Craig and Suzy Miles’ mission field is located amongst the pines and hardwoods of the Appalachian Mountains. They share it with hikers, the occasional black bear, snakes and other creepy-crawly things better left alone.
For three years now, the Mileses — as Mission Service Corps missionaries for the North American Mission Board (NAMB) — have operated Appalachian Trail Servants, a mission organization dedicated to sharing Christ with hikers along the famous Appalachian Trail.
The Appalachian Trail is a marked, yardwide footpath winding 2,175 miles through the Appalachian Mountains from Springer Mountain in north Georgia to Mount Katahdin in central Maine. Conceived in 1921 and completed in 1937, it passes through 14 states. More than 4 million people hike some part of the trail each year, and another 2,000 “thru-hikers” attempt to go the entire distance.
A native of Stone Mountain, Ga., Craig, 39, had already earned a degree in economics at the University of Georgia in Athens and seminary master’s degrees in divinity and philosophy when he met Suzy, 23, from Dahlonega, Ga. Suzy had been the hiker in her family and shortly after, the couple and her family began hiking almost every weekend in the north Georgia mountains.
At the time he met Suzy, Craig was working in information technology for a regional bank but believed he had a higher calling. One morning on the way to work, he stopped by his Baptist church and prayed a simple prayer: “Lord, how can you use our time and talents for your glory?” God was about to answer his prayer.
“Right after I prayed that prayer, I spotted a missionary magazine on a table next to me,” Craig said. “On the cover was a story about extreme hiking in China. It just clicked in my head that we needed to start a ministry on the Appalachian Trail. Suzy and I were seeing hundreds of hikers pass over the roads and trails and through the woods of north Georgia, but we knew their spiritual needs were not being met.”
Craig and Suzy married and more than three years later, their home and ministry are based in Cleveland, Ga., about 15 miles off the Appalachian Trail and 70 miles north of Atlanta.
Hikers are a subculture, Craig said, and most of them use trail names rather than their own. The Mileses are no different. His trail name is Clay, taken from Romans 9:21, which describes God as the potter molding the clay. Suzy’s is Branch, which comes from John 15:5 in which Jesus refers to Himself as the vine and believers as branches.
Whether simply hiking on a crisp autumn weekend or thru-hiking the entire Appalachian Trail, the sport is not for the faint-of-heart. Backpacks containing tents, sleeping bags, food, clothes, first aid and water-purification equipment can weigh 35 pounds or more.
In addition to the obvious physical and mental challenges, other hazards include severe weather, Lyme disease, steep grades, limited water and poison ivy.
The physical strain is tough on even experienced hikers like the Mileses, who earlier this year hiked as thru-hikers for three months and 1,000 miles. But a medical problem Suzy suffered ended their hiking for this year.
Craig said most thru-hikers are people who have recently undergone a major transition in life. Maybe they’ve just graduated from college, retired, recently divorced or lost a loved one. For whatever reason, they’re open and searching for something, which takes them to the trail.
The purpose of A.T. Servants is to reach both thru-hikers and short-term hikers for Christ. The Mileses’ organization consists of dozens of volunteer “Trail Angels,” who minister to hikers by distributing Bibles, snacks, bottled water and first aid at designated points along the way, usually where trail gaps and roads intersect.
Separately “Trail Chaplains” — like the Mileses and others — actually accompany hikers along the trail, sharing their faith and winning over hikers via personal witnessing and a strong Christian example. Last year, the couple supervised 122 A.T. Servants volunteers and assisted almost 700 hikers.
Clay and Branch love to tell the story about how “Chicken Wing” eventually accepted Jesus Christ on the trail after repeated attempts.
“The first time I saw this guy, Chicken Wing, he had a scowl on his face — he didn’t look happy,” Craig said. “He didn’t respond. I saw him again a few weeks later in North Carolina, and he was a little more open this time. Then we got split up on the trail again.
“Later, we ran into Chicken Wing’s trail partner, ‘Kentucky Fried.’ I told him to tell Chicken Wing that we’d see him in Virginia. By the time we got to Virginia, the same Chicken Wing who was cold, distant and hard-hearted in Georgia was receptive. And with tears running down his face, he finally accepted Christ,” Craig said.
He said it’s surprising how suddenly open and honest hikers — who start off as strangers — can become with each other after days on the trail, ready to discuss the most personal and spiritual issues.
“We do really make a difference in people’s lives,” Craig said. “Many hikers use e-mail so we’re able to stay in communication with them long after their hike has ended. We get feedback all the time on how a hiker’s experience with the angels and chaplains has changed their lives.”
For more information, visit www.atservants.org or call 706-482-8537. (BP)
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