Sherri Wyland and Sharon Scanlan
With the encouragement of Vista United Methodist Church’s new pastor, Rev. Mary Dotson, the Vista congregation made monetary donations to help the victims of the recent storms in the Southern parts of our country through UMCOR (United Methodist Committee on Relief).
The donation helps purchase materials that are used to make cleaning kits, which are then transported in containers to areas where they are needed. In this case, the kits are made and sent from the UMCOR depot in Baldwin, La. Teams of volunteers donate several days of their time to help.
Requests are sent from various conferences in the areas of need. There will be thousands of requests filled. These kits are received by Early Response Teams (ERTs), which are on site. These teams have the training that gives them the ability to serve as “boots on the ground” in support of affected areas.
Vista members are very grateful they can help through UMCOR, which is a 501(c)(3) that has no overheard. One hundred percent of the donations go directly for relief.