By Sharon Mager, BCM/D Correspondent
Dunkirk, MD––It was a matter of simply serving. Dunkirk Baptist Church members saw a need and met it.
Dunkirk’s Associate Pastor Charlie Brown, was preparing for a mission trip to Graffiti Church on the lower east side of New York to help with mud-out work in response to Hurricane Sandy. On Saturday, November 10th, Brown contacted Missions Development Team member Jean Swain and asked if she could help him gather health kits the team could distribute as part of their outreach ministry during the trip. Swain asked how many? Brown replied 200.
Dunkirk Baptist Church rallied to provide close to 200 health kits in three days to serve victims of Hurricane Sandy in New York City. (L-R Charlie Brown, Jean Swain, Mike Duelley, Tim Duelley)
“I thought to myself, ‘Oh yeah, right,’” Swain said with a laugh. “He wanted them Tuesday morning. He said, ‘I realize that’s short notice, but can we do 100?’”
Swain put out the call on Sunday, Nov. 12.
“Before I left the church some people had already returned from Wal-Mart and 12 bags were complete. By the time I reached home, Rick Hancock (Dunkirk Baptist Church’s senior pastor) called me to say half the congregation was in Wal-Mart. I left for the Women’s Missionary Union meeting in Silver Spring. By the time I returned, a friend called to say that by the time church was over we had 97 kits finished. When I arrived at church on Monday, our secretaries said there had been a steady flow all morning of people bringing kits.”
On Tuesday morning, Brown, and father and son team Tim and Mike Duelley, left with 196 health kits.
More are continuing to pour into the church to ship out.
“The whole church became excited and got involved,” Swain said.
“We’re walking on air around here now,” Swain said.