Annie Bethke’s Fascinating Adventure UFTHEHOLLERSIN KENTUCKY
BY DOROTHY C. HASKIN
A nnie Betlike stared at her hammer and saw. They were the only two tools she had. So far, they had served her well. She had built a one-room shack of flat boards, roofed it and laid the flooring. She had no plane, but if the corners weren’t square, at least they came together. Some of the mountain men had helped her at first.They had felled a couple of trees and made the boards. But others had talked to them, pointing out, “ She must' be a sure-enough ‘revenooer,’ else why would she be snoopin’ around in these hills?” So one morning the men failed to show up and, after that, Annie Bethke worked alone. "Cut Me a Window" She had reached the place where she wanted a couple of windows. She picked up her carving knife. That ought to do it! She went out side, stepped back into the tall, weedy grass and measured the dis tance with her eyes, figuring where to put the windows. A neighboring woman strolled up the path and, watching Miss Bethke, asked, “What you all cal culate to do?” “ Cut me a window.” “My man says that when you have a window in a house, some
one is surfe to die,” the woman answered fearfully. W ell, no one is going to die in this house on account of a window. I’ll go when the Lord gets ready to take me and not before.” Miss Bethke was 45 and knew her Lord. She walked up to the house, stuck the tip of the butcher knife into the plank and started carving out a window. No one did die. Her neighbors watched fearfully for a year and then cut a window in their house. Annie Bethke brought more than windows to this Kentucky valley. She came as a nurse, serving as the only doctor most of the people knew, even until today. And she brought the simple gospel of salva tion through faith in Christ to a people whose religion was more words than the Word. Miss Bethke built the foundation for extensive missionary work in the Kentucky mountains. Two orphanages have been established. In 1935 the Kentucky Mountain Mission was formed, and in 1955 they had 15 missionaries working at eight stations “ up the hollers.” In 1947 the Bear Track Bible Camp was acquired. An average of 125 children, who memorize 100 Bible CONTINUED
O C TO B ER , 1955
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