A bus tour of St. Francisville, La., by the Hearts of Hope charity raised money for victims of the recent tornado in Alabama.
Hearts of Hope Director Carlton Thornhill said he purchased $1,000 in Walmart gift cards using proceeds from the tour and plans to deliver them to the Rev. Ken Stover on Thursday. Stover, a former Columbia minister who now lives in Alabama near where the powerful storms caused widespread damage March 3, will be in town for a book signing at the library and will be collecting goods then as well.
“It’s all just a drop in the bucket, but I thought we needed to be a drop in the bucket for them,” Thornhill said.
This was the fifth bus tour in six years for Hearts of Hope, and Thornhill said the profits always go toward disaster relief.
About 120 people traveled on March 16 to St. Francisville, a small town about 30 miles north of Baton Rouge known for its historic homes, and Thornhill wryly noted there were a record six men this year.
Visits included a couple of bed-and-breakfasts owned by people with Columbia-area ties: Arlin Dease, originally from Bunker Hill, owns Hemingbough in St. Francisville and Brandon Beach, originally from Dexter in Walthall County, owns the St. Francisville Inn.
The tourists also visited Greenwood Plantation, where the 1985 miniseries “North and South” starring Patrick Swayze filmed scenes. Singers Crystal Browning and Jeff Blackard performed two songs connected to Swayze at that stop during the tour.
They stopped as well at Rosemont in Woodville, Miss., which was Jefferson Davis’s childhood home. They also visited the oldest Methodist Church in three states, where they held a memorial service for Sandra Sutton, a Columbia woman killed in a 2013 car wreck.
The final stop was at the South of the Border restaurant, where the surprise chef was Mike Smith of Columbia, along with his wife, Nancy.
Pictured Above: Members of a Hearts of Hope tour dine inside the St. Francisville Inn during a March 16 visit to the Louisiana town known for its rich history. | Photo by Holli Powell
