Last Day Of School, Faith Hills Mennonite School, Crockett, KY--A Crosscultural Experience

On Thursday, May 10, 2018, I traveled from my home to Crockett, KY, to attend the annual celebration of the last day of school at Faith Hills Christian School, the local Mennonite School.  I had been invited the event the previous year by my friend, Aquila Derstine, but was unable to attend at the time.  I have mentioned in several other posts on this blog that I maintain relationships with many of the local Mennonites for both business and friendship reasons.  I generally use Mennonite workers when I need to do anything major to a vehicle or my home.  But I had never been to the last day of school celebration even though I have known a handful of previous Mennonite teachers. I also wanted to attend this year because I was taking some books to a young Mennonite woman who has just published her second novel.  Her name is Emily Steiner and she is one of the former Mennonite school teachers I know.  I will write more about two of her books on this blog very shortly.

 

Photo Of An Unknown Mennonite School by Pintanderest

 

 

Incidentally, the only requirements, to my knowledge, for a person to become a Mennonite school teacher are that they be a practicing Mennonite, completion of Mennonite school themselves, and worthy of the respect of the local school committee and the community. Mennonite students only attend school until they are about sixteen years old and immediately go to work at some job in the community. Some of these former students might also leave home for a period to attend a church run Bible School. The church receives an exemption to mandated attendance laws across the country under the same Freedom Of Religion protections that the Amish receive. 

Program Last Day Of School-Faith Hills School

When I attend any church related event in the Mennonite, Amish, or serpent handling communities where I have ties, I always wear clothing which is nearly identical to what the men in the that community will be wearing to that occasion whether it is a church service, funeral, or a school event such as this.  The celebration started around noon and was attended by most of the local Mennonite community especially including relatives of the current students.  The event was primarily a religious song fest by the students and teachers with one song, "I Sing The Mighty Power Of God", being sung by the entire audience, students, and teachers.  The school is broken into three rooms each with a single teacher who is usually in their late teens or early twenties and, in most cases, unmarried.  They may or may not have grown up in the local congregation.  A few such as Asa Derstine have traveled out of state to teach school for a year or two.  There are usually three or four grades in a particular room with the lines of separation being roughly equivalent to those you would find in a similar sized public school in a rural community.  After an introduction by Aquila Derstine along with a prayer, the singing began with the opening and closing hymns being sung by all the students and teachers adn the remainder being sung by the students in a single room.  The audience contained several other non-Mennonite members of the community who also have relationships with the Mennonite community.  There was also one non-Mennonite man who is married to a Mennonite woman which usually happens rarely.  It is my understanding that his wife was not raised as a Mennonite but joined the church as an adult.  The men, including myself were almost all dressed in long sleeved blue dress shirts and plain blue, black, or dark grey pants.  All the women and girls wore traditional long Mennonite dresses in either solid colors or mildly muted, small patterns.  They all cover their heads with small, gauzy hats or head coverings of a sort.  

 

Photo Of Anonymous Mennonites by Huffington Post

 

 

During the singing I sat with my friend, Ottis Conley, and his wife.  Ottis and his brother Cletus were both born non-Mennonites and their mother joined the church when they were young boys.  The woman who cleans our house is a cousin to Ottis but belongs to a conservative Baptist congregation.  I was able to also spend time talking with several other members of the community with whom I have relationships and in some ways it was a lot like a family reunion or homecoming ceremony.   

Song For Entire Audience-Faith Hills Last Day Of School

Nearly everyone, or at least every family, brought some sort of food item and everyone ate in same folding chairs which were used for the audience during the singing program.  The food was simple, wholesome, and tasty without a great deal of expense which is how nearly all Mennonites cook and eat every day.  I have eaten on a few occasions in Mennonite homes and I have never seen a meat entree at a meal where every person had a personal piece of meat such as chicken, beef, or other farm animal meats.  Meat is usually included in at least one recipe as an ingredient but not necessarily the main ingredient.  I ate the meal with my friends, the Derstine family and the Bear family.  After the lunch was over and the chairs, tables, and other equipment put away, there was a long baseball game for the young people and the adults and small children spread out in the grass and shady areas between the baseball field and the small cemetery near the church.  The baseball game was quite interesting in that no young person who wished to play was excluded.  During their defensive side of an inning, each team had nearly a dozen outfielders.  During offensive halves of innings, the players lined up in some pre-ordained order and eventually everyone got a turn or two at bat.  Most surprising about the game was the fact that I never heard a single occasion when any player was derided, belittled, or even seriously ribbed about missing a defensive play, failing to outrun a fielder's throw, or striking out.  All these players, many less than ten years old, were naturally respectful of everyone else on the field.  After the game ended, we all walked to our vehicles, shook hands, exchanged pleasantries, and pledge to see each other sometime soon.  To say the least, I thoroughly enjoyed the event and will try to be there next year.