When horrific wildfires struck the rural communities of Molalla, Colton, Scotts Mills, Monitor, Yoder and many others, Foothills Community Church formed a fire relief assistance program dedicated to assisting those affected by the fires.
Its purpose was to provide an easy way to accept donations from individuals and organizations that wanted to help and, obviously, to disburse those funds and resources to those in need.
As Pastor Dale Satrum said in a video explaining the program in September: “We have been flooded here at Foothills with people wanting to know, ‘What can we do? How can we help? How can we help our communities and the people who have lost so much because of the devastation of this fire?'”
Through the quick actions of the Molalla-based church, which also has a campus in Beavercreek, the program served 72 local families who lost their homes or belongings in the destructive fires.
Church leadership had decided at the formation of the program that any leftover funds would be donated to local fire districts that helped protect and serve the community during the fires.
And, as an incredible testament to residents’ generosity even — or especially — during trying times, donations far outpaced requests.
“Because of the Lord’s provision and the unity of our people, we are grateful to be able to award grants to Molalla Fire Department, Colton Fire Department, Scotts Mills Fire Department and the Monitor/Yoder Fire Department,” Foothills said in a press release. “Each department will be awarded a minimum of $30,000.”
Church staff presented the awards to each district this week.
“We are humbled and proud of how our community unites and supports, especially during crises,” the church said. “Thank you and well done!”
