Hilliard Institute Doings in 2019
Through 2019, The Hilliard Institute continued in several of our non-profit partnerships. Our main focus this year was with the Woodfine Young Writers Guild as we concentrated efforts on helping children read and write better, and to find joy in the process. Below are some details about the Institute’s movements throughout 2019.
Book Giveaways
Throughout 2019, we gave away hundreds of our Hilliard Press books (including the ABCs of Storytelling for Young Writers, Woodfine’s books on etiquette and teas, teacher training books, and our teen devotional book for girls) to help children grow in their reading and writing process.
Hilliard Press also participated in the Spring Hill Arts Council Art walk in June, giving away children’s books and selling copies of their other publications.
The ABCs of Storytelling for Young Writers
We published the ABCs of Storytelling for Young Writers as a guide to storytelling through encouragement and information—the book offers coloring pages, illustrations, journal prompts, and more! Written by Jessa Sexton and Dr. Hilliard, the book is sold to raise funds so Hilliard Press can donate copies to teachers, students, and libraries.
Young Writers Anthology
We published a book of short stories and poems from students in the lower school at Columbia Academy in Columbia, Tennessee. We worked closely with 160 students at the school on how to tell and write stories. We had 13 editors (from Ireland, England, Ramsey Solutions, plus Christian author Patsy Clairmont, and other local authors and editors from Tennessee) volunteer to proof and edit the submitted stories. This team selected the best submissions, and Hilliard Press published those 68 stories and poems in an anthology as a fundraiser for the library at Columbia Academy.
Tiger the Mule
In 2019, Hilliard Press published Tiger the Mule. Written by J. Allan Smith, of Middle Tennessee, this is the story of a mule named Tiger. Smith’s experience with troubled teens in public education, his work with rescued mules on the family farm, and his faithfulness to our awesome God have led him to share the road of recovery for Tiger the Mule. He has a story to share that not only speaks to how to treat these hybrid equine, but lessons we all can use to help young people who face difficulties in life.
J. Allan Smith takes Tiger with him to schools to share this story. Through 2019, Smith and Tiger traveled for several months out west on a book tour. Plans are to continue these tours through 2020. The Hilliard Institute and various donors will underwrite some travel costs for this educational and literary book tour designed especially for children.
Cherokee Missions
We have continued our non-profit partnership with Cherokee Missions in Cherokee, North Carolina, at the Cherokee Church of Christ on the Cherokee Indian Reservation. This church started in the 1940s, and in 1998, Dr. Hilliard lived and worked on the reservation while conducting research for his doctoral dissertation on teaching and learning styles of the Eastern Band of the Cherokee. Dr. Hilliard’s interest in this culture and this church began as a youth when his father led mission work there. The Hilliard Institute also raises all the financial support for a full-time ministerial couple, who live and work on the reservation. Yearly campaigns are held when necessary to collect items of particular need such as children’s diapers, health and hygiene products, and non-perishable food items, etc.
Power of Words Festival
Dr. K. Mark Hilliard, Vice Chancellor for the Hilliard Institute for Educational Wellness, returned to Abbeyleix, Ireland, in August for The Power of Words Festival where he shared a reading from his book, The Crow’s Enchanted Dance. Also attending was Rosemary Hilliard, Vice President and editor for Hilliard Institute. This inaugural literary festival was a celebration of words, language, and literature in all their shapes and forms—written, spoken, acted, and sung. The Power of Words Festival is the brainchild of Amanda Kelly, who along with her brilliant committee—Evelyn Quinlan, Francine Ashe, Marna Hatton, and Noelle O’Connell—created a weekend full of enchantment along with a spirit of inclusion and belonging for up-and-coming writers, as well as several who are well-known among the Irish author scene.
Woodfine Talks
Chancellor David Woodfine from England had his annual visit for the month of events which included talks at churches, women’s groups, Buckhorn Inn, Columbia Academy students and faculty, Spring Hill Library, and multiple community teas. He shares about teaching and learning, his experiences in food service and education, as well as reading and writing skills. During his 2019 talks, Dr. Woodfine sold copies of his new memoirs and donated all funds to the Woodfine Young Writers Guild.