Toys for Faith
By Phyllis Moore
Published in News on November 28, 2016 9:57 AM
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News-Argus/CASEY MOZINGO
Jennifer Massey, Vicki Terrell, Emma Davis, 4, and Corrie Rose ride on the back of one of the two trucks full of toys being donated to Faith Christian Preschool by Strickland Insurance. The toys will replace many of the toys damaged by flooding caused by Hurricane Matthew. Emma is a student at Faith Christian.
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News-Argus/CASEY MOZINGO
Brayden Horne, 4, points to a toy he sees as employees from Strickland Insurance unload toys they are donating to Faith Christian Preschool.
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News-Argus/CASEY MOZINGO
Sandra Mann of Faith Christian Preschool helps employees from Strickland Insurance unload the donated toys for her students.
In a case of role reversal, the community has ministered to the church.
Since recent flooding forced Faith Christian Preschool to be displaced, nearly 92 children have been setting up camp in Tot Town, the children's ministry wing of Faith Free Will Baptist Church.
Micah Conlon, Faith Christian Academy administrator, said that on the Saturday that Hurricane Matthew hit Goldsboro, he ventured out to inspect the property. Things appeared fine.
A mere two hours later, though, he doubled back and found flood waters rapidly rising.
"Because of the addition of (Interstate) 795 we received a lot more water than we did last time," he said. "We ended up closing school for the week. That Sunday, the worship service was canceled as well.
"The next Sunday we were able to get back into the church and Monday back into the school. We still had some families that could not get back into the school but decided it was best to get back into the routine."
Hardest hit was the preschool building, which received 2 feet of water inside.
"We have insurance on the building, which was actually a bad thing," Conlon said. "We had to wait for the adjusters. They weren't able to get out for a week, so it increased some of the damage in the building."
Insurance will take care of some of the damage, he said, along with replacing lost items up to a certain amount.
"We totaled it up and the items -- food, furniture, school materials -- it was somewhere close to $80,000 just in the materials," he said. "All the flooring had to be taken out. We had to cut out four feet of sheetrock everywhere in the building."
Cleaning efforts began, but there is more repair work to be done, hopefully allowing the preschool to return to its home after the holidays.
There is also "light at the end of the tunnel" in other ways, Conlon said.
"Because the walls have been exposed up to four feet, we're going to expand some of the classrooms so we can add to the number of kids we can have," he said.
The current capacity is at 113, said Patsy Howard, preschool director for 25 years, with the potential to increase that to 128.
Conlon said when the repair work is complete, some of the eight classrooms will be larger, with the installation of an indoor playground replacing the serving area.
"(The playground) will be for inclement weather days," he said. "We would still have the kitchen area but kids would eat in their classrooms."
The devastation of having the preschool building "gutted," Mrs. Howard said, not only forced children and staff to be displaced but there was also the loss of everything from "cribs to ink pens."
Staff lost curriculum materials, bulletin boards and other teaching tools, as well as food, furniture and bookshelves brimming with toys, games and the like, she said.
That's where Strickland Insurance Group got involved.
Employee Veronica Davis, who works with Atlantic Casualty Insurance and whose daughter, Emma, is a student in the preschool, contacted Sandra Mann, one of the K-4 teachers.
"She asked us if we would make a list of all the toys that we lost in the flood," Ms. Mann said. "We had already made a list for our insurance company.
"She emailed me back and said they would like to reimburse us for all the toys that we lost -- books, movies, all the toys that were on the (low) bookshelves."
On Monday, Mrs. Davis and several co-workers showed up with two trucks brimming with an assortment of brand new toys for the school.
"A few of us that go to church here, we're on the activity committee at work," said Vicki Terrell of Strickland Insurance Group. "We usually help different charities.
"We knew about the flooding, and we wanted to help. We went shopping, had a set amount, but we also had employees donate new toys as well."
As the volunteers unloaded items -- from Disney princess dolls to kid-sized kitchen sets and educational toys -- preschoolers lining the hallway could hardly contain their glee.
"There are no words for me. Thank you doesn't even come close," Mrs. Howard said before acknowledging the youngsters' excitement. "We just need you to stay and help us contain them all day."
"We're very honored to do this for you guys," Mrs. Davis said.
The new toys won't be removed from their boxes just yet, though. Mrs. Howard told the boys and girls the gifts would be something to look forward to when the preschool reopens.
Conlon also expressed his gratitude during the recent displacement.
"The interest from the community has been wonderful," he said.
"I guess being here right on the highway, they saw it and were very aware of the situation and a lot of people have expressed interest," he said. "We have had a lot of schools in our accrediting agency (that play our school in sports), that have donated food and cleaning supplies for people in need.
"So it's just been a real blessing because a lot of people have come to help. We're a ministry and our responsibility is to minister to the community. It's been a blessing for them to reciprocate and minister to us."