Methodist churches will package food for Haiti

By: Mike Conley | McDowell News
Published: February 09, 2010

Around 80 United Methodist churches in McDowell and neighboring counties will work together to package food for earthquake-stricken Haiti.
The Marion District of the United Methodist Church will host a Stop Hunger Now event for Haiti relief on Saturday at the First United Methodist Church of Marion, starting at 10 a.m. The Marion District covers Methodist churches in McDowell, Avery, Burke, Mitchell and Rutherford counties, as well as parts of Cleveland and Polk.
On Saturday, members from various churches within the district will be at First United Methodist's fellowship hall packaging food bound for Haiti. The church is located at 176 Robert St.
The project's goal is to collect 142,500 meals. This would fill one shipping container that will then be sent to Haiti. The cost for this is $35,000. Rev. David Hamlyn, pastor of Spruce Pine United Methodist Church, is coordinating this effort "in response to the desperate need in Haiti."
"This is a great opportunity to impact the lives of the people of Haiti directly with food that we pack," reads the Web site for the Spruce Pine church. "It is also the first hands-on event that most of us will get to do for Haiti."
Each church in the Marion District is asked to contribute $500 and announce Saturday's event for volunteer signup. The volunteers will work in two-hour shifts. They will put together parts of the meals into a bag, which is then sealed and packed in a box.
Checks to support this cause can be sent to the Marion District office, which is located on State Street, with a note stating it is for Stop Hunger Now. Checks can also be sent to the Spruce Pine United Methodist Church at 11090 N.C. 226 South, Spruce Pine, NC 28777.
The effort is being done through the organization Stop Hunger Now. It is an "international hunger relief organization that coordinates the distribution of food and other life-saving aid around the world." The organization seeks to end world hunger and has a mission to "provide food and life-saving aid to the world's most destitute and hungry in the most sustainable, efficient and effective manner."