05/04/2026
When the wildfires started in southeast Georgia, Jesup First UMC began to think of ways we could offer support. Many of our members took supplies to first responders. We prayed for rain and for protection for our communities and for first responders. The Red Cross is using our parking lot, and we are in contact about ways to support their work. We prayed about how we could help people who were displaced by fires. Then we learned that our local women’s shelter, Fair Haven, was opening their shelter to women and children who were displaced by the fire.
Every year, the Jesup First United Women in Faith collect supplies to make baskets for women at Fair Haven. (This was a project the UWF of Epworth in Jesup had been doing for years, and it’s a central ministry that they brought into the merger of Epworth and Jesup First.) Spearheaded by the Susie Bowen Circle, we make two kinds of baskets: a shower caddy for when they arrive, full of things like shampoo, body wash, a brush, a toothbrush and toothpaste. We made 35 this year so that they would have plenty to share with any women or children who arrive from fire damage or abuse and need a shower.
The other basket is a laundry basket filled with immediate household needs. We include towels, kitchen supplies, laundry detergent, cleaning products, and handmade oven mitts with a blessing for their kitchen. We purchased a deep saute pan with a lid for each basket, so that it can be used for any kind of cooking, from cooking chicken to boiling pasta. We wrap them in plastic and tie them with a bow. These baskets are housewarming gifts for women who have left everything behind; in this year of the wildfires, they will be useful for women who had to evacuate and are going home to a smoke-damaged house.
We heard the voice of the Lord calling us to add to the number of baskets we were making to support the women at Fair Haven. Susie Bowen Circle agreed to go from five to eight. Then, a Sunday School class at Jackson UMC reached out to see if they could help with fire relief, and sent money for four more baskets. Oh, the abundance of love and care! If you know the story of the feeding of the 5000, you know there is something perfect about collecting twelve baskets full. Even in this time of wildfires, we are caring for one another and seeing God’s provision.
