Home for Christmas in West Virginia

Two families are home for Christmas in West Virginia, thanks to Mennonite Disaster Service (MDS) volunteers.

On Dec. 2, home dedications—one in Branchland and another in Maysel, officially opened the doors to new dwellings for flood survivors who had been waiting for many months.

A God-sent home

As volunteers built a home for Francis and Terry Vance, they stayed at Ole Henry’s Camping Retreat, just a few minutes’ drive from the construction site. MDS West Virginia Coordinator for Homes and Bridges Phil Helmuth expressed appreciation to the camp owner Vicky Hudson.

“Vicky was an incredible host for us,” said Helmuth. “We’re very grateful for that relationship. It does take a village to build a home.”

Hudson responded that she was honored to have the MDS volunteers stay at the camp. “I was a foster kid, and my foster dad, Henry, gave me this property,” she said. “This has been a blessing for me to have you here.”

The MDS volunteers touched her heart. “Please find some more jobs around here!” she said.

For MDS volunteer Leroy Yoder, who brought many crews of volunteers from Ohio to West Virginia for many months, relationships with people like Vicky Hudson were a precious gift. “The relationships meant a lot to us, and we hope God blesses each one of you,” he said, addressing the Vance family during the home dedication.

MDS Regional Operations Coordinator Larry Stoner commended Francis and Terry Vance for their patience as they waited for their home.

“In November 2023, when we saw your former home, there was a two-by-four propping up the ceiling because an ice storm had made a hole in the roof,” he said. “The whole home was covered with a tarp.”

The Vances had been living in a damaged mobile home since 2017, but local case manager Wendy Beaver didn’t meet them until March 2022. “This new home is a big step up, and I’m so, so thrilled to get you into a home that’s going to be safe,” she said.

Francis Vance, accepting a wall hanging and a Bible from MDS volunteers, expressed her joy at meeting many of them.

“This home is God-sent,” she said. “I prayed, and I prayed, and I prayed for this.”

She recalled filling out many applications for help. “It just happened that MDS was on the news one night, and I thought: ‘I haven’t given them a crack,’” she said. “The worst they can do is reject me—everybody else has.”

But MDS didn’t reject her, and she’ll never forget that. Anytime volunteers are in the area, she invites them to stop by. “You come to our house whenever you want to,” she said. “You’ll never be shunned.”

Disaster in the mountains

During a second home dedication in Maysel, West Virginia, Betty Moore described how floodwater cascaded down the mountain and nearly washed away her former home altogether. “Our house was falling in,” she said.

As she received a wall hanging and a Bible, volunteers smiled with her. “We celebrate with you today,” said Helmuth, explaining that the Moore’s house is unique because the walls were assembled by students from Eastern Mennonite High School in Harrisonburg, Virginia, then transported to the mountains of West Virginia.

Betty’s husband, Isaac Moore said he often helped volunteers as they worked on the home. “I’ve got a whole lot of good friends right here,” he said.

A great thanksgiving

During the dedications, MDS Executive Director Kevin King said the gatherings felt like a second Thanksgiving day. “I wish we could have a house blessing every month,” he said. “Truly, this is a thanksgiving time.”

MDS will be at 17 locations across the U.S. during the fall and winter. “That’s what it’s all about as this Thanksgiving table widens across America,” he said.