In the early 1920s the rural areas of the North Carolina Blue Ridge Mountains were yet very simple compared to Charlotte. Sparta was mostly a farming and mining community that was limited to working from dawn to dusk. Electricity came to Charlotte in the 1880's. Fifty five years later, in 1935, the rural areas in the mountains still did not have electricity.  That year the residents formed a cooperative to bring electricity to their rural area. With the support of the us government and hard work of the residents, electricity came to Sparta and the surrounding areas in 1938-40.

A friend of ours, Noah Lyon, told us about his grandmother, Mable Osborne Lyon, being born here at Redeemers Ridge in the early 1920's. This picture was taken in front of their home down by the spring where they raised 8 children. Since electricity didn't arrive in this area until the 1940s, they not only used the spring for water, but also to keep milk and things cold. Of course the home is no longer standing, but there are remnants of what looks like the spring house stone still there. Today a new springhouse is in place, and the original driveway has been restored.

In the 1950s Mabel and Robert Whitaker purchased the then 67 acre farm, which was open land. Robert worked for the NCDOT and Mabel was a manager for Troutman Plant #2 in Sparta. When their daughter Kathy was just starting school they had George Finney built there house, barn, and later they added a tobacco shed. They raised sheep, cattle, chickens, and crops. Kathy recalls the wonderfully creamy milk Shorty their Jersey cow produced, and sitting down by the creek on a big rock protruding from the embankment with her dog. Today the Cabin Creek trail leads to "Kathy's Rock" where one can sit and view old cabin ruins and consider times gone by while listening to the babbling creek.

A friend of the Whitakers, their neighbor Cliff Rector, started helping out with the farm when Robert was weak from lung cancer. Robert passed and Mabel was widowed in mid life, she never remarried. Cliff leased the farm and continued to help Mabel. In 2015 Mabel went home to be with the Lord at age 89. Kathy continued to have Cliff lease the farm until it was sold in 2022. Today, Cliff is still farming and raising cattle at age 89.

While seeking the Lord in reestablishing my life in the spring of 2019 I (Linda) ventured from my home town and family in MN to Davidson NC to visit my daughter Afton and grandson who had relocated there from MN. I liked it so much I decided to spend the winters there and bought a townhouse in Cornelius that needed updating. As I finished the updating I sensed the Lord was directing me to move to the mountains. After looking at a few properties in Henderson, Ashville, and Boone I realized that the mountains of NC are a very vast area, and prayed God would direct me to a specific area. "Sparta" was the answer...which I had never heard of.

About then the 2020 pandemic was in full force. I headed to MN in June to visit my son Josh and his family for the summer while the townhouse was for sale and looked online for properties in Sparta.  My townhouse sold the end of June, but I had 3 months till closing. By the time I needed to head south again to pack up for closing, I had not found a new place. Made an offer on one but it sold minutes prior to my offer.  So I took my teardrop camper and reserved a week at Stone Mountain State Park to find the place God wanted me. After searching Sparta to no avail, and 30 days till I would be homeless, I hunkered down in my little camper to pray for God's directive. Clearly in my mind my prayer was immediately answered, "Go to Walgreens in Sparta and get a local paper and check the classifieds." So I did, and there was one home listed there for sale by owner.

Five years after Mable had passed Kathy was ready to sell the house and one acre. She and her husband Dan Brooks had a trip to Sparta planned to show the house to a few folks and I met them then. Thirty days later I had closed on my house in Cornelius and was moved into my new house in Sparta. One of the stipulations was the some work be done on the back yard and basement window wells. Dan and Kathy were unable to find anyone to do that before the closing and my moving in.

While Kathy had a garage sale getting the house ready for me, a neighbor suggested they call John Huffman to do the work, and they did. A couple weeks after I moved in John came and started the work. John had lived in the area all his life. And in getting to know him I learned he had twin adult special needs boys, was a semi retired general contractor, and retired pastor. His wife had passed away at an early age of Alzheimer's and he had cared for her at home. Come to find out, that first day we met we both new God had brought us together...and with time He did. In July of 2021 we were married at Stone Mountain State Park.

In 2022 we contacted Dan and Kathy about purchasing a couple more acres behind us. Dan said he was coming to town and would stop by. That morning I was praying about our meeting and the Lord put it on my heart that Dan would offer to sell us all the land and it would be ours. He did and it is. In April of 2023 we started transforming our 47 acer farm into Redeemers Ridge Retreat.

John and I love the Lord and spending time in His creation where our awareness of His presence is heightened... driving the Blueridge taking in the views, star gazing, cooking over a campfire, hiking and exploring, fishing, camping. And like most, we love to share what we love with others.

Redeemers Ridge Retreat is here. Looking forward to meeting you!