UMCOR's supply of Cleaning Kits (formerly called Flood Buckets) is being depleted quickly. To respond to this immediate need, we are collecting supplies and will have three different dates to help assemble more Cleaning Kits to be used in the Southeast for recovery.
Here is how you can help us make more:

1. Amazon WishList  Buy supplies from our Amazon Wishlist and have them shipped to the church. Please buy these very specific supplies from this list! 
2. Join us for one of these dates to pack Cleaning Kits

• Sunday, October 13 // 9:45-10:45 a.m. - Youth Ministry packing event open to youth and youth volunteers only this Sunday during the Sunday School hour in the Youth Center.
• Saturday, October 19 // 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. - Churchwide packing party open to anyone! Drop in anytime between 9 a.m. - 1 p.m. in the Church Gym.
• Sunday, November 10 // 9:45-10:45 a.m. - Children's ministry packing event open to children and their parents/caregivers during the Sunday School hour

In the wake of Hurricane Helene, let's give generously to our neighbors experiencing the worst devastation and destruction that many of these areas have seen in years. Money is always the best way to support people in the aftermath of a hurricane. In the coming weeks we will have details on collections to replenish the cleaning kits (formerly called flood buckets) that will be needed, but for now money is the best donation.

Here are three United Methodist institutions you can give to:

1. UMCOR (United Methodist Committee on Relief)- This is our disaster response arm and where the money goes far, particularly in long term recovery efforts.  US Disaster Response funds will be used to mitigate disasters in the US - Click HERE to give to UMCOR
    
2. Western North Carolina Annual Conference -This annual conference is one of the hardest hits in our connection. For those of you with direct connections to  that area, this is a way to directly donate to them : Click HERE to give to Western North Carolina Annual Conference.
3. Tennessee-Western Kentucky Conference - You can support the TWK Response to the Hurricane Helene Disaster by giving to our conference disaster recovery fund . Checks can be made out and mailed to the Tennessee-Western Kentucky Conference at PO Box 440132, Nashville, TN 37244 (please note Disaster Response in the memo line). These funds will go toward supporting immediate needs in the affected areas and funding our Early Response Teams (ERT), which will be deployed to the area in the weeks ahead. Click HERE to give to TWK Recovery Fund.

Lastly, people who deploy to help in the immediate aftermath of a disaster are on teams called Early Response Teams in the United Methodist Church. These are skilled folks who have been through a training, have a badge, and will be contacted and told where to go in the event of a disaster near us. Please do not self-deploy to areas in the immediate aftermath of a disaster, but if you have the desire to be on one of these teams, we’d love to get some more folks from West End trained. Early Response Teams need members with a variety of gifts and graces. If you think this is a ministry you would like to be a part of, please check your schedules and register for one of the three upcoming training events in the TWKUMC.
 

• Saturday, October 19 at the Purchase District Office, 2285 Jack Treas Road, Kirksey, KY 42054. Registration Deadline: October 14, 2024. Register now.
• Saturday, November 16 at MTSU Wesley Foundation, 216 College Heights, Murfreesboro, TN 37130. Registration Deadline: November 4, 2024. Register now.
• Saturday, December 14 at Ripley FUMC, 145 S. Main Street, Ripley, TN 38063. Registration Deadline: December 2, 2024. Register now.