A couple at our church has a small home in Sun City Center (55-plus community only). It is a one-bedroom home, fully furnished, which means cooking utensils, linen, plates, etc., too. They would be willing to rent it out to a 55+ couple in need of a home, due to the hurricane for a nominal fee, enough rent to cover the utility use, until their residence can be rebuilt. They would like to rent it to someone who is without right now due to Charley. Please let them contact the Church office here (813-645-1241) and we will pass their name and phone number immediately on.

North United Methodist has "adopted" Fort Ogden United Methodist Church. We will be devoting our time, talent and treasure to help this small community. If anyone has supplies they would like to see go to Ft. Ogden, they can drop them off at North Monday through Friday between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. We are planning a work party trip for this Thursday. Everyone is welcome to join us. Please call the church office (941-355-5485) to make arrangements. We understand that rakes, garbage bags and gloves are useful tools. We will also be taking food, water, diapers, etc., so bring whatever you have. Please call and let us know you want to join us so we are sure no one gets left behind.

We have been without power, water, telephone for four days. Other than that everything is okay—just trees and shingles blown away—nothing  major. Our church served food for two days, until the power came back. All the schools are closed. We offer our   church as a refuge for people needing assistance. With little communication most people here decided to move to other places until everything returns to normal.

Old Myakka is also collecting for all points east.

Parrish United Methodist Church is a drop off location. We have made deliveries every day since Friday to Arcadia.

While Myakka City was not in the direct path of Hurricane Charley, there was still damage done in the community. There is no electricity, which means there is no water for drinking, showering and flushing toilets, and no means of cooking food. We have a generator at the parsonage and have opened the parsonage to anyone who would like to take a shower. The church will have a generator hopefully by this afternoon so we will have some lights in the fellowship hall. Yesterday, we hooked up a generator for the day-care center, which gave us water for the bathrooms and fellowship hall. The Salvation Army and Red Cross was here yesterday and today to help feed the people of Myakka City.  We estimate feeding approximately 100 people for lunch yesterday. There is a semi-truckload of water at Myakka City Elementary, which we are passing out to the residents. This morning there was breakfast at the church (again approximately 100 people) and there will be dinner. I am sure the number of people stopping at the church will grow as the word spreads that we have water, food and a comforting atmosphere to let the community know they are loved and will be cared for. The items most needed at Myakka City are: Off with Deet, Lysol Spray, Lysol Sanitizing Wipes, Clorox, Baby Powder, Baby Wipes, Diapers, Juice Boxes, Snack Crackers with Cheese or Peanut Butter, Individual packages of Cookies, Canned fruit (with pop-top lids is the easiest — some of these people don’t own any type of can opener), Breakfast bars, Canned food, etc. At the moment we are feeding people all day so if anyone is close to Myakka City and would like to help that would be wonderful. Contact the church at 941-322-0594 or 941-747-4406 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Monetary gift can be made out to Vamo United Methodist Church and marked for Hurricane Relief.  Water, canned goods or any other types of supplies may be brought to the church. We will also help point volunteers in the right direction.

I got an e-mail on Sunday that told us about a friend from Christ UMC in Venice who has an insurance office in Port Charlotte. They initially went down to do some claims, but ended up setting up an impromptu soup kitchen in their parking lot. They are at the north end of town so they're not in the big damage area (although they had no power and the building across the street had its roof peeled back like a sardine can). We took three truckloads of drinks and food left over from Celebrate Jesus, and we bought all of the ice that Publix had. They had served 3000 hot dogs and hamburgers, and most of what we brought there was gone before we left Sunday afternoon.

Saint James is a Hurricane Relief donation site. We are accepting bottled water, non-perishable food and monetary donations.