Boone County church collecting donations to take to Hurricane Helene victims

HARRISBURG, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Boone County church is helping to gather donations to load up a trailer to help victims of Hurricane Helene.

According to a Facebook post from the Harrisburg Christian Church, Gary Long of Harrisburg is leading the efforts. Donations will be accepted at the church from 2 to 7 p.m. Monday and from 8 a.m. to noon Tuesday, according to the post.

Long credits his wife with the idea to start collecting donations.

"She said we want to do something for all of the people that went through the hurricane. And she said, I don't wanna just give them money, I want to do something, And she said, that's my idea, you run with it, you can make it work," Long said. "So I made a few calls."

Long will take all donations to Sweet Springs Baptist Church in Huntsville on Tuesday afternoon. This will be the second truck that has been sent to the damaged area.

"I'm going to take it tomorrow afternoon, I will take it up to Huntsville and meet the truck," Long said. "
That's going to take it down to the disaster area, which they're going to take to churches, local churches, down there."

The donations will be going to the Ashville, N.C. area and western Tennesee.

A list of items needed was shared during the church's Sunday service. Those items include:

• Cases of water
• Baby wipes
• Diapers (children and adults)
• Feminine hygiene products
• Bug spray
• Sunscreen
• Plastic utensils
• Trash bags
• Cleaning supplies
• Plastic sheeting/tarps
• Paper towels
• Toilet paper
• Toothbrushes
• Toothpaste
• Toiletries/sanitation items
• Pet food
• Hand sanitizer
• Heavy-duty work gloves
• Unopened socks of all sizes

The church asks donors to avoid donating clothing.

Donator Grant Timbrook dropped off donations from Prarie Grove Baptist Church in Columbia, Nashville Baptist Church and donations collected from households in the community. He says he is thankful for the local resources available to help those affected.

"This is a great opportunity for people to give in a small way, but it adds up so quickly and I just think it's great, all churches and communities and denominations can work together," Timbrook said.

Timbrook heard about the donation collection through Facebook.

Timbrook shared some tips he uses when donating to make sure the supplies are actually getting to where they need to go.

"I always look for local resources first in these situations, especially from people that are trusted, churches or organizations who are already doing the work," Timbrook said. "Why reinvent the wheel if someone's already doing the work already? They're helping people, face to face, one on one."

Helene made landfall on Sept. 26 in Florida as a Category 4 hurricane. It moved inland and dumped heavy rain in the southern Appalachians, claiming more than 200 lives.

"We're all here to support you, and this won't be enough of what you need, but at least it's something toward helping you out, and I hope you do well down there," Long said. "And God bless you and take care of you and our prayers are with you."