Peachtree Road Delivers Aid to Republic of Georgia
In 1999 Peachtree Road UMC in Atlanta, under the auspices of UMCOR, went on its first mission trip to the Republic of Georgia and has since gone on nearly a dozen trips to the small country.
Since 2004, Peachtree Road has worked with the Tbilisi Youth House, a non-governmental organization formed by UMCOR. The year-round efforts at five institutions in four cities necessitated their own staff. Peachtree Road employs two people full-time, Tamuna Grigolia and Vaso Natroshvili, who manage humanitarian assistance projects for orphans and children-of-poverty. They oversee the Sponsor-a-Child program which provides life-essential aid to over 400 children.
When war began in Georgia August 6, Peachtree Road quickly turned its attention to reaching out to the many Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) who have been forced to flee their homes.
"It is time for us to act and to respond," wrote Lynn Banks, a member of Peachtree Road's Georgia Team. "We have the mechanism in place and we are working feverishly."
The employees in Georgia were in touch with the church and managed the purchase and distribution of supplies.
"When we inquired about the acute/emergency needs of the IDP community ... it was recommended that we deliver bedding, hygiene item packages and bath towels," wrote Tamuna Grigolia, Project Manager for Peachtree Road UMC/Tbilisi Youth House. "Hygiene kits contained a toothbrush, toothpaste, shampoo, soap, washing powder and for those with the little children – diapers as well. This is exactly what we are presently doing."
Peachtree Road chose a Deaf Children's Institution which hosted 350 IDPs in total, 90 families, as a location to send the hygiene kits. "We were able to deliver assistance to all 350," Grigolia continued.
Currently there are 200,000 IDPs in this country the size of South Carolina, and according to our military and the Georgians', they anticipate at least 20,000 will be permanently displaced.
The group from Peachtree Road is eager to tell their story and invite others to partner in reaching out to the people of Georgia. Church members will come speak to any group and talk about the immediate and long-range needs of Georgia and what the United Methodist Church is currently doing through UMCOR and through Peachtree Road.
To schedule a visit, contact Lynn Banks at lynnsbanks(at)mindspring.com.