On coldest nights, Sumter Fireside Fund helps neighbors with what we may take for granted
One thing about my job at Sumter United Ministries: It is impossible to not think of our clients on bitterly cold nights.
During the coldest months is probably when I think of them the most.
There are many luxuries that many of us take for granted that some of our clients do not enjoy. Not everyone has a cellphone, streaming services or a car, for instance. Heat is not a luxury but an essential to life and survival during the winter. For the past few days, with temperatures nearing record lows, I reclined in bed each night thankful for a well-insulated home and a gas furnace that was more than able to keep my family warm and safe. As I laid there thankful, I would begin to think of those without such assurances.
We have had many requests for kerosene lately at the Crisis Relief Ministry.
Recently, a married couple with eight children needed kerosene to stay warm. The mother works and the father has recently been out of work, straining the budget.
A senior on a fixed income of $1,100 a month who lives in a family home, an inherited property, needed a boost financially with a voucher for kerosene.
A disabled man in his 50s, a victim of a violent crime from a few years prior, needed kerosene to keep warm, also.
When we assist with kerosene vouchers, the relief is immediate. The warmth from the kerosene heaters is strong enough to cut through the intensely cold temperatures we have had recently.
Thank you for remembering those in need during these cold nights! So many are depending upon caring people like you to donate and help them. Thank you for your support of Sumter United Ministries through The Fireside Fund.
Kevin Howell is the director of the Crisis Relief Ministry at Sumter United Ministries.
ABOUT THE FIRESIDE FUND
Each winter since 1969, The Sumter Item has run a fundraiser to collect money from its readers to be donated entirely to Sumter United Ministries.
The faith-based nonprofit provides emergency and life-rebuilding services ranging from food, shelter and clothing to final notice bill pay, access to educational opportunities and a medical clinic. The Sumter Item recognizes and appreciates every ministry their staff and volunteers run, but the Fireside Fund was created to focus on one area that becomes critical for the next few months: heat.
Every penny donated will directly help people who live in Sumter by preventing heating services from being turned off, allowing access to propane or other heating sources and, when enough funding is available and the need is there, funding long-term housing fixes to make homes more efficient.
IN HONOR OF
Each year, The Item's leadership team picks a person who has recently passed away to which the year's campaign will be dedicated. The person honored is someone who made a positive impact in the community, whether through service or philanthropy, business or community leadership.
If you think about the impact the Rev. William Samuel Randolph imparted in terms of civic service, entrepreneurialism, faith leadership and human rights, he checked all the boxes.
The now-late uncle of current Sumter City Councilman James B. Blassingame moved to Sumter to attend Morris College. His legacy is as a pastor of First Baptist Missionary Church for 47 years, owner and operator of Randolph General Construction Co. and city councilman from 1987 to 2008, including mayor pro tempore for 19 of those years. His civil rights legacy is the 1961 S.C. Supreme Court case that, while he was arrested 11 times in the fight for racial equality, was pivotal in charges being dropped for several civil rights activists.
Randolph died Sept. 17 at the age of 88.
New donations as of Jan. 23: Maureen Maclin, in memory of James Maclin, $100; St. Mark's United Methodist Church Euzelian Class, $200; South Carolina, XI ETA Beta Sigma Phi, $25; Zoar Homemakers Club (FCL), $25; Kathy Krauss, $50; Sandra Wallace, in memory of Melvin Wallace, $100; and Sandra Wallace, in memory of Mary L. Hinson, $100.