ALCOA, Tenn. (3 p.m. EST) -- As Hurricane Idalia made landfall earlier today in Florida, bringing flooding and damage, and then headed toward Georgia and the Carolinas, Holston Conference began preparations to provide aid to its neighbors.
The Rev. Mike Sluder, connectional ministries director, urges Holston United Methodists to:
- Give money to UMCOR.
- Begin preparing “cleaning kits” and “hygiene kits.”
- Pray.
“Please let our churches know that right now the best thing we can do here in Holston Conference is to donate to the UMCOR US Disaster Response and Recovery (Advance # 901670),” Sluder said in an email to district offices. Donate now.
In addition, Sluder asked church members to begin assembling “cleaning kits” (also known as “flood buckets”) and “hygiene kits.” These are supplies packaged in a helpful way, with directions provided by UMCOR, that will be sent to survivors in need during the hurricane’s aftermath.
“I will be in touch with the affected conferences about delivering kits out of what we have on hand,” Sluder said. “We will need to restock because there will be another hurricane down the road.”
Church members should contact their district offices for instructions on where and when to deliver completed disaster kits.
UMCOR has asked United Methodists to “please lift up all those affected by this storm, including first responders, with your prayers."
Bishop Tom Berlin of the Florida Conference has asked mission teams or volunteers not to self-deploy but to work through the Florida Conference Response Hotline at 855-228-3862.
How to make a cleaning kit.
How to make a hygiene kit.