Bullard Mission House & Mission Clinic Dedication and Ribbon Cutting Ceremony

 

Bullard Mission House celebrates new facility with ceremony

Posted Tuesday, November 14, 2017 10:00 pm
By Micah McCartney
news@bullardnews.com
Last week marked a new chapter in the history of a well-recognized hometown Bullard organization, as the Bullard Mission House and Mission Clinic held a ribbon-cutting event with the Bullard Area Chamber of Commerce, as well as a dedication ceremony, Thursday, Nov. 9, at the new facility, located at 226 S. Phillips St.

“It’s really hard to put it all into words,” said Hazel mason, director of the Bullard Mission House. “We had all of those years where we were occupying any space we could, and even had to put of sheets and shower curtains to make additional rooms. Every day that I walk into this new building, I am just in awe and am thankful for God’s blessings on this ministry.”

The Bullard Mission House ministry began in 2004 as a ministry of Bullard FUMC. The Mission House, which was then working out of a small closet of Bullard FUMC, was started by Mason, who was the Chairman of Bullard FUMC’s Missions Committee, and her husband, Dean.

At that time, food donated by the Bullard FUMC congregation was distributed to approximately 14 families each month. At the beginning, Mason realized quickly the ministry’s meager budget of $200 per year was insufficient to meet the needs of people in the community.

The Bullard Mission House and Mission Clinic later grew out of this small ministry. In June 2006, the ministry moved into a building provided by the church, including a food pantry, clothes closet, and medical clinic.

Initially, the Bullard Mission House’s mission clinic was staffed by one volunteer doctor and one volunteer nurse, and served approximately 20 families per month, while the Mission House’s food pantry and clothes closet served approximately 90 families per month.

With the Bullard Mission House’s food pantry and clothes closet located at 226 S. Phillips St., and the Mission Clinic located at 307 W. Cain St., Mason said having the entity divided and in separate buildings would often create a dilemma.

“We just outgrew our facilities,” said Mason. “If someone needed groceries or I needed something from the Mission House, I would have to leave the clinic and drive to the Mission House. It was a lot of work and a lot of trouble, but we made do with what we had available to us.”

According to Mason, the board of directors for the Bullard Mission House was aware of the inconvenience, as well as the conditions of the buildings for both the Bullard Mission House and Mission Clinic, and began planning to build a new building.

“The Mission House Board began to plan for a new building to put everything under one roof because of our growth and the conditions of our facilities,” said Mason. “The building that was the food pantry and clothes closet, which also used to be Flowers by Sue, was eaten up with termites. We had already spent a lot of money for it to be repaired and we were looking at having to spend more money later to redo some things. The clinic, which used to be the old parsonage, is about 50 years old and needs to be redone. It may not have cost us as much to do the repairs rather than get a new building, but when you factor in having to close down to repair and all the stress with having the two locations, it was just a mess.”

Mason said when she found out that the Bullard Mission House had raised enough funds to build a new building, she was excited to know each aspect of the Bullard Mission House would now be under one roof.

“It was so amazing,” said Mason. “It was just really hard to believe that one day, the entire Bullard Mission House would actually be under one roof and actually be a clinic, food pantry and clothes closet like it should be. I was excited because I knew it was a possibility. I had that much faith that it would one day work out.”

With the completion of the organization’s new building in April, the new Bullard Mission House building, which sits at the same location as the previous building on S. Phillips St., now features a total of 5,000 square feet, and includes a new home for the food pantry, medical clinic, and clothes closet.

According to Mason, the new Bullard Mission House and Mission Clinic Facility was made possible completely through God’s preparations, including the selection of Bullard’s own Jason Campbell as the builder.

“When I walked inside of this building, before we even furnished it, I said that this was all of God,” said Mason. “This building would not be here if it wasn’t God’s plan all along. For Jason Campbell to build what he built here for the Mission House, it’s just unreal. We had drawn up and changed several of the plans, and it all just started coming together. All the time talking to Jason, I knew it was going to be okay. I knew that God had chosen Jason to build this facility; even with all of the bids we’d received, it all pointed to him. Jason is Bullard, and this clinic is Bullard; it’s definitely because of God and Jason that we’re here.”

Mason said the support of the Bullard community has allowed the Bullard Mission House to keep its doors open throughout its existence.

“We are so appreciative of the community’s support,” said Mason. “We could have not been open all of these years without community support. The community has continued to support us and has been there for us when we needed it. We hope they will continue to support the Mission House in the future, as well.”

Now its own non-profit organization, the Bullard Mission Clinic provided medical services for over 1,400 patients, while the Food Pantry and Clothes Closet served over 2,800 families in 2015. The Bullard Mission House and Mission Clinic also provide a School Supply Train and Christmas for Children.

For more information about the Bullard Mission House and Mission Clinic or to volunteer or donate, visit www.bullardmission.org.

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