UMW said "Cleaning Church Floors was My Way to Serve"

BY DENISE JOHNSON STOVALL
Special Contributor

United Methodist Woman Becky Kegans from First UMC, Leonard, traveled hundreds of miles to attend the 2010 Assembly in St. Louis held April 30–May 2, The highlight of her visit was the pre-Assembly Ubuntu experience on April 29. What was her assignment? She was asked to clean the stairs of Centenary United Methodist Church.

“We started at the top of the staircase [the balcony level] and worked down to the basement level of the foyer,” Ms. Kegans explained. Genece [Eubanks] and I decided that we would also wipe down the balcony woodwork, too.

The group ate lunch in the fellowship hall which is turned into a dining facility for the homeless. They stood in line to receive our hot dog, bratwurst, hot German salad, pasta salad, and fruit punch. The staff encouraged us to sit with the homeless diners and visit with them.

“After lunch, we went back to our assigned task and finished around two o’clock, exhausted and dirty. However, we felt blessed to have had the opportunity to help clean the entrance and staircase of the church since the commissioning of the Deaconesses and a Home Missioner was to be held there.

When we arrived at the Centenary UMC and entered the foyer of the church, we realized what a difference we had made. Not only for the church building, but we had helped prepare the church to receive a full-house, standing room only audience.], for the commissioning. We had taken ownership in that event and as those commissioned that night, we felt that ‘our reward was that we could serve.’”

Ms. Kegans said the “Ubuntu Day of Service” was the highlight of the Assembly 2010.

“I would pay again to serve in whatever capacity that God and the Assembly organizers assigned me. The reward was defi nitely mine!”