On the mountain

Each year, the Mountain T.O.P. ministry holds an event called Friends Weekend, at which friends of the ministry show up to work on Mountain T.O.P.’s base camp, Cumberland Pines, to get it ready for the busy spring and summer camp seasons. It’s a bit more relaxed than the normal home repair ministry; if you want to take some time off to visit old friends or favorite place on the mountain, you’re free to do so.

A few years ago, they added a fundraising event called the George Bass Brick & Mortar Fund Dinner. This is held on the Saturday night of Friends Weekend, and it’s open not only to Friends Weekend participants but to anyone. It’s named for the late George Bass, who founded Mountain T.O.P.

I haven’t been to Friends weekend in years, and I’m ashamed to admit that while I have meant to attend the George Bass Fund dinner numerous times over the years, I haven’t ever made it. Sometimes it was my fault, sometimes it wasn’t.

I thought about going this year, but didn’t get my reservation in in time.

Friday night, I got a text message from one of my Mountain T.O.P. friends, Jan Lloyd-Gohl. Jan lives near Chicago, although she’s about to move to Colorado, which will make it harder for her to attend Mountain T.O.P. events going forward. Jan was in town for Friends Weekend — as usual, she came down a day early for sight-seeing, this year in and around Murfreesboro. She said wasn’t planning on working Saturday. She wanted to know if I wanted to meet her somewhere between Shelbyville and Cumberland Pines.