Expressions of thanks come in many forms. Thanks may be spoken or written or a handshake or a hug or tears or a smile. Whatever their form, they are sincere. We who talk with those we help are the direct recipients of these expressions of thanks. However, it is through your support that we are able to help those in need. Your support comes in many ways - financial through covenant relationships with the General Board of Global Ministries or direct gifts to United Methodist Ministries, prayers, and words of encouragement. Through this letter I want to convey to you some of the stories of those you have helped and their words of thanks.

- Karen needed help with a $669 combined water/sewage/trash bill. The worker at the water company told her to call me to see if I could help her. When I met her to fill out the application for assistance, Karen was very nervous. Rather than adding a lot of information about her personal story, she only gave direct answers to the questions asked. (Sometimes people will tell their story as you ask the questions, and you have to sort out the answers to the questions.) Karen is divorced, has three children between the ages of 5 and 10, and receives $500 a month child support - her only income. After completing the application, I suggested a couple of other places she might go to ask for additional help. When I told Karen I would pay $275 towards her bill, she started to cry and to talk. She said, "Thank you very much. You don't know what this means to me." She told me more about her three children and how she had just separated from the man she married after the divorce from her children's father. After separating, she used up her savings and was now trying to make it on the $500 a month child support. As I talked with her, I asked if she could use some food or cleaning supplies. I found out where she lived and took some items by the next day. Karen wrote in a thank you note:

"I wish to express my deepest thanks for your help in my time of need. . . . You truly are an angel doing God's work. . . . Until the past year, I have never had to have assistance. . . I am a severe asthmatic and I suffer from bipolar disorder. I am no longer able to work. I will never forget . . . your kindness when I truly needed help. Again, I thank you. May God bless."

        From money designated for scholarships, I have been able to help two women buy their books for the first semester of their Licensed Practical Nursing (LPN) classes. They both were going to receive financial assistance, but they would not receive it until a couple of weeks after classes began. The books for each student for one semester were $380.

- When I first heard about Tonya, I learned that she worked in a small diner, goes to church, and wants to try to improve herself in order to get a better job so that she can provide for her children. Tonya wrote in her thank you note:

"I am a 28 year old single mother of 2 children. . . . I am striving to become a LPN . . . I would like to take this opportunity to say thank you for the way that you're helping to make this possible."

- Erin wants to become a nurse. She told me she had been working at Walmart until her classes started. The father of her child also works at Walmart and helps Erin with whatever the baby needs. Erin wrote in her thank you note:

"I am twenty years old. . . . I have a son. . . . He just turned one year old. I am getting ready to further my education and attend the Licensed Practical Nursing class . . . . This is something that I have wanted to do since I graduated from high school in 2006. . . I am willing to work my hardest and give it my all to succeed. . . I want to become a registered nurse. My current interest right now is getting through this nursing school and providing a good future for me and my son. I want you to know that I appreciate what you have done for me in providing the money for my first semester books. . . . I thank you for the help you have given me. May God bless you in helping me fulfill a step in my goal."

        There are many others who are thankful for the help they have received. I will name a few: (1) a father whose wife left him with three children - one of whom is brain damaged and needs constant care - was thankful for helping to keep his electricity from being disconnected; (2) a couple who were both working - but the husband who was making $24 an hour is now off sick and the wife only makes $160 a month - was thankful for help with their rent which included their utilities; (3) a couple with three children who were both working - but the husband who was an electrician is now sick and unable to work and some of the people whose houses the wife cleaned did not need her so she only made $600 this month and their bills come to $1,200 - was thankful for the help to keep their electricity from being disconnected. All of these people who have been helped would say to you along with Karen, "I wish to express my deepest thanks for your help in my time of need. . . .You truly are angels doing God's work."

                                                                                                                                                                                    With much appreciation,

A copy of the January 29, 2008 letter follows:

Dear Friends,

        Just maybe coal trucks were made to teach patience as well as to haul coal. Who knows? Recently, I started on a six and one half hour trip, and it took me one hour to go the first twenty-five miles, because for most of the way, I was in a line of traffic behind, you guessed it, a coal truck.

        In my work with low income families, I need to have patience, flexibility, and understanding. Many times when people call asking for assistance with a utility bill, I will tell them I'm willing to help them, but that I need them to come to a designated location to complete the paper work and bring a copy of their bill and disconnection notice. They say they will come, and then they never show. I have to remember that all I can do is to offer to help. They have the choice of accepting the help. Most of the time, the reason they didn't come is that "something else" came up - friends or relatives wanted them to go somewhere with them, or their friends and relatives helped them pay their bill. Long ago I learned that the "something else" is the importance of personal relationships to persons in Appalachia and those in poverty. The value which persons in poverty place on relationships is the guiding force for many of the things they do and the choices they make. This idea was reinforced at the Church and Community Workers' national meeting where the resource for one of the continuing education units was the book, Bridges Out of Poverty.

        From the study of Bridges Out of Poverty, we also learned that every group - whether it be those in poverty or the middle class or the wealthy - has its own hidden rules and expectations. So many times we in the middle class expect those in poverty to follow our hidden rules and expectations - especially the one of being organized enough to keep up with the bills they haven't paid. Some sources of funding for agencies have specific requirements which must be met. For example, in the distribution of Emergency Food and Shelter money, it is required that we have a copy of the latest electrical bill. Many times those seeking help will only bring the termination notice even after being told they need to bring their regular monthly bill. Their excuse is that they couldn't find it. The study reminded me of some of the characteristics I have learned over the years that help to understand the reasons those in poverty may not have whatever they are told to bring. Relationships with family and friends and the present are more important to those in poverty than managing papers and thinking of the future. As I work with those in poverty, I must continue to be patient and flexible and to try to work with whatever information persons seeking help bring with them. Most of the time when persons do not bring all the information they need, I will just use funds from a more flexible source.

       Sometimes it is more than limited funds that cause persons to get behind on their bills. It may also be the lack of being mentally capable to handle money and pay bills. A lay person in one of the churches received a call from the neighbor of a mother and daughter whose electricity had been disconnected for almost a week. The mother was 79 years old and sick in bed. The only income in the household was the mother's check for $623. The lay person arranged for me to meet with her, the neighbor, and the daughter to work on a way to get the power restored. As I filled out the application form, I realized that the forty-seven year old daughter was mentally challenged. So I called the electrical company to find out what amount it would take to get the power reconnected. The amount was $790. After I indicated that the two sources of funding from the United Methodists could not take care of such a large amount, the neighbor made phone calls to two pastors she knew from her denomination and an agency which had promised to help. I served as coordinator to help make arrangements for the neighbor to collect and make a payment with the funds she located, and I followed through with the power company. In the end by all working together, the bill was paid and the electricity reconnected. It was not what I had planned to do that day, but it was what needed to be done. Again it was a time to have patience and understanding and to be flexible.

       At two different churches in the parish, volunteers have been available for a couple of hours a week to meet with persons seeking help with their utility bills. As the volunteers ask questions to complete the application form, they listen to the stories of those seeking help. From the experience, the church people who participate feel that by being available they are able to help a few persons who really need the help. The church people have been surprised by the number of families who have adult children living at home who are not working, because it is difficult to find a job.

       As difficult as it is in Appalachia to find work, finding employment is even more of a problem in Mexico. Recently, I went with a group of Rural Chaplains to Mexico. We stayed in Puebla City (about 80 miles southeast of Mexico City). During our stay we went to visit several rural and small town areas which were one to three hours away by bus from Puebla City. Among the sites we visited were three schools - a Methodist University, a Methodist private school, and a technical school. We learned that every year there are about seven times more people wanting a job than there are jobs available. When young people graduate from high school, they have very few opportunities for well paid jobs in Mexico. The most popular course at the university is international business. Many young people are going to other parts of the world to find jobs. This is creating a brain drain for Mexico. This is similar to young people leaving some areas of Appalachia to find jobs.

      We visited a mission project of The United Methodist Church called Give Ye Them To Eat (GYTTE). The missionary couple's focus is to give people in rural areas the opportunity to develop ways to improve their lives. At the project they use materials available to the native people to experiment and find out what works best. As the missionaries live and work with the people in a variety of experiences, the native people learn how to build such things as beehive ovens, fuel saving mud stoves, solar ovens, worm farms, straw bale houses, and dry composting toilets. The missionaries said that there are no quick fixes when you live and work with people. It takes time to build trust.

       I am thankful to be a part of the Body of Christ and have the opportunity to reach out and serve those in need. It is helpful to have opportunities to learn from others - whether it be studying together when we meet as Church and Community Workers or traveling to another country as Rural Chaplains. Maybe - just maybe - I'll have to admit that I can be grateful for lessons taught by coal trucks as they slow up traffic on mountain roads.

                                                                                                                                                                                     In Christ's love,

                                                                                                                                                                                    Judy C. Matheny, Ph.D.
                                                                                                                                                                                    Church and Community Worker
                                                                                                                                                                                    Advance Special #982969

A copy of the July 27, 2007 mission letter follows:

Dear Friends,

        What do we do when "the going" gets tough? Are we thankful for our blessings or do we only think about how difficult everything is for us? On a recent backpacking hike on the Appalachian Trail, I pondered these questions after struggling uphill with a 35 pound pack at the end of a long day of hiking. When I first started up the hill, I felt it was all I could do to put one foot in front of the other, and I thought, "I don't know if I can make it a couple more miles to a source of water." Then I remembered what I sometimes do on the tough uphills. With each step I take going uphill, I say one word from the phrase, "Thank you, Lord, Amen" or "Thank you, Lord, for . . ." and fill in the blank with such things as friends, blackberries, nice weather, water, etc. It really makes it easier to go up the hill when I stop thinking of how tired I am and think about the good things.

        As I thought about my hiking experience, I realized it is much the same in everyday life and with many of the persons with whom I work. When we think about the good things or blessings we have instead of thinking about all the hardships and difficulties we have, we feel more hopeful and not as burdened.

       During the last six months the number of families needing assistance has increased, especially those still working or those who were working and now are out of work for a few months due to illness, injury, or being laid off. Some who come for help say they've never had to ask for help before, but they don't know what else to do. When families are helped to avoid the disconnection of their electricity or water or helped to get it turned back on after being without, they feel they have received a blessing and feel that their burden is lighter. Persons are so grateful for the help they receive. They thank us, they thank the Lord, they bless us, they cry because they are so relieved. Here are some examples of those who have become more hopeful and have one less burden.

• Jane, a twenty-eight year old single mom, needed help paying $134.76 past due on her electric bill. Jane was among those caught in a dilemma when a small electric company was being taken over by a larger one. Before the transfer to the larger company, persons who were behind in their payments were going to have their electricity disconnected if they didn't pay within a week (which was the last week of the month). Jane receives a $301 monthly welfare check for her six year old son and $279 in food stamps. Having to pay $200 in rent plus her other bills does not leave her extra money to pay for any increase in her bill. Jane lacks three classes of finishing her LPN course. Due to sickness and her ex-husband threatening her and her son, she could not keep her grades up. In the middle of the spring semester, she dropped her classes so she would not fail them. She is scheduled to start work in a week as a CNA at a nursing home and plans to finish her LPN course next spring. What a relief it was for Jane to have help with her electric bill. Not only did Jane thank us for helping with her electric bill, but she also thanked us for listening to all of her problems.

• Mark came needing help with a $163.85 payment on Pat's (his mother) electric bill. The welfare office agreed to pay $81.93 if the remaining $163.85 was paid. Pat's husband had died recently, and she would begin receiving a Social Security check in a month. Mark had applied for his SSI. Right now they had no income. In addition, when her husband died, Pat was in the process of adopting another son's four year old twins who had lived with them since they were born. As Mark thanked us for the help, he said they had never asked for help before.

• Ann needed help paying a huge electric/water bill in order to keep the service. She said she needed $678. For one month during the winter, her bill had been over $700. Ann makes approximately $1,000 a month working at a gas station. Her husband left her with their three children, and he doesn't provide any support. She has been paying what she could, but with her other bills (house and truck payments, truck insurance, food, etc.), she could not seem to "catch up." From several sources, we were able to put together enough money to make her payment.

• Ted needed help with a past due amount of $251.25 on his electric bill. Ted earns $360 a month working at a coffee shop. During the winter his electric heat caused his bill to be more than he could pay. So even though he paid as much as he could, he could not seem to "catch up," and now the electric company was going to disconnect his electricity if he didn't pay his past due amount. We also gave him some groceries from the food pantry. He was very grateful for the help.

        Many times persons get in, what I would call, a "tighter spot" beyond their control as they struggle just to survive. They may have been surviving, but an increase in electrical rates and gasoline, car repair, sickness which requires out of town trips to a hospital, or any other extra expense can cause them to feel like they are "on a tough uphill" to get back on top. As they ask for help, they have a story to tell. Listening to their story is an important part of the process of gathering the information needed to assist them. Hopefully, the caring they feel as they are helped will give them another reason to be thankful in addition to the blessing they feel they have received in having their bill paid.

        All of those you have helped to make it "up a tough uphill" deeply appreciate your sharing your blessings with them. And I am deeply appreciative of your ongoing support for me. Your support reflects the care and concern you have for those in need.

                                                                                                                                                                                         In Christ's love,

                                                                                                                                                                                         Judy C. Matheny, Ph.D.
                                                                                                                                                                                          Church and Community Worker
                                                                                                                                                                                         Advance Special #982969

A copy of the January 26, 2007 mission letter follows:

Dear Friends,

        As the new year begins, I want to say to you the same thing the Apostle Paul wrote to the Philippians, "I thank my God every time I remember you." As you have shared your blessings with United Methodist Ministries, you have made it possible for many families to receive assistance as they struggle to "make ends meet." As persons' needs are met, they feel that God has blessed them.

        Many times persons who have been working find themselves without any income for a period of time if they are laid off. Then it takes only one month to be behind in their bills. By the second and third month, they are likely to face disconnection of utilities, depending on the utility company and the time of year. Some families who have received a welfare check for sixty months are no longer eligible to receive a check. Others who are receiving a welfare check cannot pay all of their bills because they only receive $200 to $500 a month. Whatever their circumstances, persons are very thankful for the help they receive. Some make an extra effort to express their gratitude.

• Carol needed help with an electric bill so that her electricity would not be disconnected. She had been receiving $500 a month child support (her only income) for her two boys. Since her ex-husband was not working, the child support had stopped three months earlier. Her mother had been helping her when she could. After Carol received assistance from United Methodist Ministries, she called and thanked me for helping her.

• Lawrence needed help with an electric bill to get his electricity reconnected. He was approved to receive unemployment, but it would be a couple of weeks before he would receive his first check. The electric company had disconnected his power, and it had turned cold. Electricity was the source of heat for Lawrence and his son. Lawrence seemed as concerned about not wanting his water pipes to freeze as he was about not having heat for his son and himself. After Lawrence's electricity was reconnected, he called and thanked me for helping him.

• Gwen needed help with a $49 water bill so that her water would not be disconnected. She was behind on her water bill, because she had been laid off and had been without any income for a couple of months. She had found a new job and was scheduled to begin in a couple of weeks. She was a single mother with two boys. A month later she was back again wanting help with a $73 gas bill. She said, "I'm trying." She had been working in her new job for two weeks, but it would be another two weeks before she would receive her paycheck. She was very grateful for the help.

• Mary sent a thank you card and wrote a note saying, "We appreciate every little thing you do for us. Thanks so much." I have worked with Mary for a number of years. Over the years I have taken her food, household items, furniture, clothing, school supplies, Christmas decorations, greeting cards, knickknacks, etc. She has helped to distribute items to others in need.
  
  
• Ann needed help with an electric bill to keep her electricity from being disconnected. I had gone to Ann's house to take food, cleaning supplies, and toilet paper. She had not asked me to come. I just thought she might need such items, because when I saw her in November, the welfare office had told her that her check would be reduced to about $200. Ann has six children under eight. During my visit she mentioned that she had talked to the electric company to see if they would extend the date they had set to disconnect her electricity. They said they would give her three more days to pay the $182 she owed. Ann had asked her mother-in-law to help her since she had helped to pay their bills in the past, but she did not have the money this time. Ann assumed that I could not help her again, because I had helped her a couple of months earlier. However, I assured her that I would help her. I knew that electricity was their source of heat and that with six children (one about a month old) and it being a couple of weeks before Christmas, they needed their electricity. She was very grateful and said that was like receiving a Christmas present.
  
          Because of your support, people who come seeking help know that someone cares. One woman said, "Please tell the people (which would be you) thank you." When I hear someone say to me, "God's Holy Spirit must have guided me to you" or "I don't know what I would have done if you had not helped me," I thank God for you and the opportunity to serve in Southern West Virginia.
  

                                                                                                                                                                      With deep appreciation,

  
                                                                                                                                                                       Judy C. Matheny, Ph.D.
                                                                                                                                                                      Church and Community Worker
                                                                                                                                                                      Advance Special #982969

   

  A copy of August 10, 2006 mission letter follows:

                                                                                                                                                                            August 10, 2006 10, 2006

Dear Friends,

    Part of my orientation when I first became a Church and Community Worker in 1970 was to read a booklet entitled This Difficult Business of Helping. During the last six months I have been reminded again of three concepts from that booklet.

                           1. Helping is a matter of offering options.
                           2. We can only offer help. The person being helped may refuse the help we offer.
                           3. We may help someone and that person may choose to do things differently from what we think they ought to.

The main point is that as the "helper" we have to allow the persons we are helping to have the freedom to make their own choices, including refusing our help.

    Buddy is one of those persons I offered to help. I first met Buddy last winter when I stopped by where he lived to ask directions to someone's house. From all appearances I guessed that he must be living in a little building about 6 feet by 10 feet and a pop-up camper on the back of a lot behind the remains of the foundation of a house which had burned. Later I went back to visit him to learn more about his situation. Buddy had moved back to the county a couple of years earlier. I learned that he was living in the little building which was a coal shed he had remodeled and added about a 6 by 6 foot kitchen area onto the front. He didn't have any electricity, but he was hooked onto the county water system. He mentioned that he planned to build a bathroom onto the side of his remodeled coal shed when the weather warmed up. He said he really needed a bathroom since he didn't have one. He didn't even have an outhouse. I told him that I had heard about a trailer available for $3,000. (People in McDowell County call mobile homes trailers.) He responded that he could not afford to buy a trailer on his small income.

    After I first learned about his need for a bathroom, I kept thinking there ought to be some way to help him have a bathroom and a larger place to live. Now Buddy had not asked for help. So I was hesitant about offering help. Yet I felt that he should have the option of something better. So I began to ask more questions. I decided I needed to find out from him what his long term housing goal was. He said after he built the bathroom, he wanted to build a larger room, but that would take five or more years since he could only afford to buy a few materials at a time on his $652 a month Social Security check.

    I decided to ask Buddy if he had a choice which would he prefer - a trailer or a larger room. He said he didn't much like trailers, but right now it made a lot more sense to take the trailer. After talking about the larger room and realizing all the work it entailed, he just felt he was too tired and too old. I promised him I would see what I could do about providing a trailer.

    After finding out the $3,000 trailer was still available, I purchased it with funds from United Methodist Ministries. I began the process of working out the details of getting a building permit and moving the trailer. Then Buddy decided that he didn't want to live in a trailer. He was afraid it might burn like so many others in the area. He didn't want to go through losing everything again as he had when his house burned. I told him I would see if I could get him a temporary electrical hook up. To get the temporary electrical hook up, I had to provide the redevelopment office with a rough drawing of plans for a new room. Buddy was really proud and thankful for his temporary electrical hook up. Some men in one of my supporting churches promised to build the room for Buddy, but the other day when I visited Buddy he had several excuses for not doing it now and said we would talk about it later. He told me that he didn't feel he ought to accept something that big and that he should take care of himself. I have to remind myself of the concept that while I had offered options to Buddy, he should have the choice to refuse the help.

    The story of Ann and Lynn is one of helping and then allowing them the freedom to make their own choices. Ann's husband died about four years ago. After he died she got a job to supplement the $122 monthly check she received as a widow's pension. She was injured about a year ago and had to stop working. So now she was trying to make it on the $122 a month. Since Ann did not have health insurance, she didn't have the money to return to the doctor when her injury did not heal. Also, she had stopped taking her high blood pressure medicine because she couldn't afford to buy it.

    Her daughter, Lynn, was in her third year of college. Their car was very important since it was the only way Lynn had to get back and forth to school. Ann had received a letter from the bank indicating that they would repossess the car, because she was behind on her car payments. Ann said Lynn had cried when they received the letter, because she didn't want to quit school with only a month left in the semester. Their car insurance was also due, and they had a termination notice for cutting off their electricity.

    I felt that it was important to help Lynn finish her third year of college. So by using a scholarship fund given by a couple in one of my supporting churches, money given by a United Methodist Women's group in another church, and the Parish emergency fund, I was able to pay the back payment on the car, the car insurance, and the outstanding electric bill. A month later I paid for another month's car insurance to give them a chance for Lynn to get a summer job. They were very grateful for the help, but when Lynn's college classes finished, she didn't go and get a summer job. At my urging Ann did go to the clinic and found she had some major medical problems. The doctor wrote a letter indicating that she was unable to work and suggested that she apply for her Social Security disability and a medical card.

    In both the case with Buddy and with Ann and Lynn, I feel I did what I could by offering options and setting up the situations so that there were possibilities of improving their situations or helping them to help themselves. I was disappointed at their choices, but hopefully they realize that there are people who care and have shared their blessings with them.

    As I serve through United Methodist Ministries, it is helpful to be reminded that as Christians we help others as a response to the love God has shown us and that we should help others in the same way God has helped us - without being judgmental and controlling. Thanks for your support and for giving me the opportunity to help others, even when it is difficult.

                                                                                                                                                                            Faithfully yours in Christ,