Our Priceless Heritage
a legacy of one hundred and seventy years
How Henry Barkey Built Our Foundation One Village at a Time...
Grove Manor’s legacy dates back 170 years to when Henry Barkey, a young Mennonite, became a Church of God missionary. In 1850, he began to strategically craft a new village, drawing together a whole community of extended families embodying a missionary gospel faith.
Barkey recognized that as people age and their health declines, they increasingly need the care of their community. At the same time, however, they bring an irreplaceable value to the community through their seasoned perspective and spiritual maturity. Barkey believed their ongoing contribution added a vital component and playing a pivotal role in shaping the community as a whole.
Barkey's village soon took on multiple dimensions:
- A retirement village for those who had spent their lives in ministry and never had a home of their own, and for those with no children and no one to care for them in their senior years
- A formational village with a classical academy where young people could receive a solid education and be prepared for their vocation, but also be shaped in the village ethos and prepared for meaningful service
- A missionary village with its people planting and serving congregations and communities throughout the region and being sent throughout the world as teachers, nurses, and ministers
Our Legacy
The Grove Manor Foundation realizes that what we’ve always done in the past needs to regularly be revisited and re-shaped to address the rapidly-emerging changes in our society- the reformed church ever reforming!
We remember and celebrate our heritage not only to honor the faithful voices of our mothers and fathers in the faith, but also to discern our way into the future. We believe the Christian legacy that provided our identity, clarified our calling, and directed our steps in the past continues to serve as a beacon for us as we step into tomorrow’s new opportunities.
