Family News

My name is Maya Elise Butler, and I am the great granddaughter of the foundation’s namesake, the late Martha Mason Hill. On behalf of the Mason-Hill family and the Martha Mason Hill Memorial Foundation. I am indeed pleased and honored to welcome you here today for the foundation’s 25TH ANNUAL AWARDS

PROGRAM! We want to thank Reverend Dr. Johnson, the Assistant Pastor, Reverend Douglas Harris who is with us today, and members of this great church, Union Grove Baptist, for hosting this program each year.

It is more than fitting that the foundation’s annual awards program is held here, the church where my great grandmother worshipped and served diligently in many capacities all her life. I invite you to read her biographical sketch in today’s printed program.

Great grandma Martha’s father, Deacon Beverly Archer Mason, also a devoted Christian, raised her and her siblings here at Union Grove; and as a person much like her father in spirit, sentiment and in deeds, she too was a very active member and raised her children and two of

her grandchildren in this church. Those two grandchildren, Deacons Trudy and Judy Stephenson, the co-chairs of the Annual Awards Program are here today! They and many other Mason family descendants are continuing that legacy here at Union Grove and beyond.

There are a couple of light-hearted and very telling stories I want to share about my great-grandma and her dad that relates to this church:

great-great grandpa Beverly had the only car in the community and, being the person he was, he decided that he would pick up the elderly members and drive them to church, and thus his children had to walk!

the other story is that when great-grandma Martha was married with children, she didn’t have a car, but she didn’t have a license anyway. This did not deter her from going to church, her second home. She secured a red wagon that she put her children in and walked to the church! Thankfully, in both cases, the church was only a few miles away! Their lives were about church, family and service, lives well worth emulating!

And so, with the memory of the legacy and spirit of my great grandma Martha and her role model, my great-great grandpa Beverly surrounding us here today, I invite everyone to whole-heartedly join in celebrating the 2023 MMHMF scholarship recipients, the 2019 scholarship recipient and the 2023 service award recipient!

Thank you all for coming!

(Given at the 25th MMHMF Annual Awards Program, September 30, 2023)