Wendell Gulick, a member at Trinity Lutheran Church in Lansdale, is an active disaster response volunteer with Lutheran Congregation Services (LCS). “I like volunteering and I like helping people,” he said. “It’s rewarding and I like being active and participating in a variety of activities.”
Wendell and other members of his congregation have recently volunteered at FEMA centers, attended volunteer trainings, and helped to clean up the homes of people who were affected by recent flooding.
Among the recipients that Wendell assisted was a woman whose husband was in the military and wasn’t there to help repair their home. “There were mushrooms growing out of the carpet,” Wendell said. Wendell worked with other LCS volunteers and volunteers from Americore to tear down walls, remove carpet, and the most difficult challenge, remove a bar from the basement. “When we first got there I thought there’s no way were going to all this done, but we did. We accomplished much more than I thought we’d be able to,” he said. “The recipient had a great spread out for us for breakfast and lunch. She was so appreciative.”
In addition to helping others, Wendell enjoys the opportunity to do some construction work. “It’s fun, I always enjoy using all of my tools.”
Wendell also told us that some disaster response recipients become upset about having to throw away their possessions that are ruined. What belongings would be most difficult for you to lose?
