Saying a prayer for Utica

What started with an effort by Utica’s Ann Hope United Methodist Church to cook for the hungry and the homeless of their community has sprung into something more.  Marlene and Nelson Vassey and others have helped create a Utica Incorporated–an effort to beautify their community by eliminating eyesores, such as empty or abandoned houses that have fallen into disrepair.  They’ve been joined by County Councilman Paul Cain, a Utica resident.  The Vasseys, along with Mike Cannon of Anderson, and others took part Saturday in a prayer walk through the former textile mill village.  At the end of each street they came to, a prayer was said for those who live on the street.  Cannon has a soft spot for Utica.  He grew up nearby on Seneca’s E. Main Street and once worked for the J-P Stevens Textile Plant, which was part of a rich 20th century history of a community that revolved around the company employer, a public school, baseball games, and church life.