ZANESVILLE − Hurricanes Helene and Milton devastated communities in Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas, leaving tens of thousands of people in need of basic services, but North Terrace Church of Christ knows that generosity and the desire to help one’s neighbor know no bounds.
Chris Steele, the church’s lead pastor, contacted a colleague from North Carolina, looking for something they could do to help.
“We were just looking for something we could do right now,” Steele began. “I have a friend in ministry who is in Asheville, North Carolina, and through his Facebook posts and just staying in touch with him, they are doing a lot of outreach work in the immediate Asheville community. They help people get through the crisis. immediate impact.”
The friend sent a list to the church. “We said, ‘This is something we can do.'”
On Monday, October 14, North Terrace had a caravan parked at the main entrance, about half full, as they prepared to leave on Tuesday.
“So he gave us a list of some pretty basic things,” Steele noted. “One of them is hygiene care, especially for children, so we have a lot of diapers, things like that. But even for adults, especially seniors and people who might not be as mobile, adult diapers and things like that.
“The other category I just call cleaning products because people are just trying to absorb the effects of all the flooding,” Steel noted. “The need will be great.”
North Terrace had already purchased bottled water, diapers, paper towels, toilet paper, Lysol wipes, bleach, crates and buckets. “So we put it out there, and it was just an immediate and amazing response.”
“We think it’s likely we’ll have a second vehicle, either a truck or another trailer,” he added. “If people want to continue dropping off items, we call this Phase 1. Then there will be a Phase 2 in the very near future.”
With the donations, Steele stated that in the future the church would also like to partner with Samaritan’s Purse to send volunteers to damaged, flooded areas where they can donate time, energy and labor.
“We’re looking forward to just sending groups of people down that are ready to do physical labor.” When that time comes, Steel notes that everyone from the community is welcome, not just members of the congregation.
‘It’s not just a church thing. It’s about people being good to other people, being good neighbors.
North Terrace Church is collecting donations for western North Carolina on Sundays from 8 a.m. to noon, Mondays from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m., and Tuesdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
North Terrace is still collecting baby food, diapers of all sizes, non-perishable food items, protein shakes, 3-gallon buckets with handles, small bottles of bleach, spray bottles, disinfectant wipes, paper towels and dish soap.
Other donations
Local businesses and individuals in the community have also helped.
Guernsey-Muskingum Electric Cooperative in New Concord collected monetary donations and supplies and sent three trailers to Florida to help victims.
Winerak recently sent a U-Haul with supplies to eastern Tennessee and is preparing to ship to Asheville, North Carolina.
Donations of non-perishable food items can be dropped off at the business, 2336 Maple Ave.
“I got involved because I have family in Candler (North Carolina),” said Winerak owner Mike Alfman. ‘I saw the devastation with my own eyes. We just want to help that area.”
Those interested in helping should also consider donating to reputable organizations such as the Red Cross or United Way, which have established disaster relief and recovery funds to help those affected. You can also support Hospitality House by working locally to provide emergency shelter or World Central Kitchen, serving chef-prepared meals to feed those in the area.
Shawn Digity is the Breaking and Trending News Reporter for the Zanesville Times Recorder. He can be emailed at sdigity@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Zanesville Times Recorder: North Terrace Church is collecting donations to help hurricane victims
