Photo by Caleb Gingerich, MDS.
During a seminar on July 9 at Follow Jesus 25, the MC USA convention in Greensboro, North Carolina, leaders from Mennonite Disaster Service (MDS) explained how to find a “holy space” in disaster response work — a mission that’s increasingly needed and open to all.
Titled “Do Something: Disaster Response as Holy Space,” the seminar featured Lawrence Matthews, MDS regional volunteer development coordinator; and Terry Zehr, MDS interim volunteer manager, both of whom work with volunteers on a daily basis.
Matthews noted that this past year has been sobering in terms of multiple disasters, from hurricanes to wildfires, to the most recent tragic flooding in Texas that has killed at least 119 people with another 150 missing.
Participants learned about the many ways in which they can volunteer with MDS, from becoming a leadership volunteer who serves for a month or more, to serving as a Church Contact Person who provides information and builds local support for MDS.
“We have 31 full-time or part-time staff in the U.S. managing about 6,500 individual volunteers,” said Matthews, citing numbers tallied in the last fiscal year.
Considering the MDS vision — “we strive to be the hands and feet of Jesus” — Matthews noted the first two words.
“The word ‘we’ means everyone who engaged in any way with MDS,” he said. “The word ‘strive’ is an action, and I hope it gives the impression that we are not perfect. It’s the idea that the kingdom is coming, is being built, as we strive to love God and neighbor.”
Everything MDS does is mission-related, pointed out Zehr, who described MDS’s structure as a matrix, in which there are ways to be involved at many levels designed to fit people at different times of their lives, with different flexibilities.
“It’s so important to do this work under the umbrella of MDS,” Matthews said. “We have equipment. We have experts who do the investigations. We know how to get that done.”
He encouraged people to fill out an MDS contact card, or scan a QR code, to fill out a questionnaire designed to ascertain what volunteer role is the best fit.
Zehr described two specific volunteer roles: the MDS RV Program, for people 55 and older, and the leadership volunteers role, which is vital for MDS.
“If you want to become part of MDS, we guarantee that we give you an on-ramp,” said Zehr. “If you want to serve, we can find a place for you.”
Written by Susan Kim, MDS.