MISSION WORK WEEK 2007

Janet Mosley, Nancy Healy, Melanie Cottam, Tina Graves, Mary Kay Thompson, Janice Myers.

What a great week! A team of six UMW members drove to Baldwin, LA to work in the UMCOR Depot. This is the collection, sorting, packing, and shipment point for all the donations made to disaster relief sponsored by the United Methodist Committee on Relief. The beautiful setting on the Sager-Brown Campus provides housing for the volunteers, a dining room, chapel, gathering spots to relax and a huge warehouse where the work is done. These ladies put in full days counting school supplies that would be shipped all over the world to places where disasters and war have left poverty and great need. They also put together layettes and worked in the sewing room. Medical kits, flood buckets and other emergency relief needs are also gathered, sorted and shipped from here. Hard work, lots of fun visiting at the work tables, a day long prayer vigil, vespers, and good food filled the days.

This mission was one of spiritual growth, delightful fellowship and great concrete accomplishment. It was so rewarding that plans are being made to go again in 2008. Anyone, any age can do this. It is a super volunteer project. Lets take a bus load next year.

UMW will give a presentation to any group interested in the UMCOR Depot. Call Melanie Cottam 972-238-9720.


UMCOR Sager Brown

A short History of UMCOR Sager Brown

USB began in 1867 when a group of women in New Orleans formed "The Ophan's Home society" corporation. This was a means of raising money to provide a home for African American boys who had been orphaned by the Civil War. Another donation by Willilam Gilbert of Winsted, allowed a school for African Americans to be built. Eventually this school was moved to New Orleans near Dillard University and becam a preparatory school. In the early 1900's the "Orphan's Home and Godman Industrial School" were in dire financial straits. The student choir went on a tour of the Northeastern United States for the purpose of raising money. Mrs. Addie Sager and Mrs. C. W. Brown became familiar with the plight of the organization through one of these concerts. Sager and Brown purchased the school and gave it to the "Women's Home Mission Society" a forerunner of the Women's Division of the UMC, to operate.

The name of the Institution was changed to the "Sager Brown Home and Godman School". In 1978 the doors of the home and school were closed and the property was put up for sale. Twenty-eight acres and 10 brick buildings on beautiful Bayou Teche were for sale for $100,000 - but there were no buyers and the site was empty for 14 years.

In 1992, hurricane Andrew hit the coast of South Louisana causing major damage around the area. UMCOR came to the area with volunteers and supplies and used the old Sager Brown campus to stage their operations. After 2 years, UMCOR determined that the Sager Brown campus would be an excellent location to build an UMCOR depot from which disaster relief could be collected and provided to the world. The depot was opened int 1996.

The campus today is a living, working monument to 137 years of United Methodist mission. UMCOR is a leader in the service for the UMC to those who are hungry, displaced, sick or in poverty because of natural or human-made disasters. UMCOR serves in over 100 areas of the world. Each year more than 2600 volunteers come to USB to work in the UMCOR depot or in the community services of Baldwin LA to help make a difference for people who are suffering.