Sam Dixon, reported yesterday to have been found alive in the rubble of a Haitian hotel, died of his injuries before he could be rescued. A UM workteam from TX has also lost a member. Please keep all the families who are grieving, hoping, and waiting anxiously in your prayers.
To help in the recovery efforts in Haiti, please consider doing the following:
Give money. UMCOR is my charity of choice because I know that 100% of funds received will go to recovery and post-recovery development in Haiti, courtesy of United Methodist churches that pay their apportionments.
Give time. Contact the local Red Cross or your church judicatory's offices and find out if you can help pack supplies or otherwise assist. Post links to information and places to give on your blog, Facebook, Twitter, and other pages. In the NC conference, plan a trip to the MERCI to help. Each district has suggested items and work days.
Learn. Read about the long-term issues in Haiti, as well as the current trouble. It will break your heart.
Shop. In NC, health kits and food kits can be taken to the MERCI in Goldsboro. The MERCI is a UM disaster response center that can receive UMCOR kits and kit items. (More below, or follow the MERCI link for more info). In Beaufort, Ann Street UMC will be collecting items to be sent to the MERCI--call 252-728-4279 for more information, or visit our website (should be up soon).
Pray. There is more than enough need. I've highlighted here some of the people I know and know of, but there are hundreds of thousands missing and a death toll estimated in the tens of thousands.
Do what you can. If you don't have a church to work through, now may be a good time to find one. I'm proud of mine.
UMCOR Health Kit Items - $12 Value
Call your local United Methodist Church to find out how to get these where they need to be.
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)
* 6 adhesive plastic strip sterile bandages
* 1 full-size tube of toothpaste with an expiration date (if it has one) of at least one year away
UMCOR Food Kits Items - $12 Value
New, unopened & sealed bag of dried beans
New, unopened & sealed bag of rice
New, unopened cans of vegetables (pop top lid)
New, unopened cans of fruits (pop top lid)
Important Food Kit Assembly Information
* NO GLASS JARS!!
* All food items included in kits must be NEW items.
All emergency kits are carefully planned to make them usable in the greatest number of situations. Since strict rules often govern product entry into international countries, it is important that kits contain only the requested items-nothing more.
Do NOT include any personal notes, money or additional materials in the kits. These things must be painstakingly removed and will delay the shipment.
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