“Do All The Good You Can”

A Story of Partnership That Made the Difference for Hundreds of Lives

By Michele Maki, American Red Cross

“Do all the good you can.” The Reverends Scott and Denise Wiley and their congregation of faithful at the United Methodist Church of Valley Springs, CA put this tenant of faith into action recently when the disastrous Butte Fire broke out early in September.  “We have been charged since the 1700s by our founder, John Wesley, to “Do no harm; Do all the good you can; Stay in love with God.” explained Reverend Scott Wiley.  “When this disaster struck, the partnership we formed with the American Red Cross many years ago, was put into action.”

Robin Friedman, District Director for the American Red Cross, has high praise for the congregation too, “The Red Cross is grateful for the generosity and hospitality shown to us by the church and their congregation.  They opened their facility and their hearts to us. Because of this, we were able to fulfill our mission. We were able to have a facility and staging area to set up communications, work areas for our caseworker, nurse, logistic, feeding and sheltering volunteers.  The church provided us with the necessary parking areas for our Emergency Response Vehicles, supply trucks (tents, blankets, shovels, water, etc.) and room to store supplies waiting to be delivered to those affected by the fire.”

“It was only a matter of how we could best serve when the need arose. We remain glad to be of service.” Rev. Wiley said. Through this coordinated effort by the Red Cross and this valued partner, over 2000 meals a day were served and hundreds of families were assisted by Red Cross caseworkers and trained counselors.

The Red Cross continues working with this and other community partners to assist in the recovery effort. They are available on site at at the Disaster Relief Center located at 891 Mountain Ranch Rd, San Andreas, CA.