will stare you in the face once you make it to the front of the line. Everyone can afford a few bucks for the best chicken and rice found almost anywhere! We will also have home-made ice cream, sweet potato fries, funnel cakes, pork skins and the list goes on and on.
The reason Founder’s Day was first started some 25 years ago, was to celebrate the early Madison County Pioneers who settled in our part of the County. Over 90 percent of these folks were just plain dirt farmers. Their life was rough and the church was a small part of their lives. Church needs to be a part of all of our lives today. Over the years, we have tried to introduce folks to how it “Used to Be.” Our grandmothers and grandfathers did not have fancy cars to drive with air conditioners, nor did they live in brick homes with central AC and heat.
We at Hickory Grove want to welcome all folks to come and visit and stay all day. Enjoy the food and just have a good day at church. It can’t get any better than that.