The Relief Rush Is On
Holston Conference joins others in Hurricane Katrina effort
Health kits. Bottled water. Blankets. And money. After contacting the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR), Holston's connectional ministries office announced that churches should focus on collecting health kits, bottled water, blankets - and of course, give money - to help the victims of Hurricane Katrina on the Gulf coast.
Eventually, UMCOR may call for flood kits, work teams, and other necessities, officials said. But on Sept. 1, district offices in Holston were arranging collection points where churches could drop off health kits, bottled water, and blankets.
"Bill Daugherty, our conference missions coordinator, is making arrangements for trucks to deliver these items to Sager Brown (UMCOR's collection depot) as quickly as possible," according to a conference-wide e-mail alert. "If necessary, we will make multiple trips to Sager Brown over the coming weeks."
Members should call their district offices for collection points, conference leaders said. Contact information is provided at the end of this article on page 7.
A list of items to be included in health kits (soap, toothbrush, bandages) is provided at the end of this article on page 7. Each health kit is valued at $12.
Members are also urged to make monetary donations through their local churches or the conference treasurer's office. "These donations will be sent immediately to UMCOR," said Anne Travis, director of connectional ministries. Checks should be made to local churches or to Holston Conference, with "Hurricanes 2005" on the memo line. Church treasurers should send the checks to Holston Conference Treasurer's Office, P.O. Box 32939, Knoxville, TN 37930-2939.
Credit-card donations may be made by calling UMCOR at (800) 554-8583.
Although the conference office has been "inundated" with calls from people offering to house hurricane evacuees, UMCOR hasn't indicated a need for housing yet. "We are keeping a list of persons who have offered and will contact those persons if and when a need is identified," according to Travis.
Holston members should check the conference web site at http://hurricanerelief.holston.org for updated information on Holston's response to the tragedy, Travis said.
"We ask that you join with your conference staff in continued prayer for those persons who have experienced such incredible loss," she said.
District office contact information
Abingdon (276) 628-4421
Big Stone Gap (276) 523-3025
Chattanooga (423) 629-0333
Cleveland (423) 476-8221
Johnson City (423) 926-7533
Kingsport (423) 224- 1533
Knoxville (865) 470-7005
Maryville (865) 982- 1427
Morristown (423) 586-2942
Oak Ridge (865) 482-3209
Tazewell (276) 988-4891
Wytheville (276) 228-4922.
Health kits - Place these items inside a sealed one-gallon plastic bag: 1 hand towel (15" x 25" up to 17" x 27", no kitchen towels), 1 washcloth, 1 comb (large and sturdy, not pocket-sized), 1 nail file or fingernail clippers (no emery boards or toenail clippers), 1 bath-size bar of soap (3 oz. and up), 1 toothbrush (single brushes only in original wrapper, no child-size brushes), 1 large tube of toothpaste (expiration date must be 6 months or longer in advance of the date of shipment to UMCOR Sager Brown), 6 adhesive plastic strip sterile bandages. In a separate envelope, send a check written to UMCOR Sager Brown for at least $1.00 for each kit to help with processing and shipping costs.
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