Author: acs_admin

Categories
COVID-19 Donations Health Partnership

ACS Accepts Face Mask Donations from AdventHealth

As COVID-19 cases continue to surge across the nation, Adventist Community Services (ACS) Centers have been encouraged to provide personal protective equipment (PPE) to volunteers, staff, and community members. Face masks are one of the most essential supplies that are in great demand today.

AdventHealth in Florida recently donated 150,000 face masks to ACS for use in food pantries and other areas serving communities in need. These masks which are from AdventHealth’s donation-eligible stockpiles were distributed to the Florida, Texas, and Greater New York conferences. Each conference received one pallet of 50,000 masks which is valued at $6,000, totaling the retail price of the masks to be $18,000. In addition to the donation, the hospital also took care of all transportation costs. While keeping the primary focus on protecting front-line caregivers, AdventHealth is constantly evaluating the opportunity to help others.

“AdventHealth is blessed to have strong inventory levels that allow us to share these donation-eligible face masks, while ensuring our team members remain protected,” said Monty Jacobs, director of AdventHealth Global Missions. “Understanding that this is a challenging time for many families, we are grateful to Adventist Community Services for the opportunity to help safeguard the volunteers who provide warm meals, clothing and more to those who need it most.”

“We are so grateful to AdventHealth for their generous offer to Adventist Community Services (ACS), and look forward to distributing the Masks to our Food Pantry teams, those working in our Schools and Community Centers. Keeping ACS team members safe while serving is a responsibility we take seriously and this donation was an answer to our prayers,” stated Derrick Lea, disaster response director for North American Division Adventist Community Services.

                         

Categories
Community Development Food Aid Food Pantries

NAD ACS Awarded $250,000 Grant for Food Programs

North American Division Adventist Community Services (NAD ACS) has been supporting the food programs of local ACS food pantries in our conferences within the Division amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Last year, we invested 1.5 million dollars and allocated a grant of $25,000 per conference for COVID-19 food relief efforts. An additional $500,000 was provided for Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs) and buckets.

This year, NAD ACS received a grant in the amount of $250,000 from a foundation to assist ACS food pantries. In order to maximize the efforts, we have decided to match the funds totaling $500,000. This grant will be distributed to conferences to support ACS food pantries serving millions of people and providing relief to communities.

“As we look back, God has been with us in this challenging journey and has provided resources and guidance; as we are looking forward, we believe that God will always be with us, and ACS volunteers will continue to be relevant and make a difference in their communities,” stated Sung Kwon, Executive Director of NAD ACS.

“ACS has been blessed to develop wonderful relationships with those who work throughout the year in various arenas.  Because ACS has shown a consistency and competency in what we do for the community, we are trusted in times of crisis by governmental, non-Governmental and private companies alike to faithfully assist those that have needs.  I am proud to partner with our colleagues in service during this most challenging of times around the NAD,” stated Derrick Lea, Disaster Response Director of NAD ACS.

  

 

Categories
Community Disaster Response Fires Uncategorized

Denver Channel 7 News Assists ACS DR with Fire Relief

The Cameron Peak fire is declared to be the largest recorded wildfire in the history of Colorado State. It started near Chambers Lake on August 13, 2020 and was declared 100% contained on December 2, 2020.

By Cathy Kissner – Loveland, Colorado

The Cameron Peak Fire Recovery Center was bolstered on December 7 by Denver Channel 7 News who collected donations for those affected by the Cameron Peak Fire that burned areas around Red Feather, Glen Haven, and Estes Park west of Fort Collins. The largest fire in Colorado, it took more than four months for fire crews to get the fire contained. After burning more than 200,000 acres, it left 40 homes completely destroyed and more than 200 homes with heavy smoke damage.

“This is one of the largest donations we have ever received from a news channel,” explained Cathy Kissner, director of Adventist Community Services and Disaster Relief for the Rocky Mountain Conference. “The people affected by this fire will receive these much-needed items which will help in their recovery as they find new footing and a new normal for their lives.”

Donations were delivered to the Adventist Community Services Disaster Response Center in the Outlet Mall of Loveland for the Cameron Peak Fire Recovery where site manager June Spaulding and her team were happy to receive them. Among items donated were new pillows, washcloths, diapers, shovels, rakes, lawn carts, tools, and hoses.

The Center has also received quilts and comforters from a quilting club and from the ACS Center in Loveland. The Distribution Center was open until December 28 to serve those impacted by the Cameron Peak fire.

Categories
NEWS

Passing of Pr. Fred Crowell

We regret to announce the passing of Pr. Frederick Crowell, former ACS Director of the Iowa-Missouri Conference. He also served as the Assistant Director for ACS Disaster Response for the North American Division. Besides leadership positions in Adventist Community Services, Pr. Crowell served as the Ministerial Director for the Northern Minnesota Seventh-day Adventist, and chaplain for the West Des Moines Police Department. He always loved helping people and doing whatever he could to make life easier for them. Pr. Crowell was 67 when he took his last breath surrounded by his family on October 28, 2020, following a brave battle with ALS.

“Pastor Fred Crowell has been, indeed, a great blessing in my life and in the NAD ACS ministry, and I am so thankful for our acquaintance in the Lord for the past two decades. Pastor Crowell has been exemplary, and his life is epitomized by what it means to live gracefully. As he served as the Assistant Director for NAD ACS Disaster Response, he was an interquel part of the transaction and decentralization of the DR ministry. The love, compassion, and grace of the Lord he showed me will be remembered until the end of my life. We will be looking forward to seeing him again and being forever together in Heaven,” stated Sung Kwon, NAD ACS Executive Director.

Click here for obituary and funeral service information.

Let us keep the Crowell family in our thoughts and prayers during this difficult time.

Categories
Community Educational Local Church

Dupont Park Church Hosts Baby Shower and Back-to-School Giveaway

Story by Dupont Park Church Staff

Members of Allegheny East Conference’s Dupont Park church in Washington, D.C., were disappointed when they had to suspend their Community Baby Shower (CBS) and Back to School Giveaway, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Several months into the community’s new normal of social distancing, and after much prayer and discussion over the church’s spiritual obligation to the community, church members started planning the event.

Dupont Park’s Inner-City Ministries leader, Lamont Bailey, says, “Our goal [was] simple: to eliminate the choice parents have to make—deciding between what’s best for their kids and best for their budget.”

Valerie Freeman, marketing manager for Inner-City Ministries, adds, “We knew that serving God also meant serving others, and this was another way to share the message of God’s love through giving, and that our church was a dwelling place for love.”

Church members donated diapers—an essential item not covered by many government assistance programs—wipes, baby clothing and 100 backpacks filled with school supplies. But the group still needed an additional 15,000 diapers to meet their goal.

Volunteers prayerfully continued to reach out for donations and were able to collect some 17,200 diapers, books from local libraries and other items to meet community needs.

“We often limit our capacity by forgetting that if we partner with Christ and have faith, all things are possible,” says Freeman. “The team learned an important lesson throughout this venture: If we pray for rain, we should automatically bring an umbrella, for this is a reflection of our faith. God answers prayers.”

In October, the church held their CBS event and provided essential items to 223 new and expectant moms and families at a Drive-By Community Shower and Back to School Giveaway.

Prayer warriors greeted and prayed with each mother or family that entered the CBS parade. Organizers report that the attendees appreciated how church members doted on them and the impending birth of their babies.

The highlight of the event was a pregnant mother with a huge baby bump who bravely walked into the CBS with a friend, not knowing what to expect. This walk-in mother left enthusiastically because she received bags of the things she needed for her baby. “Dupont Park CBS staff supported and loved every mom with each bag given,” says Freeman.

Categories
Community Fires

ACS DR Continues Recovery Efforts in Oregon and Northern California

ACS Disaster Response Teams in Oregon and Northern California continue to be engaged in the Recovery Efforts in communities affected by the devastating fires. W. Derrick Lea, NAD ACS DR Director, spent the last two weeks offering support to Oregon and Northern California conferences in their Efforts. He assisted in the negotiations with the State of Oregon regarding the management of the two multi-agency Warehouses that have been set up in Salem and Grants Pass and are being managed by volunteers from the Rocky Mountain and South Central conferences. Byron Dulan, North Pacific Union Conference ACS Director, said, “His wisdom and oversight has been indispensable in achieving a positive result. The entire endeavor has been bathed with prayer and led by the Holy Spirit.”

Upon arrival in Napa Valley, Lea met with James Lim, Northern California Conference ACS Director, and they headed to The Havens Community Center, one of the first ACS Centers in the North American Division, which was completely destroyed by the Glass Fire. Most of the homes and buildings were totally burned. Unfortunately, some do not have insurance and will have to start completely anew. “While Adventist Community Services assists the entire community in our work around the NAD and will continue to do so, this Community has over four times the national average of Seventh-day Adventists living within it. Our responsibility can be felt as we consider the consequences for those who live here,” said Lea.

Next, they visited the Foothills Adventist Elementary School which also sustained significant damage. Lim noted that it was Ellen White who encouraged the church to open this school to help the disadvantaged within the community. Many of the residents in the affected communities are now living in shelters and hotels, or have moved in with relatives out of town.

Pacific Union Conference ACS has been working with FEMA and CMA CGM, a world leader in shipping and logistics, who has provided several shipping containers to help communities impacted by the fires. These containers provide safe and secure storage for supplies used to rebuild homes, as well as for holding pallets of fresh water, nonperishable items, kitchen supplies, personal care items, toiletries, and clothing.

Charlene Sargent, ACS Director of Pacific Union, said, “We are extremely thankful to CMA CGM for their generous support in response to the thousands of devastating fires in California. The company’s contribution will play a critical role in providing help and healing for California families who have been displaced, lost homes and continue to struggle to rebuild their lives.”

“Our hearts are with all of those impacted by the wildfires in California,” said CMA CGM America President Ed Aldridge. “With our presence in California, we wanted to do something to help these impacted communities rebuild during this difficult time. Relief groups like ACS are currently distributing three times the normal volume of food due to the continuing wildfires and COVID-19, and we are pleased to be able to contribute to the relief efforts, offering a safe and secure place to store items for those who have lost their homes.”

http://www.youtube.com/embed/IzRweA-rQzY
http://www.youtube.com/embed/Qf1y1icCpyo
Categories
Disaster Response Fires

ACS DR Teams Coordinate Relief Efforts in the Pacific Northwest

A commercial building that was destroyed by wildfire is shown Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2020, in Malden, Wash. High winds kicked up wildfires across the Pacific Northwest on Monday and Tuesday, burning hundreds of thousands of acres and mostly destroying the small town of Malden in eastern Washington state. (AP Photo/Jed Conklin)

ACS Disaster Response continues to provide relief to those who have been affected by the tragic fires in the Pacific Northwest. The North Pacific Union Conference and Oregon Conference ACS leaders have secured two Warehouses in Oregon. A team of ACS DR volunteers from the South Central Conference have arrived to start work at the Warehouse in Salem. Prior to their arrival, they visited a couple of the Distribution Sites in Lincoln City which are essential to get supplies out to the community. Since Oregon has never experienced a disaster of this magnitude, we were asked by the State if they could accompany the team to Lincoln City to educate the locals on how to set up a Distribution Site. We also have a team from the Rocky Mountain Conference who started operations today at the Warehouse in Grants Pass. These individuals will train local teams in Management Operations enabling them to operate on their own and to be able to function solely with local support.

We are in communication with the ACS leadership of the Northern California and Central California conferences who are engaged in the relief efforts in response to the numerous deadly fires that have caused extensive damage and evacuation of a number of communities in various areas of the State. Some of these areas are heavily populated by Seventh-day Adventists, and we will continue to support the efforts on the ground as the situation develops. Additionally, our Florida Conference is now responding to those affected by Hurricane Sally by opening a Warehouse in Pensacola, Florida.

Let us continue to remember those who have been affected by these disasters, as well as those who are responding to them.

Categories
Disaster Response Hurricanes

Groups Support Coordinated Hurricane Laura Relief Efforts

The South Louisiana Community Services Federation Officers and its constituents are grateful for the tremendous support received from several groups for the Hurricane Laura Aftermath Project. The Westbank United SDA Church obtained the U-Haul truck which carried supplies to be distributed in the Lake Charles area on September 8, 2020. The supplies such as food, water, and masks were donated by Westbank United, Ephesus at Covington, Ephesus at New Orleans, Berean, Faith, Caffin Avenue, Fondren, Smyrna, Emmanuel (at Hammond) SDA Churches, Norbert Doxon (Marrero SDA Church), Vera Ragland, South Louisiana Youth Federation, Clio Place Baptist Church, St. Claire Oliver (St. Mary’s Baptist Church), American Red Cross, NENA’s, Feeding Ministry of Mandeville, LA. , City of New Orleans Neighborhood Engagement, and Baptist Community Ministries.

The Hurricane Laura survivors also received gift cards from South Louisiana Federation, Ephesus SDA Church, and Glen and Sherlette Burkhalter. As a coordinated effort, they were able to serve 400 people. On September 13, 2020, the Fondren SDA Church of Houston, Texas, traveled to Lake Charles with more supplies in a 16-foot truck to provide to those affected. “A Spiritual Hats off to all of our pastors, especially Elder Durandel Ford, Community Services Director of Southwest Region Conference, and our President Calvin Watkins who were in full bloom in terms of their support and communication,” said Irene Williams, M.S.W., A.C.S. Coordinator of Southwest Region Conference.

The South Louisiana Community Services Federation Team members are:

Irene H. Williams, MSW, Coordinator
Lyn Hakeem, MSW, Assistant Coordinator
Leslie Hutchinson, BA, Assistant Coordinator
Sherlette Burkhalter, MS, Treasurer
Lucinda Keller, LPN, Advisor
Carrie Cyprian, Advisor
Elder Gwendolyn Garrison, LPN, Recording Secretary
Stephanie, RD, Reporting Secretary
Arlene Mossey, BS, Chaplain

Categories
Local Church

Westbank United SDA Church Assists the Needy

The Westbank United SDA Church in New Orleans, Louisiana, has been actively serving their community members who are experiencing food insecurity due to Hurricane Laura accompanied by the COVID-19 pandemic. They received 1, 586 boxes of food from Farmers to Families of Fort Worth, Texas, last week to distribute to the community. In addition, they were blessed with a sixteen foot truck full of items that were sponsored by the Fondren Seventh day Adventist Church of Houston this past Sunday. Several of their volunteers also worked at the Distribution Site in Lake Charles on September 8th. Their area churches supported a full U-Haul truck with items and gift cards for the survivors of the hurricane.

“Thank you for your prayers and support. It has been a pleasure to continue to serve all of God’s people in Jesus name. God has been good amidst all of our challenges. We will continue to be grateful, prayerful and vigilant in representing the Southwest Region Conference Of Seventh day Adventist Church with God taking the lead,” said Irene Williams, M.S.W., Coordinator, ACS of Southwest Region Conference.

Categories
Disaster Response Fires Local Conference

ACS DR in Oregon Responds to Fire Tragedy

Photo Credit: Kaleb Eisele
Photo Credit: Kaleb Eisele

States in the Pacific Northwest are the latest to be struck by raging fires. NAD ACS is in communication with the North Pacific Union Conference ACS leadership on how to best assist the affected communities. Upper Columbia Conference ACS DR has received a request from Spokane Regional Health District for volunteers to assist at the Spokane Convention Center which is housing evacuees.

In the state of Oregon, small fires that started September 7th night in the Clackamas County last week continued to spread rapidly. The county had suggested using the Gladstone Campground as an evacuation site for RVs. Laura Pascoe, the executive director of PACS, and Andy Villanueva, ACS DR director of Oregon Conference, got together with the leadership at the conference to make it happen. The campground is currently housing over 125 RVs and trailers.

Every day more and more residents from the community are showing up asking for help. “When someone drives up and asks, ‘Do you still have room for us?’ and we say yes, you can see the relief come over them. Today is a crazy day, but because we’re able to help our neighbors, it’s a great day, too,” said Villanueva. Several people from the community are also dedicating their time and services to bring relief to those affected. Volunteers are leading evacuees into RV spots. Donations of food, water, children’s board games, coloring books, and crayons have come in for evacuees. A truckload of food was brought in by the owners of Hue Vegan Cafe. On September 11th and 14th morning, free pancakes were distributed thanks to Chris Cakes Northwest. World Central Kitchen has also delivered food today for all the evacuees and volunteers.

DONATIONS:

The Gladstone Park evacuation site is requesting not to send food or other physical donations at this time. If you would like to help, you can donate to a fund to provide needed supplies at the evacuation site. Donate to the “Oregon ACS- Wildfire” Fund at this link.

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED:

The evacuation site at the Gladstone Campground is looking for several volunteers this week. If you are willing and able to pitch in, please fill out a volunteer form provided at this link, or call our volunteer hotline at (971) 350-8109.

For news and updates, please visit the Gladstone Campground Facebook page.

MORE ARTICLES:

Let us remember to keep the families of those affected by the deadly fires in prayer, as well as those who are providing relief.