Church reaches out to Haiti and at home

Many Americans have been affected by the tragedy that recently struck the island of Haiti and have sought out ways they can help. One local Plumas Lake church also went looking for opportunities to assist, and did so in a big way.

Bayside of Plumas Lake held a shoe drive last month, which it decided to coincide with its local community clean-up day.

"As a church we were looking for a way to participate in the relief efforts for Haiti, other than asking people for money. We wanted to be sensitive to people's financial situations," said Randy Sherwood, pastor, Bayside of Plumas Lake. "The shoe collection allowed us to do something significant where everyone could participate."

This effort was part of the church's "Servolution Sunday," which was the culmination of a month-long conversation about a church's place in the world. Bayside worked with an organization called Soles 4 Souls and collected shoes in January. Members then dropped off a total of 889 pairs of shoes to Soles 4 Souls.

The church worked with its parishioners as well as the local schools to spread the word about the shoe drive, and collection boxes were set up at the school sites.

Not only did the church members reach out to the victims in Haiti, they also helped individuals right here in the community. The shoe collection project was accompanied by a Plumas Lake clean-up. A group of about 20 came together the last weekend of January and helped to make the community look better. They tackled abandoned and foreclosed homes, working to repair and clean up the exteriors of the houses.

“We cleaned up five foreclosed homes, hauling away 10 truckloads of garbage to the dump and three truckloads of green waste,” said Sherwood. “We rebuilt fences, mowed lawns and pulled weeds. It was really cool.”

The church is planning to continue its outreach efforts and already discussing its next "Servolution Sunday."

Individuals interested in donating or helping out victims in Haiti can contact Soles for Souls at www.soles4souls.org.  

Plumas Lake Life correspondent Michele Perrault can be reached at 763-3380 or e-mail her at mperrault@plumaslakelife.com