MOSAIC—11 local United Methodist Church congregations which work together on everything from meals to VBS—is setting its sights higher, bigger and closer to home.
As on outgrowth of the UMC’s Red Bird Mission and past trips to Appalachia, where volunteers lend a hand with home repairs, MOSAIC will be working locally this July 18-25 with its first-ever Schoharie MOSAIC Home Mission Week.
Need a handicapped ramp built?
Kitchen cupboard re-hung?
Windows washed or a garden weeded?
Call the Methodists.
Applications to have volunteer crews come in went out yesterday; to get one, for more information—or to volunteer to help—contact Allyce Smith at (518) 294-7744 or Fran or Bill Sossei at (518) 234-7688.
Home Mission Week, Ms. Sossei said, grew out of “visions” crafted for both the Regional Methodist Conference and local churches.
“We’re all working together,” she said. “That’s what Methodism is about…people coming together to support each other’s projects,” especially in older and smaller congregations.
Home Mission Week is open to everyone, throughout the county, with no age or income requirements.
Applicants will be asked to prioritize what work they need done and whether they can contribute financially or physically.
They’ll also be asked how the work will improve their quality of life.
“There may be some people who can afford the supplies, but just need someone to do the hammering,” Mr. Sossei explained.
“They don’t necessarily have to be big jobs—though we’re open to those too.”
While there’s some fundraising going on, how many projects the Methodists can tackle will depend on their size and cost.
Already, the Sosseis see Home Mission Week lasting longer than a week—but that’s okay too.
“It’s a good feeling to be able to do this work,” Mr. Sossei said. And while there will still be a group heading to Kentucky, he pointed out “There’s need here too.”
“It feeds your soul to be able to do this kind of work,” Ms. Sossei added.
“Everyone has a good time. It’s a great way to work together and built relationships—which is what Methodism is all about.”
Also as part of that, Mr. Sossei plans to reach out to local schools and groups like the FFA, hoping to recruit younger volunteers.
“There’s a lot they can take away from this,” he said, recounting a Red Bird trip when he was assigned to oversee a roofing crew whose members didn’t really know how to hold a hammer and were frustrated by their lack of progress.
“With a little instruction, we were moving like gangbusters,” he said. “The kids were fighting to get on the roof to work. And now they have a skill they didn’t have before.”
Applications for work will be evaluated and volunteers will be vetted.
For more information, contact Ms. Smith or the Sosseis.