Partnership in Action.  That was certainly on display recently when Men of Lake Oconee (MLO) joined with the Eatonton First United Methodist Church’s (EFUMC) ‘Carpenters For Christ’ ministry.  The focus of their effort?  Helping a local Putnam County resident with a much-needed addition and other modifications to her family’s home. 

 

Following a recent back surgery, Jason—the homeowner’s adult son—was left paralyzed and confined to a wheelchair. As a result, Jason and his teenage daughter were not able to remain in their home and the decision was made to have them move into Jason’s mother’s home. To help this family in need, MLO and EFUMC’s Carpenters for Christ joined forces in April of this year, and organized the effort to build and install a much-needed wheelchair ramp as well as creating wheelchair-accessible doorways—both interior and exterior. It was a perfect combination with MLO contributing the needed funds and Carpenters for Christ building and installing the ramp and widening the doors. 

 

“All-in-all I think this has been one of our most satisfying projects,” said EFUMC’s Carpenter’s for Christ chairman, Rex Corlett. “The way I understand it, Jason would have been held in the hospital and not allowed to come home if our joint effort with MLO had not made these accessibility modifications to his mother’s home.”

 

The mission of Men of Lake Oconee is to provide assistance to need-based and qualified individuals and families from Greene and Putnam Counties for specific and verified necessities—a hand-up not a handout. Moreover, MLO often provides that assistance by partnering with other local organizations which allows everyone to do more—together—than could be done alone. 

 

Many thanks to MLO’s Partnerin Action on this project: Carpenters for Christ at Eatonton First United Methodist Church.

 

For more information on Men of Lake Oconee—or to join, suggest a qualified recipient, or make a donation—please contact Bob Massey at bob@foundationrs.com.