By Joel Spears

NEW CANTON — More than a decade ago, a group of determined citizens with ties to the Church Hill-area community of New Canton had one goal in mind — to create a place where neighbors can “meet, work, plan, and grow into the future.”

    As a first step, they obtained the former New Canton School building and campus, deeded to the club in the 1990s by Hawkins County School System.

     Built in the 1950s as a segregated school for East Hawkins County’s African-American students, New Canton School served multiple uses after segregation ended in the mid-1960s.  Most notably, the three-classroom brick building, which included a cafeteria and gymnasium, was renamed New Canton Enrichment Center and devoted to the education of developmentally challenged students.

    During those years the building was also a community center and a polling place at election time.  However, federal laws passed in the 1980s mandated closure of facilities like the enrichment center and school board members voted to deed New Canton School to the community it served.

    Sitting vacant the building was vandalized, stripped of many fixtures, its windows were broken, and the campus on New Canton Road became severely overgrown.

    While the building rested behind a thicket of trees and brush, the New Canton Community Club continued working to obtain 501c3 tax-exempt status for the property, which was recently achieved. 

    Now, after a long wait, renovations and maintenance can begin.

    For the past five months, several club members have sweated and toiled through the overgrown property to rediscover what they and others in the community remember as New Canton School.

    “This building was a center for the surrounding area for years and we’re working to bring that back,” club co-chairman Ozine Bly said.

    “A lot of us went to school here and this is an important part of the community’s history.  We also want to do this so our kids will have something to remember,” chairman Richard Ford added.

    According to the club’s brochure, proposed educational uses for the renovated building include tutoring and literacy programs, CPR classes and use of instructional or educational films.  Recreational opportunities include basketball, softball, arts and crafts, and aerobics.  Other possible services involve programs for the elderly and health-related activities such as blood pressure screenings.

    Bly said the club’s new 501c3 status allows them to apply for financial assistance on some repairs, but each member agreed that community volunteers and public financial support are also necessary to make the center a reality.

    For now, club members will maintain the property and make sure the building is structurally sound.  While the walls are strong, the roof needs to be replaced, new plumbing needs to be installed and new windows must be purchased.

    For club member Marcheta Ford the school needs restoration because it is a symbol of community pride and her personal heritage.

    “This is the only Black school left on this end of Hawkins County,” she said.  “It is something for everybody in the community to be proud of, but it’s also part of our county’s heritage.”

    This weekend, August 8 through 10, the club will host a New Canton Family Reunion for the first time.

    Planned activities include games, vendors and music at the New Canton School campus, as well as a banquet and dance.

    On Friday the event will begin at 10 a.m. and last until 6 p.m. weather permitting. 

    Additional activities that day will include an afternoon trip to Rogersville for a tour of Swift Museum at Price Public Community Center, followed by an evening hayride through
New Canton.

    On Saturday from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. events will continue at the school and include a waffle brunch.

    Everybody is encouraged to bring any family members, friends and relatives who have roots in the New Canton area.  Organizers also encouraged everybody to bring lawn chairs, blankets.

    Visitors will also have an opportunity to register and reserve their seat for a New Canton Reunion Banquet and Dance at Kingsport Civic Auditorium Saturday from 7 p.m. until 11 p.m.  Cost to attend the banquet is $25 per person.

    While there is no set schedule to complete renovations to the building, members would like to see them mostly complete in two years.

    Ford added that cleaning the property was “phase one.”

    “Phase two will be applying for grants to get renovations started,” Bly added.  “And phase three will be the renovations.”

    On the back of New Canton Community Club’s brochure, members best summarized their intentions for the renovation project with the following statement: “Someone once said that a journey of a million miles must begin with just one step.  Step out with us as we pursue our dream.”

    For more information about the project, or the reunion, call Chairman Richard Ford at (423)
357-4298, or Co-chairman Ozine Bly at 357-4102.