Fremont preschoolers package help for Haiti
By Staff Reports
Published in News on April 28, 2010 1:46 PM
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News-Argus/BOBBY WILLIAMS
Preschoolers from Fremont Methodist Church recently put together 707 care packages that thay took to the MERCI operations center in Rosewood. The packages will be sent to help the victims of the earthquake that struck Haiti in January. While the children were there, the operations manager gave them a tour of the center's daily operations preparing the packages for shipping to the needy.
Since the earthquake in Haiti left thousands of people hurt, hungry and homeless, the outpouring of sympathy from Wayne County alone has been enormous.
And the Fremont Methodist Church Preschool class has certainly contributed more than its share.
In establishing the "Share the Love -- Health Kits for Haiti," project, the class of 29 students set a goal of donating 500 health kits to be distributed but instead, surpassed that goal and came up with 707 health kits, along with $707 to cover the cost of shipping.
Along with that, the class raised another $629.76 to donate to the MERCI Center for other Haitian relief. The value of the class' donation, at $13 per kit, is nearly $10,000.
Teacher Shari Stewart said the project was the most ambitious the preschool has ever undertaken. She described it as a true "community effort."
"We could not have done this without the support of many people, churches and businesses supporting our efforts," she said, adding that Fremont Boy Scout Troop 12 also helped with packaging the kits and getting them to the MERCI Center.
In addition to the above, the church donated 300 health kits to the MERCI Center a week after the disaster struck, along with $300 to pay for shipping.
Together, the church and preschool donated a total of 1,007 health kits and $1,636.76 for shipping to MERCI.
Among the businesses and churches that contributed to Fremont Methodist's Haiti effort were ExCel Linde of Goldsboro, the North Carolina Mutual Wholesale Drug Co. of Durham, Fremont Pharmacy, Beauty World of Goldsboro, Fremont Missionary Baptist Church, First Missionary Baptist Church, Gospel Tabernacle United Holy Church, Greater Morning Star Church, New Bethel Free Will Baptist Church, United Christian Outreach Corp., Union Grove Missionary Baptist Church and United Church in Christ.