Blue Mountain Academy - Echoes Yearbook (Hamburg, PA)

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MM n DEDICATIGN . I 1'-'S gi, They dreamed, they hoped, they prayed, they sacri- ficed-that the children and youth, nurtured within the borders of their churches, might be sheltered and trained within the protecting walls of a secondary school dedi- cated to the perpetuation of the loftiest ideals and the highest principles of Christian Education. Thus Blue Mountain Academy came into being. And those whose faith performed the Miracle of Blue Mountain included not alone the parents of children, but all the members of the churches-old and young. Seldom has there been witnessed such unity of action on the part of church and conference leadership. The response of all believers to the challenge to arise and buildw has been unparal- leled. In recognition of such a marvelous spirit of de- votion and sacrifice, a grateful school family pledges its consecration and affectionately dedicates to the members of the churches of the East Pennsylvania Con- ference of Seventh-day Adventists, this our first school annual-BLUE MOUNTAIN ECHOES. X- l c Ill. il if 1 .

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NT AIN ECI-IGES

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IN THE BEGINNING. . Great institutions have as their foundations momentous decisions. So we trace the beginnings of Blue Mountain'Academy back to that warm afternoon of a never-to-be-forgotten Independence Day-,Iuly 4, 1948. The place-conference camp- ground, Wescosville. The occasion-the Sunday afternoon meeting of the Fifteenth Biennial Ses- sion of the East Pennsylvania Conference. The question before the delegates- Will the consti- tuency of the East Pennsylvania Conference au- thorize and support an aggressively planned effort to establish and maintain a boarding academy for the youth of the conference?77 The conference president, Elder T. E. Unruh, voiced the long felt need for a secondary school in the conference to train the ever increasing num- ber of youth eager to serve the cause. The vast- ness of the undertaking, the heavy costs involved, the proper location of such an institution, the principles upon which it should be built, and the type of training it must offer-all these aspects were studied in an atmosphere of intense earnest- ness. The entire audience-delegates and all-par- ticipated in the discussion and in the balloting. Then came the vote on the main question. Result? The approval was unanimous-there was not a dissenting vote. The great decision had been made. The main question having been decided, the delegates proceeded to implement their action. The Educational Expansion Committee was created and given power to act for the constituency in the matter of establishing the boarding school. This committee was composed of the members of the Conference Committee, the educational super- intendent of the local conference, the Union Con- ference Educational Secretary, and one lay repre- sentative from each of the conference districts. That committee had its first meeting on ,Iuly 25, 1948, and passed a number of far reaching actions including the appointment of locating, finance and publicity committees, the adoption of a set of standards to govern the selection of a location and the launching of a drive to raise an initial build- ing fund of 354-00,000.00-half of which was to be contributed by the church members. The Edu- cational Expansion Committee, at this first meet- ing, adopted the slogan- Build in Time for '49,'- little realizing the time and effort that would be required to get the project underway. To those in positions of responsibility it was evident from the beginning that if the 4000 mem- bers of the East Pennsylvania Conference would succeed in establishing a million dollar institution the project would have to be undertaken as AN ADVENTURE IN FAITH. To make doubly sure that all church members clearly understood the involvement, the actions of the constituency as well as the actions of the Educational Expansion Committee were submitted to the churches for study and approval on August 14 or 21, 1948. The re- sult? Ninety-six and one-half percent of the mem- bers approved the plans and pledged their sup- port. The search for a suitable location began im- mediately. To those charged with this responsi- bility the experience was a frustrating one. Many properties were discovered, inspected and rejected because they did not meet the standards adopted. So passed the years 1949, 1950 and 1951. The waiting time is the hardest time of all, someone has aptly observed. It is also a great strain on faith. This was evident from the building fund receipts. In 1949 the churches contributed nearly 355000.00 to the fund, in 1950-less than 3B1500.00, 1951-330000. Then Providence intervened. On August 7, 1952, Mr. I. Lee Bausher, owner of the Blue Mountain Springs Dairy, near Hamburg, consented to let conference representatives inspect his holdings even though the property was not listed for sale. From the first contact the impression deepened that this was the place. General and Union Con- ference representatives were called in for counsel and they reacted enthusiastically. The owner con- sented to consider an offer. The Educational Ex- pansion Committee inspected the property and recommended its purchase. The Union and General Conference Committees approved the purchase plan. On January 28, 1953, the sales agreement was signed. Final settlement was made on April 1. The members of East Pennsylvania Constituency became the owners of an excellent location-667 acres of land, 169 head of cattle and a full line of farm equipment. The uBlue Mountain Academy To Be had found a home. Ownership stimulated faith and increased faith led to unprecedented response. In this first year of ownership there came into the academy build- ing fund the staggering sum of nearly 3,E220,000.00. The 4'Big Pushi' had started. May 3 and 10, 1953, will be long-remembered days. They were the first 'official visiting days to the new school property. The members of the churches had been invited to come and seef' And come they did!! More than 800 people came from 44 churches of the conference. The regularly conducted tours ended on the campus site where dedication prayers were offered. The people were amazed. Many asked, MIS this Canaan's land?,' while others responded- This is beyond all I expected to findf' As the people traveled to their homes they found in their hearts the echo of a promise- Now faith is the substance of things hoped forf' The ADVENTURE IN FAITH was in the process of becoming a reality.