First Snow
This morning we woke up to our first snow of the season. This past Sunday evening, we had a fund raising supper to raise funds for Derby Fire Relief efforts to be directed towards ranchers.
Property owners who lost a home can be compensated for their loss with insurance. There is pain, loss and grief associated with this hardship. But they do receive financial compensation. Ranchers on the other hand have lost winter pasture, hay supplies, and fences to the fire. Buildings may not have burned down, but their source of livelihood is directly affected. Ranchers do not have insurance to cover pasture, hay or fences. If the cows are sold off with the calves, the rancher faces a capital gains tax burden and the ranch may have to be sold to finance this tax burden. Or the rancher is faced with having to purchase additional hay for his cattle. But fencing is the big issue. To replace fencing will cost $8000.00/mile and up. The base figure of $8000.00 is for level terrain where pickups and ATV can be used. A lot of terrain is very rugged and will have to be done by people who are part mountain goat and mule to get materials in place and fences built.
The churches of Absarokee came together and held this fund raising supper. As a ministerium we met earlier in August prior to the Derby Fire. After the fire "blew up" we had a prayer service to pray for those suffering from fire damage and the anxiety of not knowing the effects of the damage. After the fire had been contained and controlled - and courtesy of some welcomed rainfall - the fire threat disappeared. Then we were able to sit and think about what we could do as a community to help those in need. We as a ministerium worked on being focused and specific in our mission to raise funds and offer aid. We agreed to help ranchers, as they are the mainstay of the community and our identity as a community.
We organized this fund raising supper. The Evangelical Church (a branch of the Evangelical United Brethren who did not merge with the Methodist Church in 67) offered the facility to have the supper. They have the newest and largest facility to host this event in Absarokee. The Four Square Gospel church furnished the paper products, the UCC congregation helped gather the spaghetti fixings and the Lutherans and UCC folk cooked up the spaghetti sauce and pasta. The Catholic ladies contributed the lettuce salad. The Lutherans furnished the coffee. The LDS members monitored the dessert tables. All members of the various churches supplied help to serve and cleanup tables, and everyone brought desserts. This was one of the tastiest spaghetti dinners held in Absarokee, as we do not have an Italian population or any Italian restaurants in the immediate vicinity (100 mile radius of Absarokee). The desserts were delightful in quantity and array of various desserts. We held our dinner this past Sunday, 8 October, from 4:30 to 7:30. Our goal was to feed 500 hungry and generous people. By our estimates we fed over 350 people. We raised $7975.00. Lutheran Social Service of Montana offered us $500.00 and the Montana Synod and Region 1 of the ELCA offered $1000.00 to be used for the Derby Fire Relief efforts in Absarokee. But I was most amazed at the funds that we received from people from the Delaware - Maryland Synod who contributed to this effort. The responding community to contributed is wider than the community who will be served. I am very grateful and I thank God for those who helped and those who responded out of Christian love and compassion to this need.
To top it off, when Susan and I awoke this morning we saw our first Montana snow. We have about 4 inches and it is still snowing. Snow is the final chapter to the Derby Fire. Snow will completely put out the fire and store the moisture needed for new growth and regeneration of grasslands. Snow is a very welcome sight for us here in Absarokee. Snow is the tomb from which new life emerges in the spring.
Property owners who lost a home can be compensated for their loss with insurance. There is pain, loss and grief associated with this hardship. But they do receive financial compensation. Ranchers on the other hand have lost winter pasture, hay supplies, and fences to the fire. Buildings may not have burned down, but their source of livelihood is directly affected. Ranchers do not have insurance to cover pasture, hay or fences. If the cows are sold off with the calves, the rancher faces a capital gains tax burden and the ranch may have to be sold to finance this tax burden. Or the rancher is faced with having to purchase additional hay for his cattle. But fencing is the big issue. To replace fencing will cost $8000.00/mile and up. The base figure of $8000.00 is for level terrain where pickups and ATV can be used. A lot of terrain is very rugged and will have to be done by people who are part mountain goat and mule to get materials in place and fences built.
The churches of Absarokee came together and held this fund raising supper. As a ministerium we met earlier in August prior to the Derby Fire. After the fire "blew up" we had a prayer service to pray for those suffering from fire damage and the anxiety of not knowing the effects of the damage. After the fire had been contained and controlled - and courtesy of some welcomed rainfall - the fire threat disappeared. Then we were able to sit and think about what we could do as a community to help those in need. We as a ministerium worked on being focused and specific in our mission to raise funds and offer aid. We agreed to help ranchers, as they are the mainstay of the community and our identity as a community.
We organized this fund raising supper. The Evangelical Church (a branch of the Evangelical United Brethren who did not merge with the Methodist Church in 67) offered the facility to have the supper. They have the newest and largest facility to host this event in Absarokee. The Four Square Gospel church furnished the paper products, the UCC congregation helped gather the spaghetti fixings and the Lutherans and UCC folk cooked up the spaghetti sauce and pasta. The Catholic ladies contributed the lettuce salad. The Lutherans furnished the coffee. The LDS members monitored the dessert tables. All members of the various churches supplied help to serve and cleanup tables, and everyone brought desserts. This was one of the tastiest spaghetti dinners held in Absarokee, as we do not have an Italian population or any Italian restaurants in the immediate vicinity (100 mile radius of Absarokee). The desserts were delightful in quantity and array of various desserts. We held our dinner this past Sunday, 8 October, from 4:30 to 7:30. Our goal was to feed 500 hungry and generous people. By our estimates we fed over 350 people. We raised $7975.00. Lutheran Social Service of Montana offered us $500.00 and the Montana Synod and Region 1 of the ELCA offered $1000.00 to be used for the Derby Fire Relief efforts in Absarokee. But I was most amazed at the funds that we received from people from the Delaware - Maryland Synod who contributed to this effort. The responding community to contributed is wider than the community who will be served. I am very grateful and I thank God for those who helped and those who responded out of Christian love and compassion to this need.
To top it off, when Susan and I awoke this morning we saw our first Montana snow. We have about 4 inches and it is still snowing. Snow is the final chapter to the Derby Fire. Snow will completely put out the fire and store the moisture needed for new growth and regeneration of grasslands. Snow is a very welcome sight for us here in Absarokee. Snow is the tomb from which new life emerges in the spring.
posted by RevLev at 3:00 PM
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