How Grandpa Got His House

 

Francis and Edith Schaeffer are known for their work in the Swiss Alps at the home they named L’Abri (the shelter).  Here they would welcome young adults for short and long term stays.  These folk from the 1960’s and 70’s were searching for answers and came to discuss current philosophies and to hear Christian apologetics.

 This idea of community has struck a chord with us for a long time.  While apologetics is not our particular bent, the idea of living together in community with young people whose lives are being spiritual formulated is appealing to us.  The idea however, seems somewhat daunting when we think of the size home such a ministry would require.  But I need only to be reminded of how grandpa got his house to know anything is possible.

 Grandpa moved his family to Cosby during the late spring of 1945 just before the stifling heat and humidity of summer began, when flowers and trees were in full bloom and pollen swirled through the air.  He arrived from Byrdstown, Tennessee (after having grown up in central Pennsylvania) to this raw Appalachian region with his family, a wife, two sons and a daughter at the request of L.L. Brown.  Mr. Brown and his wife had resettled in Cosby after a short stint in Persia (Iran), and they were now ready to retire.  The request came that grandpa come and take over “the work” of teaching the Bible in churches and and in public schools. 

 

These were the days when some still lived in federally owned homes purchased for the National Park.  The family moved into one of these with an urgency to find a more suitable place.  The hunt began that summer and eventually led to a suggestion from a neighbor.  Jettie was a lady who loved cats, crossed a foot log every day to manage the elementary school cafeteria and became a family friend.  She took grandpa and the others up a winding path behind her house to an unexpectedly beautiful home that was for sale. 

 

The home had been built by a commercial artist from Connecticut who had recently died.  It had the character and taste that you would expect from an artist.  Perched on the side of hill, it had a panoramic view with a row of windows showcasing the mountain range from the inside as well.  Natural stone work gave a tasteful dignity to the log house.  There was also a certain whimsy with the face of Mickey Mouse and a butterfly formed by rocks in the chimney.  "It's hard to believe there is a place like this here", was one of their first thoughts.   

 

The asking price was $4800 for the home and the ten acres of land.  It was being administered by a local judge for Mrs. Shaffer who had moved back to Connecticut.  Of course a poor preacher like grandpa couldn’t afford such an extravagant price but he approached Judge Shepherd with the question, “Do you think that woman would take $3000 for it?”  “I don’t know, but I’ll find out”, was the judge's reply.

 

A while later he came back with the answer, “Yes, she will, but there is another man who will give more for it.”  I’m sure grandpa’s heart must have dropped, but to make a counter offer was not his way.  “Let him have it; if the Lord doesn’t want us to have it, we don’t want it.”  The judge responded, “If we haven’t heard anything from him in a few days, we will close the deal.”  Unbeknownst to grandpa, the judge himself had already purchased the house, and they soon met and closed the deal by January for the agreed upon $3000.