Offering an Anchor of Hope

Dec. 11—HENDERSON — Last Sunday, an estimated 550 people flooded into Clearview Baptist Church's sanctuary for a Christmas Bluegrass Concert.

Attendance was so high the hosts had to put out extra chairs along the room's perimeter to witness performances of bluegrass tunes, hymns and Christmas carols courtesy of Jimmy Barrier and the Sound Barriers, the Hodnett Family Band and more.

The crowd donated just shy of $4,000 for the benefit of one of Clearview's ministries, Anchor of Hope.

Its goal is simple.

"We seek to let people know that, when they're going through trials and storms, that we're praying for them," said Kay Barrier, founder of the ministry. It does so in the form of prayer blankets, and, in some cases, gas cards or gift cards meant for food. The help depends on the need.

The most common form of help, though, is a blanket. They're either bought or donated, then sent out with a patch with a little message — "we're praying for you," "you aren't alone," "God loves you," and so on. It's a symbol of love both human and divine, Kay explained, a way of offering solidarity to those struggling.

Indeed, those who receive them tell Kay they feel comforted. In some cases where the recipient passes away, their family members cherish the blanket as much as their deceased loved one did.

Kay has a similar story. Her mother, Rebecca Roberson, fell ill a little over a decade ago. The ladies at her church presented her with a prayer blanket in her trying time.

"It was nothing fancy, just a piece of felt," said Kay. "But, because they had prayed over it, it showed that they cared. She brought that blanket everywhere she went."

That's what inspired Kay to start My Sister's Keeper at South Henderson Pentecostal Holiness Church back in 2009, her and her husband Jimmy Barrier's old church. Years later, the pair began going to Clearview, having heard about it and Dr. Abidan Shah from a family member.

Kay wanted to continue her ministry at their new church and Shah and the staff were happy to oblige. Thus, in 2022, Anchor of Hope was born. The concert last Sunday wasn't their first fundraiser — they held another concert at Clearview back in May — but it was the most successful one.

Jimmy has a band, Jimmy Barrier and the Sound Barriers, and a longtime love for musical performance. He came up with the idea for the concert.

The title is a play on his last name. It has a sort of a revolving door lineup, changing depending on who is available and where they're performing. Any church that requests their presence, usually for revivals, gets it, he said.

Everybody on his mother's side, he recounted, was a musician, performer or entertainer. While growing up, he and a sizable group of friends, including Curtis and T.W. Tyndall and Al Westeraiken, would play music to entertain their families. Nowadays, Jimmy wants to get young people into bluegrass and old gospel music, the genres he grew up with, so that they don't die out.

Clearview Church is a good place to do that, he said. Jimmy and Kay both praised Clearview for its ability to get the youth involved in church affairs. They sang praises to Shah as well, for his community-mindedness.

"The church is spreading like wildfire," said Jimmy.

Kay credited Jimmy with the idea for the concert, thanked Shah and the rest of Clearview's staff for their green light, space and all the musicians who "so generously gave their time" to the ministry.

Jimmy brought six members of the Sound Barriers — Donald Dixon, Matt Nelson, Roger Knox, Keith Aiken, J.W. Sanders and John White — at the concert alongside eight individual singers — Sara Paynter, Liz Jones, Kezia Iqbal, John Galantis, Nichole Shah, Evelyn Couch, David Williamson and Christie Edwards. The Hodnett Family Band, Jamie, Brooke, Grayson and Evan Hodnett, were also in attendance.

Those singers ranged in age from 10 to 93. They sang 21 songs between them, including "On My Father's Side," "Sweet Baby Jesus," "Christmas Times a Comin' " and "Blue Christmas."

Those interested in donating to Anchor of Hope should reach out to Clearview Church at 252-438-8433.