Hodges makes plans for Bear Creek Education Center
By Alison James
alison.james@fct.wpengine.com
A feeling of yesteryear hung in the air as a small group recently toured the Bear Creek Education Center and Overton Farms. If you search online for Bear Creek Education Center, you will find that it is listed as “permanently closed,” but with a little elbow grease and a little rehabilitation money, Mike Franklin is determined to change that.
Franklin, director of Rock Bridge Canyon Equestrian Park, isn’t the only one who has a vested interest in seeing the cabins, dining hall, dormitories and historic sites returned to their former glory. It’s part of the vision of Hodges as a whole, and it’s been a pet project for Rep. Johnny Mack Morrow.
“Hodges has committed its future to this project,” Morrow said. “It’s a leap of faith. All they need is just some help where we can once again see this place what it used to be … The Town of Hodges’ future is tied to this project.”
“It is,” Franklin agreed. “Either the project goes or the town goes, and that’s a fact. Hodges has put all of its resources behind these projects. We’ve maxed out the loans – we’ve done everything to get where we are, and it’s paying off.”
A lease agreement was reached among BCDA, Town of Hodges and the TVA in December 2014 with the vision toward making Bear Creek Education Center and Overton Farms a major tourist destination in Hodges, as Rock Bridge Canyon Equestrian Park is becoming.
Help to get the site “back on its feet” has already begun in the form of free labor offered by the Back Country Horsemen.
“They have been working around here on the nature trails,” Franklin said. The Back Country Horsemen, both in a local chapter and neighboring chapters, voiced their commitment to doing whatever they can to help realize the vision for Bear Creek Education Center.
The center can sleep 90+ campers in bunks, and Franklin said they are also making arrangements to increase that capacity.
Representatives from Franklin County Development Authority, Colbert County Development Authority and other agencies were encouraged to consider lump sum donations to help make this project happen, during the recent tour. Several representatives were optimistic about the project being worthy of funds, and Franklin is hopeful he might soon have enough money in hand to begin work in earnest.
“We’re going to make it happen,” Franklin said.
