Dear Friends,
Wow, what a year!! 2020 had certainly dealt everyone curveballs, roller coasters, and blindside tackles just to name a few. Not what anyone anticipated but I feel Georgetown County has come together during these uncertain times. We hope that your congregation is settling into a new norm when it comes to services and I have a feeling reaching more with online broadcasts via FB, Zoom, radio, and then there is drive-up service….eating breakfast and praising the Lord in your car. Everyone has had to think outside the box including Helping Hands to service those in need.
With that being said, Helping Hands needs your help and support to pull off our Annual Thanksgiving Food Distribution. As you know every year, Helping Hands is able to provide 500 households with food for their Thanksgiving meal, and this year is needed now more than ever! Many of our congregations contribute to this event but through the years our top source of donated food comes from our schools around Georgetown County and well, to be honest, who knows if kids are even going to be in school. Plus, how could we add this to the already stressed teachers and school staff!?! Helping Hands needs you, the help of our community, to make 2020 Annual Thanksgiving Food Distribution a success. Can you help?
Every church and congregation is different so we would like to just let you know what we need and then y’all (with the help your appointed Advisory Council Representative to Helping Hands) come up with a plan that best suits your church. Please remember no amount is too small and all will be put toward feeding those in need. We have attached a list of food needed to fill our bags. Please feel free to make copies, place in bulletins, in your newsletters, on your website, FB page and don’t forget to make it fun! A Sunday School class competition, girls/ladies vs boys/men, Carolina vs Clemson, pack the pulpit, have your preacher set a goal, and if you reach duck tape him or her to a wall — this are just a few examples to help make it fun!
We hope that you will be able to help us and make sure this annual event takes place despite so many others being canceled. Our team is working on new registration and distribution procedures to ensure the safety of all. We hope to have these out in the next coming weeks. In the meantime, here are some thoughts:
September — Begin to plan, make announcements, set up drop off locations in the church, brainstorm for “making it fun” October — Collect Food***Week of November 2nd — Food Delivered to Helping Hands***
Please let us know if you have any questions or need help from our Helping Hands team!
Bill Gaskins, Associate Director
Tracy Jones, Operations Manager
