One hundred flood buckets for UMCOR

 A team of 50 volunteers from Conerstone UMC, Garland and Christ UMC, Plano filled an impressive array of 100 flood buckets, which await delivery to the UMCOR Sager-Brown Depot in Louisiana.

On Aug. 3 Cornerstone UMC, Garland, joined the Christ UMC, Plano, Disaster Response team to assemble more than 100 fl ood buckets for the United Methodist Committee on Relief, (UMCOR).

The churches responded to a UMCOR request to provide the buckets, fi lled with cleaning supplies, to fl ood victims in the areas of the United States that have experienced devastating flood in the summer of 2008.

More than 50 volunteers worked together on the project, and in the process, built new friendships and lines of communication between the two congregations that promise to lead to new mission cooperation. Debby Bowles of the Christ UMC Disaster Response Team says that the activity illustrates how a disaster team can make a difference, even when presence at the scene is not a possibility.

She also notes that First UMC, Garland, played a role in the successful day by donating $400 for Cornerstone to purchase supplies.

For more information on the Christ UMC program, contact April Kendrick at starsfan2056@yahoo.com or for Cornerstone UMC, contact Diane Mobilia at CDM15@msn.com.

Editor’s Note: The following reflection by Cornerstone UMC member Diana Mobilia describes the inspiration and lasting results of the flood bucket project with Christ UMC, Plano.

BY DIANE MOBILIA
Cornerstone UMC, Garland

"My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness." Corinthians 12:9 On Aug. 3, Cornerstone UMC, Garland, hosted a flood bucket-filling party and filled more than 100 buckets!

According to Marvin Smith, the bucket collections coordinator for First UMC, Howe, he can only recall one other time he picked up more than 100 buckets at any one church.

As host of the event, Cornerstone partially financed the effort and had 35 member volunteers on hand; Christ UMC, Plano offered financial support and two dozen volunteers from their Disaster Relief Team; and additional financial support was provided by First UMC, Garland.

The inspiration for this effort came to me during a heavy downpour in June. I accidentally dropped my cell phone in the rushing waters created by the storm and saw it float down into the sewer. Being angry, I slammed my car door, turned to go in the house and then stopped in my tracks! God showed me homes floating down the river that I had seen on the news the night before.

Here I was, angry that I had lost a small piece of electronics that could be replaced in an hour, while hundreds of people had lost possessions that could never be replaced. I walked into the house and decided it was time to put together some fl ood buckets.

I thought if I could get a few people involved, we could prayerfully fi ll 10 buckets. Hoping to save money, I went to a nearby Sam’s Warehouse Club and approached the bakery department to see if I could have their 5 gallon frosting buckets and lids to recycle and use.

After three trips we had our ten buckets, and a few more. Since we had the extra buckets, I thought we might be able to expand our efforts. I ran this idea past our missions committee and then called Rev. Marji Bishir at the North Texas Conference offi ce. She in turn sent out an email to all other local UM churches inviting them to join our efforts. I then called the UMCOR Warehouse and found out their supply was extremely low.

Debbie Bowles from Christ UMC, Plano, responded to our appeal and our plans came together as we decided we could do 25 buckets – no 50 – no75! "Oh, let’s do 100!" we said.

The buckets kept coming along (and we collected smaller ones too). Did I mention that all these buckets had to be washed and dried and some had to be scraped before rinsing in the yard? With the help of my husband, Rick, we cleaned between five and 20 buckets after each trip. (I now have the sweetest yard in Plano.)

In the process of collecting our 5-gallon buckets, we also collected more than 100 6-quart buckets. These have been given to "Project Transformation" as a resource for their children’s arts and crafts.

When all costs were tallied, we estimate estimated each fl ood bucket to cost $23 – thanks in part to the collection of the free buckets, but also thanks to some ingenious bargaining for bulk items. You can save a great deal of money by buying in bulk.

The key to collecting bulk items is to have enough people on hand to help sort them all. No matter what size church you have, you can make an even greater difference when you pool your resources with others in the connection. That’s what we United Methodists are all about, isn’t it?

Throughout this effort, we have been reminding one another of my favorite phrase, "Life is hard, but God is good."

For more information, call Rev. Wally Butts, 972-414-6460, or visit website: www.cornerstone-umc.