Great Cross at Jumonville celebrates 75th anniversary
Fundraiser begins to restore 60-foot structure on Chestnut Ridge in Fayette County
The Great Cross at Jumonville, which for 75 years has been an enduring symbol of faith and hope to those who visit the United Methodist retreat center or travel by its perch on the summit in Fayette County, is beginning to show its age.
The cross has been painted in the past, but there are obvious blisters on the structure and the floodlights that illuminate the 60-foot-tall steel cross have been shattered by vandals.
In response, the Jumonville Camp & Retreat Center held a celebration and worship service Saturday to mark the 75th anniversary of the cross – which was dedicated Sept. 9. 1950 – and kick off a fundraising campaign to restore it. Heather Withrow, who is president of Jumonville, said they hope to raise $75,000 for the restoration project that is set to begin next year, and an additional $75,000 that will be used for ongoing maintenance.
“The cross needs to be sandblasted all the way back to the steel and painted,” Withrow said. “This is the kickoff.”
The open house on a sun-splashed Saturday afternoon attracted many people who have visited the camp and retreat center on Chestnut Ridge in North Union Township, bringing back happy memories. Those who trekked up the winding path to the top of the hill – which overlooks Uniontown and offers a 50-mile view of three states and seven counties – talked about the special place the camp and its centerpiece attraction hold in their hearts.
Laurie Yonika of Eighty Four has visited a dozen times, but she marveled at the sight of it all like it was her first visit.
“This is a very special place to me,” Yonika said. “It’s so peaceful. I feel closer to God up here. It’s hard to explain the feeling.”
It became even more special when her boyfriend, Jimmy Taylor of Washington, proposed to her in the shadow of the cross as the open house began Saturday afternoon.
“This is such a special spot for her,” Taylor said. “I knew it would be meaningful.”
Withrow tried to encapsulate what the camp and the Great Cross has meant to generations who have visited.
“The easy answer is God’s presence,” she said before breaking it down with three words. “But in 2025, in the climate the world is in, ‘peace, belonging and safety.’ Especially for teenagers.”
Young people and adults alike have been coming to the United Methodist camp and retreat center since its founding 1941. The main building on the campus dates back to the 19th century when the grounds were used as an orphanage following the Civil War. The United Methodist Church took ownership of the campus in 1940 and opened the camp the following year.
Jenna Uric, who has been a volunteer for a dozen years, regularly makes the nearly 90-minute drive from her home in Sarver, Butler County.
“The community, the staff, the campers are some of the most amazing people,” Uric said. “It never gets old.”
She helped people glue stained glass to a miniature cross under a tent where other volunteers offered visitors stories and explained the fundraising campaign. Uric then literally rolled up her sleeves to help, showing off a tattoo she had inked on her right arm in June displaying the Great Cross and the winding path people take to visit it.
“This is my favorite place on Earth,” Uric said. “It’s just so calm and peaceful. To bring people up here to experience it, it’s so great.”
After people milled about the summit, they descended down to the main campus later in the afternoon, for a worship service led by Area Bishop Sandra Steiner Ball.
For more information on the fundraising campaign for the restoration work, go online to www.jumonville.org.