News From…. The
Appalachian Poverty Project (and helping
to save our landfills)
Providing Appliances to the Needy
Hello Friends,
There have been some interesting developments in recent months.
1.
We
have developed a relationship with Liberty Transportation. They have been
supplying us with appliances and mattresses. As a result, we have been
consistently exceeding our short range goal of 10 units per month. We have also
been receiving 10-15 mattress sets from them each month.
2.
Some
volunteers have come forth to help with distribution of fliers. These ladies
are with Gamma Sigma Sigma at McDaniel College.
3.
Another
volunteer will help us with some administrative tasks. Also with Gamma Sigma
Sigma
4.
My
wife Marie and I recently made our third trip to Kentucky for the purpose of
meeting with the president of Kentucky H.O.P.E, Mr Charles Saunders. We now
have a clearer picture of how we can best interface our respective
organizations. We learned of the significant need for bedding and that there
was prison labor available to clean the appliances that we send. (This relieves
us of considerable burden)
We also met a lovely lady there named Rhonda – more about her later.
5.
I
have been in contact with a pastor in Cucumber, WV. He serves a very impoverished Appalachian area and needs
help. I hope that we may be able to
assist him. Unlike Kentucky H.O.P.E. he has limited volunteer resources and
receives little outside assistance. I will be visiting him in the Spring with
hopes of arranging a mission trip to rehab some homes. I am also trying to
figure out a way of getting donated materials to him.
6.
We
have passed the 115 mark for appliances. Small appliances (microwaves, window
ac’s) have not been counted – mattress
sets are nearing 75. We have also
started picking up furniture – Sofas,
loveseats, recliners and even an invalid recliner. (The last piece went
to a local shut-in). Only two appliances have been delivered locally. Another
has been requested, but not yet delivered. We have been receiving a very high
percentage of refrigerators and most are medium and small sizes—just
perfect for the folks who get them.
7.
Our
electric winch had to be replaced. I no longer can recommend Warn winches. The
problem that occurred was clearly due to faulty design.
8.
A
work truck continues to be a problem. Using a pickup truck for this work limits
us to a maximum of about 12-15 appliances each month(and we are limited by
weather) and we are currently getting that number strictly by word of mouth. We
have stopped advertising and visiting churches because we have pretty much
reached our limit. If we had a larger
truck that was covered, we could check them out on the truck and leave them on
the truck until we delivered them. This would reduce the number of times the
units are handled and the number of trips to the distribution center. Over the
past year, we have gotten over 115 appliances and 65-70 mattress sets. With a
larger truck, we can triple that number and deliver materials to other missions
in need. Also, a lift gate would make everything easier and safer (both Harry
and myself have fallen off the truck while loading). Also, an enclosed body
truck means that we don’t have to cancel pickups and deliveries whenever it
threatens to rain or snow. Getting a larger truck will be expensive and will
have higher operating expenses so sources of funding will have to be found. I am hoping that some local church or civic
organization will be willing to accept ownership of a truck, otherwise we will
be forced to incorporate. We have 501(c)(3) status through our affiliation with
the Community Foundation of Carroll County and would really prefer not to deal
with the legal and administrative expense of a corporation. Please pray that God will send us the help
that we will need and that we will know the right way to handle it when that
time comes.
9.
I
will be attending a series of workshops on volunteerism. It covers many topics
and promises to be valuable. The materials are from the Points of Light
Foundation. I have read some of their publications in the past and have a lot
of respect for their knowledge and work.
10. One of our mission affiliates, Kentucky H.O.P.E.,
has changed their name to Pike County H.E.L.P. The acronym stands for Helping
Ease Life’s Poverty. Don’t know why they changed. They have a new website at www.pikecountyhelp.org. These folks are doing a fantastic job of
providing basic necessities to thousands of poor families.
More about Rhonda
In summer 2005, Marie and I took 7 other folks to Kentucky to help
the volunteers there to organize their thrift store. We worked hard but didn’t
make the kind of impact that we had hoped. The thrift store is a large old
furniture store and is extremely crowded. Each week a tractor/trailer arrives
completely filled with donated material and is required to be unloaded in about
two hours time. This is further complicated by the fact that they never know
exactly when the tractor/trailer will arrive. It is total chaos.
When we visited recently, we found that the entire second floor was
neat, orderly and well organized. We also met the lady who was responsible for this
monumental task.
Her name is Rhonda.
Rhonda’s family is coal
miners, like many of the people in rural Appalachia. She has lost her father
and grandfather in separate mining accidents. Both of her brothers have been
permanently disabled in separate mining accidents. Rhonda is raising her
children and caring for both of her brothers. She also volunteers at the
mission 25-30 hours a week and is “on-call” to help unload the weekly arrival
of donations.
Most of us, myself included, can only imagine how she could cope with the tragedies in her life, let alone have anything left to give to others. She, however, does not consider her losses unusual or tragically unfair - only typical of life in coal country. She sees only God’s blessings and tries to live her life as a blessing to others.
I pray that this letter finds everyone well and serving God’s
kingdom.
Les Schaub
The Appalachian Poverty Project
A Component of the Community Foundation of
Carroll County
”Providing Appliances to the Needy “
Learn how you can help - <http://www.app-pov-proj.org/>
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