Hoover E. Smith
(Camp musician in 1976)
Thank you for your suggestion that I share with you some experiences of the Hortense Wesleyan Camp Meeting. I was a camp worker there with Rev. Yancey Carter. My memories of the camp begin with the tremendous attachment the people of Georgia have to the camp. It seems to be a part of their life, and they are drawn there for spiritual as well as social help.
The prayer concerns of the camp caught my attention immediately. I was impressed with the number of times the camp was called to prayer, how the people prayed until victory was theirs, how that the youth of the Georgia District met with the adults and there seemed to be a oneness between them.
The preachment from the pulpit was evangelistic, yet with a strong emphasis on living a holy life. The importance of this was the response of the people to those truths.
I remember the personal concerns of a Mr. Roberson for me. While the people loved the unusual taste of the water in the region, I could barely tolerate it. Mr. Roberson found out about my struggle, and each day he brought me a gallon of water from a "deep well." Another memory was the snakes. When I arrived, a snake had bitten two of the caretaker's hogs, one had died and the other was very sick. Also, during one of the services a snake was discovered in the sawdust in the tabernacle. It was killed, and the service went on as if nothing had happened. Another time the youth were on a field hike and one of the boys killed a snake that was almost as long as he was.
I have since served as speaker for the District Wesleyan Men's Convention and as evangelist for several church revivals. All of this has given me a fondness for the great people of the Georgia District.
May God continue to bless and anoint your efforts in building the Kingdom of God here on earth.