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Staff photo by R.David Duncan III Herb Moore, gazing here atop the Lynchburg High Apartments, directed the Lynchburg Covenant Fellowship for 17 years. |
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By Kelly Regan The News & Advance The Rev. Herb Moore is often heard saying, “to make a long story short ... .” That’s because he’s done a lot since coming to Lynchburg in 1964 as minister of Euclid Christian Church. And many of the things he’s done make good stories, especially the way Moore tells them. He talks about bringing all the right people to the table, like at a world power summit. Except it’s the 1970s in Lynchburg, and the people are talking about good things to better the world. For those who don’t know, Moore, dedicated himself to low-income housing while working as executive director of Lynchburg Covenant Fellowship from 1976 to 1993. He converted old city schools into apartments before old apartments were ‘in.’ His new home project was the seed for Habitat for Humanity today. There are other feathers for his hat: LCF’s Wood Ministry, Home Repair Program, Lead Free Housing Program, Camp Kum Ba Yah, and the Carey House, a battered women’s shelter. His community involvement has been so ambitious that City Council declared Jan. 14 “Herb Moore Day,” shortly after his retirement in 1994. Today, he serves on eight boards of directors and is closely involved with the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) retirement center on Enterprise Drive in Lynchburg. Of course, Moore wouldn’t list things that way. He talks about projects as an onlooker, a behind-the-scenes guy, gathering resources and guiding the process. Take Lynchburg High apartments on Park Avenue as an example. Nine different groups were involved in converting the old E.C. Glass high school into low-income apartments for seniors, disabled, and families. “If you want to see a project happen, bring the right people to the table and help them catch the vision of what you want to do,” Moore said. Most important is that the public and the private sectors work together. “I can not think of a single project that private money is not a part of,” he said. Moore talks in measured excitement, the perfect tone for any public speaker; measured for clarity, but bubbling with expression to pull you in. Like the story about John Richie, former executive director of the Virginia Housing and Development Authority, and Senator Elliot Shewell’s tour of the old E.C. Glass high school. Moore guided the two men into the deserted gym, and Schewell began to reminisce. |
Herb Moore
Who influenced you?
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He pointed to a spot on
the three-point line of the basketball court, and said, “John,
this spot right here was my finest hour at E.C. Glass.’” That was in 1975 and the building was on the city’s demolition list. Getting key people excited about the renovation idea, and understanding the nuts and bolts required for the renovation, helped Lynchburg High become home for about 70 residents by 1980. Hal Craddock, president of Craddock Cunningham Architectural Partners, worked with Moore on the Lynchburg High project. He said he was most impressed with his understanding of things like tax credits, private syndicates, limited partnerships and incentive fees. “He seems like a laid back, low-profile preacher, and those are not usually they type of people that understand the really complex projects .... Herb can get in with the best of them and understand that type of stuff,” said Craddock. Moore was born as an only child in Kansas City, Missouri. At the age of 8, he contacted polio, a viral disease that attacks the central nervous system. He had to learn to walk again, and permanently lost movement of his left arm. “Fortunately, my parents were supportive and that turned out OK,” said Moore. Until he mentions it, most people can’t tell he’s without movement in his arm. Moore came to Virginia in 1958, as a graduate of Lexington Theological Society in Kentucky. Before coming to Lynchburg, he worked as a minister of the Westhampton Christian Church in Roanoke. He became concerned about housing issues though his work with the church, and especially during LCF’s Wood Ministry program. Why? His answer is quick and philosophical. “Our society should be structured in a way that every person has equal opportunity to live a wealthy and productive and happy life,” he said. “It’s difficult to maintain a decent family life if you’re living in a house that gets down to 35 degrees every night,” Moore said. This year, LCF announced it is shutting down its wood delivery service — for Moore, a sign that things have gotten better in Lynchburg over the years. Driving with him through the city, it’s clear he had a hand in some of the improvements for Lynchburg’s poor. “Herb always takes the right position,” said Irma Seiferth, current executive director of LCF. “He’s always come down on the side of the poor and the socially disadvantaged.” Building several homes behind Rivermont Avenue were Moore’s idea in the early 1980s, and became the seed for Habitat for Humanity in Lynchburg. Moore is proud that many of the projects LCF started, like home ownership and the battered woman’s shelter, are now run by other organizations. Lloyd Flint, chairman of L.G. Flint Construction, constructed the Rivermont Avenue homes. He said of Moore: “He’s accomplished all of the things he set out to do.” Moore expected people might say that about him, but it’s not true, he said. Moore tried to convert a building on Federal Street for a battered woman’s shelter, but residents fought the decision. (The current street address is kept private to protect the residents.) Moore’s big interest now is the retirement community on Enterprise Drive. Typical of his projects, it is a partnership between several groups: the Christian Church, Centra Health, J.E. Jamerson & Sons, a private developer, and the city. After ten years of planning, the first part of the project is scheduled for completion within two years. Centra Health has a majority interest in the non-profit retirement corporation, J.E. Jamerson purchased a 435-acre site, and the city plans light industrial use on about 80 acres. Moore has been a significant player in the center’s planning, said Ken Burger, director of the retirement project. “He has a reputation for taking an idea that is so far away from reality that it’s impossible and turning it into reality,” said Burger. “That’s what he’s done here.” When Moore isn’t serving on a committee or working on a project, he enjoys fishing, reading mystery novels and traveling with his new bride, Pat. His first wife Shirley died in 1997. Perhaps the best thing about Moore is, everyone who knows him thinks he’s wonderful. “It is that rare combination of special gifts and great Christian spirit that really make him the special person that he is,” said Haywood Robinson, pastor of Diamond Hill Baptist Church. “He would meet any human being and when they would leave him, they would feel warm,” said M.W. Thornhill, former mayor of Lynchburg. |