On May 10, the United Methodist Women of Main Street UMC gathered and prepared hygiene kits for the United Methodist Committee on Relief, UMCOR.
According to its website, UMCOR comes alongside those who suffer from natural or human-caused disasters — be it famine, hurricane, war, flood, fire or other events — to alleviate suffering and to be a source of help and hope for those left most vulnerable.
The group provides relief, response and long-term recovery grants when these events overwhelm a community’s ability to recover on their own. UMCOR also provides technical support and training for partners to address emerging and ongoing issues related to disaster relief, recovery and long-term health and development.
With administrative costs covered through church collections on a special Sunday, UMCOR is one of only two organizations where 100% of donations goes directly to a given cause, designated by individuals or by the greatest need. In many major world events, UMCOR has been the first or even second helping hand to arrive on the scene and often the last to leave. To do this, kits are prepared annually to be stored and readily available at a moment’s notice to be shipped out and used around the globe.
This year, UMCOR has requested hygiene kits and flood buckets. The women at Main Street put together 34 kits on May 10 and the men, just two days later, put together three flood buckets. The average cost of a hygiene kit was $12 and the flood buckets were $75. While it may not seem like many, coupled with the helping hands of churches and people around Virginia we often receive more than 4,000 kits in a given year.
