Today we’d like to introduce you to Kevin Wilson.
Hi Kevin, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
Owner of Oak Grove Retreat Center in Tarboro, NC, EV owner, NPR & PBS supporter, 45 years as a Timber Framer, and big-time dreamer. Kevin Wilson is North Carolina-born and Bred. After growing up in Greensboro, I attended High Point College (now a university), where I met my wife, Trish. After a stint as a carpenter, pharmaceutical rep, barter broker, real estate agent, and filling peanut butter jars at JFG, I found my calling as a designer and builder of timber-frame structures in 1982, and I’m still at it today, at 70 years of age. I thought that would be my life’s work until the Universe decided that it had other ideas for me.
In 1999, before Hurricane Floyd hit our town of Tarboro, we looked at a property just outside Tarboro that we thought could be a great place to move my timber-framing business. Twenty-five acres with a 1920s era deconsecrated Episcopal Mission Chapel with beautiful heavy timber trusses and a historic timber frame home that had been built in 1832. This had been the homeplace of part of the Pender family of North Carolina. We are the first non-Pender Family Descendants to live on the property other than the Native Americans who predate all of us.
The Chapel had been abandoned in 1960, and the pews, altar furniture, and many of the stained-glass windows were donated to another Episcopal Church in Rocky Mount, NC, which was under construction at the time. The Chapel was de-consecrated and boarded up, where it stayed until we purchased the property in 1999. The Chapel had become overgrown, its walls draped in trees and vines. In Tarboro, it was known as the Haunted Chapel. You could only see it in the winter when the trees lost their leaves and made it look pretty spooky.
When we purchased the property and began the basic restoration, several metaphysical events occurred that changed how we thought about it. One event happened while I was removing the plywood that had covered the former stained-glass windows. The original stained glass dedication window was still there, hidden from view. When I tried to uncover it, some energy came off of the window and blew the plywood off the frame by popping the nails out that had held it in place. As I looked at the window for the first time, I heard a voice in my head say, “We’re back! Let’s do it”. It was the spirits of the Penders and all the angels and guides that had been a part of the Chapel for all of those years when it was the center of country life in this crossroads community. From that day on we knew that they were not going to support us in anything we did of a commercial nature on the property or in the Chapel. Peace, Love, and Understanding was what they wanted us to offer, and they have supported that by pointing us in the right direction and guiding our actions ever since.
Oak Grove Retreat is a Wedding Ventures as well as a Holistic Retreat Center that supports personal as well as group retreats, Meditation workshops, Drum Circles, Art events and much more. Sometimes the Chapel seems to grow taller and beam out light during weddings. Others have said that just being on the property made them feel safe and supported enough to have personal emotional breakthroughs that they had not gotten from years of professional counseling.
We offer rustic on-site camping in a large field or in the woods along our moss-covered meditation trail. We have bathrooms with composting toilets, an outdoor hot-water shower, and a communal cooking area during the warmer months. There are currently 2 Glamping tents on platforms, and 3 more in the planning stage, for a slightly more glamorous camping experience. We are also creating an area for larger RVs and Tiny Houses for longer-term stays.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Not very long after signing the papers on the Oak Grove property, Hurricane Floyd visited us. Before we could even move on to the property, 32 large trees were brought down between the house and the Chapel. A large Pine Tree is on the side of the house and took out the 167-year-old chimney and the whole end of the house. A blue tarp was on the side of the house for 12 years while we lived in half of the home. The chapel and a cottage on the property were restored first, as we had funds. Gradually, we were able to finish the restoration and begin to really make a life for ourselves on the property.
But then there was the 2009 recession. I was able to merge my Timber framing business with another company in Tarboro, but it took a long time to get back on our feet financially.
We are currently facing another challenge, as I have retired from working off-site and am now entirely on the property as a full-time employee of Oak Grove Retreat. The opportunity is to complete the restoration of the Chapel, including repairs to the slate roof, repointing of brick, reworking all doors, and continuing to make it more flexible to ever-changing needs and functions. Plans are on the drawing board for a Timber Frame Pavilion, adding 3-4 more glamping tents to provide additional accommodations and developing a few sites for RV/Tiny House dwellers.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
The operator of a Historic Oak Grove Retreat as a welcoming haven to those seeking healing, centering love, and spreading joy. Here you will find gardens, history, nature, artists, healers, and above all PEACE.
Do you any memories from childhood that you can share with us?
Attending my first college basketball game in Reynolds Coliseum on the NC State campus. Everett Case was the coach, so you can tell how long ago that was. My brother started as a student at “State” the year I began 1st grade. That year, I also saw a Duke-State Football game at Riddick Stadium. I think my blood became Redder than ever from that moment on.
Pricing:
- Wedding Rental starts at $1,200 per day
- Tent Camping is $20 per night for non members
- Most of our workshops and Sunday afternoon events are $25-$35 per person
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.oakgrove-retreat.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/oakgroveretreat/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SaintAnnesChapel/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevin-s-wilson-8a54b63b/
