“…I will show you my faith by my works…faith without works is dead also.” James 2:18, 26
The Beginning: 1924-25
“But the mountains shall be thine…and the outgoings of it shall be thine…” Josh 17:18
In 1924, Dr. Lela G. McConnell felt God’s call to Eastern Kentucky to start schools and community churches - the beginning of the Kentucky Mountain Holiness Association. The first piece of property, where Mt. Carmel High School is located, was graciously donated by Mr. and Mrs. J.G. Lawson.
The first building was built in the summer of 1925 by a group of men from Asbury College in Wilmore, Kentucky and Mt. Carmel was able to open its doors for class that same fall.
“Early in March 1925 the contract was let for the foundation of the first building of Mt. Carmel Church and School. On March 10th, while people stood around, some of them weeping for joy, I dug the first shovelful of earth. God’s own seal of blessing was richly upon us that day.” - Lela McConnell
“The first money given for the new church and school was $.50 from a dear little mountain girl. She had worked long and hard picking up coal that had fallen from the freight cars as they puffed up the mountain near her home…” - Lela G McConnell in ‘The Mountain Shall Be Thine’
“In the spring of 1925, just after Asbury College commencement, seven young men…wended their way to the scene of their labors for the summer…They established a camp, pitched an army squad tent for living quarters…His help was evident in so many ways, and His blessing was rich in the lives of the young men. They could well say with Nehemiah, ‘So builded we the…building.’…Mountain folk from War Creek, Mill Creek, White Oak, Vancleve, Canyon Falls, and Glory Creek had helped with the construction. The building was finished and dedicated Sept 8, 1925.”
What started as a small beginning, increased in size and enrollment as the word spread of a little school in the hills of Appalachia. A second school, the known as Kentucky Mountain Bible Institute, was started in 1931, and many churches followed in the surrounding areas. Later, the Bible School’s name was changed to Kentucky Mountain Bible College, and it is now a 4-year accredited college. Mt. Carmel High School was accredited with the state for many years, and then with ACSI in 1998. Students from these two schools cover the globe. Those who have had the privilege of attending Mt. Carmel know the strong bond with others who have attended and as we get older, we realize there is a family connection there that never dies.
This is something to hold onto in days of instability and social chaos.
