Lutheran World Relief in the Mid-South District
At this year’s Lutheran World Relief CARE-VAN ingathering the Mid-South District had six drop sites where we collected handmade quilts, school kits, personal care kits, baby care kits, and fabric kits. Our drop sites included Grace, Knoxville, TN.; Cross of Christ, Chattanooga, TN.; Our Savior, Nashville, TN.; Immanuel, Memphis, TN.; First, Fort Smith, AR.; and Zion of Avilla, Alexander, AR.
At the time of this report (11/20/2024), the top three quilt-producing congregations that dropped off their work at an LWR CARE-VAN ingathering site were Zion of Avilla Lutheran Church, Alexander, AR (222 quilts), Cross of Christ Lutheran Church, Chattanooga, TN (144 quilts), and First Lutheran Church, Fort Smith, AR (80 quilts). At this time, a total of 1,076 quilts have been donated.
To date we have had 33 congregations participate, collecting over $4.675 for shipping costs. We also collected 1,493 personal care kits (one congregation donated 225 personal care kits!), 120 fabric kits, 701 school kits, and 227 baby care kits. The CARE-VAN trailers were loaded up with 439 boxes (weighing approximately 8,730 pounds!) of offerings from District congregations for Lutheran World Relief. Way to go Mid-South District!
Many of the congregations’ efforts are coordinated by LWML groups and longstanding quilting groups in the congregations. They participate in this effort to share the love of Christ in a personal way. The tireless efforts of those who share their talents and the generous contributions of many make this a successful ingathering.
One of the many blessings of CARE-VAN would have to be the different denominations that come together to provide relief through their talents and hard work. We remain very blessed to be able to coordinate this effort throughout the Mid-South District. Thank you to all who participated in this year’s annual LWR CARE-VAN drive! You touched someone in need!
The LWR Quilt & Kit Ministry has expanded to reach neighbors in need in the United States! This means that quilts and kits will now comfort families here in the U.S. and abroad. In fact, LWR Quilts and Kits are already on the way to partners in the U.S., with the first distributions expected to happen later this year.
The Quilt & Kit Ministry is our longest running program, born in 1945, the same year as Lutheran World Relief. Over these last 80 years, the Ministry has grown considerably, which means we can now expand our reach to comfort and care for more of our neighbors, both near and far.
—Diane Reimold/Julie Tyler
Mid-South District CARE-VAN Coordinators
