Orono United Methodist Church

serving the community since 1829
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Community Outreach

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Outreach is what we are called to do, right?  After all, Jesus instructed us to "GO"...not to sit around. And so we do seek to reach out to our community by helping to provide meals for the Greater Bangor Area Homeless Shelter, by lending support to Crossroads Ministries based in the Old Town/Orono area, and by being involved in efforts to raise support nationally and internationally through UMCOR, a United Methodist agency. In the past year we have been blessed to be part of sending aid to Haiti, Pakistan and Chile. 
In addition, Rad Mayfield and a group of teens from Orono UMC traveled to the Washington DC area to participate in missions work to area neighborhoods.
A regular part of our outreach includes involvement each August in Downeast Maine missions work, which is desribed below.

The Down East United Methodist churches responded to a question posed at a church council meeting. “Why am I always hearing Spanish when buying groceries?” They decided it was time to know more about this growing population in Washington County. They discovered the best-kept secret – 9,000 Spanish-speaking migrant workers.
 
In this discovery process, we heard challenging stories about discrimination, the living conditions and also work arrangements. We prepared as best we could and continued to pray. We decided it was necessary to ask our United Methodist brothers and sisters to help us with this important ministry.
 
The NEC churches responded well and with everyone working together thousands of migrant workers were supported with basic needs and material aid. Hundreds of migrant workers attended worship service, received bibles in their own language, attended literacy classes and even some basic math. Blankets and other material aid were given as well.
 
Migrant Workers experienced the love of Jesus Christ through the hands of United Methodists from all over New England and from our Nicaraguan Covenant Brothers.
 

For its fifth year a group from Orono United Methodist Church participated in a week-long mission week to Down East Maine Missions in August 2010.  Some of the group participated in Neighbors Helping Neighbors by installing  wood sheathing around a family’s home to help keep out the winter cold.  And others helped out at the Thrift Shop near the Raker's Center.  Each night we journeyed to a raker camp to help the hispanic pastor and his youth visit with the rakers. The Gospel was declared and bibles and blankets as well as personal item were distributed. We were always warmly received, and it was personally gratifying to be a part.

  
 

For more information on Down East Maine Missions www.jacksonvilleumchurch.com

 

Down East Maine Missions
P.O. Box 286
East Machias, ME 04630
207-952-0413

Who are migrant workers?

 

Between 9,000 and 12,000 migrant and seasonal workers gather in Washington County to harvest the crops. Many arrive mid July and some stay until the end of December. Some are local and live in this economically challenged area.


They rake blueberries, harvest cranberries, pick and bag pine cones, collect evergreen brush, and decorate and pack wreaths in the local factories.  They arrive as families starting from the grandparents in their 70’s down to the newborn that entered the world early.  Some arrive as work teams, organizing themselves for hire with as many as 8 in a car or 20 in a van.

 

They take turns sitting on the seats and the floor.  They arrive with a few dollars in their pocket. They split the cost of gas and send everything else back home for the family.