This Week in Texas Methodist History  December 17

Oak Lawn Sunday School Class Keeps Possum Hunt Tradition Alive  December 1943

Sunday School classes provide much more than education.  They are also a major source of building community in local congregations.  Because that is one of their main functions, most of them have some sort of bonding activities such as game nights, covered dish dinners, holiday parties, and so on.  I recent ran across the strangest Sunday School bonding activity of all---the annual possum hunt conducted by the T. M Cullum Class of Oak Lawn Methodist Church in Dallas.  

The 1943 possum hunt had about 75 members in attendance--not just the class members, but also boys as young as 12 years old.  It was the 30th year in a row the class had conducted such a hunt.

The party assumed at Cullum's store and caravaned to a thicket on the East Fort of the Trinity River close to where the North Creek ran into the river.  The party of 75 divided into three groups.  One group stayed at the camp site and maintained the bon fire and started boiling water and chopping up onions. That party included the Rev. Glenn Flinn---one of the most prominent Methodist preachers of the mid 20th century known for his work with college students.  The other two groups were the hunters.  

The hunting dogs began their work and soon their baying was heard in the night.  Back at the camp the members recalled successful hunts of the past.  The most successful hunt anyone could remember was the year that 14 possums went into the pot.   This year was less successful.  Only one small runt of a possum was brought back to the camp site.  The party decided it was not worth butchering so they dumped hot dogs into the boiling water that had been prepared for the game they expected to capture. 

The party closed with sort of a devotional.  John Donaho gave a prayer for the men not there because they were in the service.  Ashley Cullum recited the names of some of the men who had been there in the past but were no longer living.   Glenn Flinn closed with words of appreciation for the men of Oak Lawn.