Colby and Oberlin Churches Unite to Support Survivors of Domestic Violence

On Saturday, October 10th, 17 women in Colby gathered to pack personal care kits for distribution to Options Domestic and Sexual Violence Services. Women from FPC Colby and Faith Lutheran in Oberlin packed 150 bags in 30 minutes!

Within the last couple of years, the Congregational Care and Nurture Committee at FPC Colby church has revived a previous program of holding special gatherings of fun and fellowship for the ladies of our church. As part of this fellowship program, ladies from the Faith Lutheran Church of Oberlin have been invited to join in the fun and fellowship as a way to establish more personal connections and strengthen our shared ministry relationship within the two churches.

Options provides services for 18 counties in Northwest Kansas. For several years both churches have been involved in a project for Options providing Christmas gifts for survivors and their children who are receiving services through Options, so it made sense to approach them with interest in providing other assistance. The suggestion of personal care kits came from one of the Options staff members - the ability to provide for immediate personal hygiene needs for the survivor and their children when they are in transition to a safe place.

Mission Project Grant funds were used to purchase items to assemble personal care kits. The kits include liquid hand soap, hand lotion, large tooth comb (to better accommodate various hair types), toothbrush, toothpaste, wet wipes, shampoo, stick deodorant, washcloth, and a hand towel. Each personal care kit was assembled and placed in a gallon Ziploc bag. In addition to the personal care kits, laundry detergent pods were provided in smaller, labeled Ziploc bags.