UMRC Newsletter

Charleston District

Volume 6, No. 2 - September 2001

A Word From The Executive Director

Dear Friends and Supporters of the United Methodist Relief Center,

I want to share a joy. On June 16, 2001, we celebrated ten years of ministry.  The celebration was really more like a family reunion.  We played, we ate, we renewed old friendships, we were hot, but most importantly we raised our voices in praise to the God who has blessed the efforts of the United Methodist Relief Center. As we reconnected with families we have assisted and dedicated volunteers who have helped over the years, we were reminded that miracles are our stock and trade.  Truly God is at work in this community in and through the ministry of the United Methodist Relief Center.  If you were not there, you missed a great time. 

There are two critical issues at this time for which I am requesting your prayers and support.  First, as we move into our next decade of service we face unprecedented need and enormous financial challenges; we are counting on your faithful support.  Pray for the families in need, for those who volunteer to serve, for the board and staff, and for the necessary resources to expand and develop programs that effectively respond to these critical needs.  Seek God's guidance as to how you can be an effective participant in this vital ministry. 

The second is a very special request dear to my heart. Recently, Ed Wire was diagnosed with chronic leukemia. Ed has been a faithful and diligent employee of the UMRC for three years, and all of you who have worked on site with Ed remember his sweet smile, his always considerate demeanor, and his compassionate heart.  He is always ready, willing and able to help.  Ed has a difficult journey ahead.  The board and staff of the United Methodist Relief Center will be here to support and care for him, but he also needs your prayers and support.  We have placed him in the hands of the Great Physician and anticipate his speedy recovery.

Please join the United Methodist Relief Center as we rejoice in the ministry to which we have been called, and pray for strength that enables us to remove the stones along the way.  

Pat Goss

More Than You'll Know

"The house is beyond repair. Go see what you think," was all the information I had before visiting a house on Halfway Creek Road in Wando. At first glance I agreed. The front porch was falling off. The back part of the house was sitting on the ground due to a broken foundation sill. The tin roof had been repaired but it was obvious that years and years of rain had poured into the walls.  Exterior plywood had been nailed over the old wood siding, disguising much of the damage.  I reluctantly entered the home dreading to tell them the bad news. There was nothing we could do to fix the house.

The interior of the house was neat and tidy. Multiple layers of vinyl floor covering felt soft as I made my way down the hall into the living room. A lifetime of mementos and family pictures covered the walls and shelves.  I struggled to form an acceptable way to say, "Sorry, there's too much damage for us to repair." Where does one start repair on a limited budget when the house is falling apart? I'm sure that the family had felt the same despair for years. The family shook their heads, a nodding and understanding yes to my announcement that the house would continue to be subject to weather and gravity.

The image of the pictures and the warmth of the few family stories the wife shared with me stuck in my head as I drove to another appointment. Five miles from the house I turned around. Somehow the house had to be fixed to preserve the home. The plan was designed by the time I drove back into their driveway. An excellent volunteer team had been scheduled. I knew that they could level the porch, raise the broken sills, repair the siding and fix the roof on a minimal budget. The elderly couple met me at the door looking puzzled at my quick return. Broad smiles broke across their faces with the good news that we were going to work on their house.

The volunteer team came on schedule, repairing the damage to make the house last for years to come. They wanted to do more, but limits of time and money pre- vented them from completely restoring the house.

I stopped by the house a few weeks ago to pick up a few remaining materials that could be used on other projects.  Something was different than when we left three months ago.  I asked them about the additional work. "Our children gave us the new windows," she beamed. "Me and my granddaughter finished the painting," she proudly reported. "My grandson put down the new vinyl," she stated in a way that only grandmothers can say.  I was speechless except for "Wow!".

Volunteer teams rarely see the full effects of their week of work.  The impact they have on houses, homes and lives develop slowly.  That one team - as do all of our teams - made an impossible task manageable for this family.  Months before, this family was overwhelmed with the damage.  But because of one hardworking, dedicated group of volunteers, they began to see the possibility of smaller improvements.  Volunteer teams get to see the improvement from the week they work on the homes of the poor, but they always do more than they know; they inspire families for the future.  Amazing, isn't it, how God multiplies our gifts, whether it is five loaves or five days of sweat?

DeVon Ruth, Program Director 

The Start of Something New
ET Makes its Statewide Debut

The United Methodist Relief Center, as an agency reporting to the Conference Council on Ministries, was invited to showcase one of its ET (Elderly Transportable) houses at the S.C. Annual Conference, held May 27-30 at Wofford College in Spartanburg.  UMRC staff, board members, and proud construction volunteers were on hand to share information and enlist local churches to build and/or furnish one of these houses.  

The house on display was skillfully constructed and charmingly decorated by volunteers at St. Paul United Methodist Church in Spartanburg (the first ET house built outside the Charleston District).  With funding received this year to expand the ET (Elderly Transportable) Housing Program statewide, this ET house will remain in Spartanburg to provide a safe, comfortable home for very low-income elderly individuals.  

Nestled among the trees, flowers hanging in a basket, a rocker on the porch, and a cool breeze blowing through open windows, ET looked right at home.  Local media, as well as Conference attendees, were on hand to check out this innovative solution to provide a recyclable housing resource for the elderly poor population in S.C.  Many of the pastors thought it would make a wonderful portable parsonage ...to take them all the way to retirement. 

To find out more about this exciting program and how you as individuals and churches can participate, please contact one of our staff at (843) 884-4860. 

Gloria Squires  
UMRC Staff

Clara's Story

This woman's situation touched me and her story has stayed with me. We need to find a healthy, safe environment for Clara. This 64-year-old woman, who works to support herself, is in the county's very low-income category making only $13,000.00 per year. Her concrete block home in Wando, SC cannot be brought up to code. The estimate of the materials needed to fix her home are in excess of $30,000.00. The pictures that came in with her application say it all; all of the walls, floors, doors and windows need replaced, and the plumbing and electrical systems need work. A new HVAC system and a septic system will also need to be installed. 

The executive director, the construction program director and the advocacy coordinator have all visited this home on separate occasions and have not been able to come up with a feasible, economical solution. Since this area is not considered rural, our usual sources of funding have not been available. The application process is not a quick one. Various documents need to be found and notarized and the Family Selection Committee must meet to approve each application. An assessment report must then be filed for each applicant. There are currently over 100 applications that need assessment in the Lowcountry. 

With your help as an advocate, work team member, property assessor, or financial donor, the UMRC can help Clara and all other applicants who seek assistance with rebuilding and renewing their lives and homes.  

Lynette Duggins-Thomas  
UMRC Staff  

Praise and Award for
Renovated Home

"I have a song that I like to sing and it is call 'Everything That Happen to Me That Was Good God Did It'. I just want to say that I thank you and everyone who made it possible for my kids and I, Paul (7), Mercedes (4), and James Joseph Way (2) to have somewhere to lay our head. Without you, Pat, I wouldn 't know where my kids and I would be today. Pat, I thank you from the deepest part of my heart and may God forever Bless you all. Thank you, Alexine Way. " 

Alexine wrote to express her gratitude for God's blessing of a livable home through the work of the United Methodist Relief Center. She is a single mother whose husband left her and is striving to provide a place to live and a future for her family.  The home she was living in was in such deplorable conditions that the county had removed it from the tax records. Through volunteer efforts from groups as far away as Maryland and Pennsylvania, Alexine's home now has new porches, new roof, working bathroom and kitchen, and an interior and exterior that has been repaired and painted.  Alexine's children now have bedrooms to take pride in and a place to call their own. Mercedes recently told friends that came to visit that they could look into her room but they couldn't go in and mess it up. Her morn said that frequently she sleeps on the floor so that she won't mess up her new bed! 

The Way home was also the United Methodist Relief Center's winning entry for a special Chrysalis Award for Remodeling Excellence - whole house re- modeling under $100,000 category. The award is sponsored by Lowe's and Professional Remodeler magazine, and was presented at the Southern Building Show held in Charlotte. This is the third year that the United Methodist Relief Center has been recognized for their rehabilitation efforts with this award.

Terri Suiter
UMRC Staff