MCC BC Flood Response Update

Update- February 2022 - Fraser Valley Rebuild

MDS and MCC invite our church partners to join us in caring for our neighbour by:·

1. Gathering construction crews to join us in assisting homeowners in the Sumas Prairie to rebuild their homes. Collect groups of 5-8 volunteers (construction or trade background is an asset) to volunteer for week-long commitments. The volunteer crews will serve together, under the supervision of the Project Director- Mark Rempel.
2. Food volunteers are also needed as we form construction crews if your church or community group is interested in preparing lunch for groups.As our project start dates are determined, Shelley Dueck will contact the volunteers by email to book dates for crew/food volunteers.

We are so grateful for the generosity of our constituency and look forward to serving together with you.

Register your group via email to Shelley Dueck, sdueck@mds.org

Update - December 3rd - Communities in Crisis

Click here to give & Click here to volunteer

The communities of Arnold and Yarrow, in BC’s Fraser Valley, experienced devastating flooding and loss on Nov 14-15, 2021. As community members and the church surveyed the damage to their properties and community, they also looked at each other and reached out to help carry each other’s burdens. Neighbours helped each other, newcomers to the community were introduced, people made new friends and connections. People prayed. People volunteered. People gave. People served.  These communities were challenged and will experience continued challenges, but they also grew stronger and grew together.

In both Arnold and Yarrow the church/churches became an emergency community resource centres to the local and wider community. Volunteers from within the church and community used their skill, ability and resources to coordinate an extraordinary effort, including:

Arnold Community

• Coordinated a board where community members listed their home needs
• Teams assessed needs and coordinated volunteer efforts to help homeowners to dispose of contaminated possessions, drywall and flooring
• Coordination of coffee, hot lunches and dinners for up to 150-200 people daily
• Accepted donations to set up a food bank for the community to access
• Accepted donation of clothing and basic home supplies for the community to access
• Collected personal protective equipment for homeowners and volunteer use
• Set up temporary landfills for drywall, insulation and waste to be dropped off and hauled away

Yarrow Community

• Coordinated a list where community members listed their home needs
• Teams assessed needs and coordinated volunteer efforts to help homeowners to dispose of contaminated possessions, drywall and flooring
• Collected personal protective equipment for homeowners and volunteer use
• Set up a food bank, cafeteria and kitchen running with long term capacity (2-3 months at this point)
• Offered financial aid services
• Yarrow MCC Thrift Store gave free clothes to people in need
• A childcare program
• Community sandbagging effort

We are comforted that we are not alone. Brothers and sisters from the Mennonite World Conference have been lifting our communities up in prayer.

November 26th Update

We urgently need volunteers to help clean out flooded houses in Abbotsford and Merritt and prepare them for repair. Volunteer shifts begin Tuesday, Nov. 30 in Abbotsford and Wednesday, Dec. 1 in Merritt. Overnight accomodations are only available in Abbotsford.

Click here to volunteer to help. Groups should contact canadianrelief@samaritan.ca to coordinate availability and travel.

November 24th Update

MCC BC continues to respond to last week’s floods across southern BC to address the needs not being met by other agencies.

More specifically, MCC is supporting efforts organized by Mennonite Disaster Services (MDS) and local churches in the affected areas.  And MCC will also support MDS through the recovery and rebuilding phase which is to follow.

In Princeton, MDS is organizing clean-up efforts where over 300 homes have been flooded. Please contact Kelsey Friesen at kfriesen@mds.org or 1-866-261-1274 to learn more or to register as a volunteer.

The City of Abbotsford has invited Samaritan’s Purse to take the lead role with emergency response as well as coordinating efforts to clean out homes that are affected by flooding.

In Abbotsford and Princeton, MDS will be responding to the recovery and rebuilding phase, which MCC is supporting, with a priority on families whose homes are uninsured or underinsured and don’t have sufficient access to other resources.
MCC is also collaborating with churches in Yarrow and Arnold to support their efforts. If your church needs assistance with flood response or would like to assist others, please contact Shelley Dueck at shelleydueck@mccbc.ca or 604-850-6639 at MCC BC. 

Donations to MCC for flood response can be made here and to MDS here, as we work together to help those in need. We appreciate your ongoing prayers for those impacted as well as those responding.