TBM to ship items for refugees in Iraq

MCKINNEY—Brookhaven Church in McKinney is working with Texas Baptist Men, Buckner International and other partners to provide essential supplies to refugees in Iraq.

Over the past year, thousands of Kurdish Yazidis have been displaced from their homes and are pitching tents in refugee camps across Iraq, driven out by the self-identified Islamic State. Tents often are destroyed by gale-force winds and heavy rain, and many people lack basic necessities such as toothpaste and soap.

Brookhaven Church is collecting money and goods Yazidi families rest and shelter from the sun at Nawrouz refugee camp in Syria. The  Texas Baptist effort will help refugees in similar circumstances in the Dahuk area of Kurdish Iraq. (Photo: UNICEF Syria/2014/Razan Rashidi)through April 26. TBM volunteers will load the supplies on pallets and send them to Houston in May, where they will be prepared for shipment to Iraq.

Buckner International, through its Shoes for Orphan Souls program, is donating 6,700 pairs of shoes to the effort, TBM Executive Director Don Gibson noted.

Tennessee Baptist Men is contributing 100 wheelchairs, and an Austin church is preparing a restaurant charity event and donating proceeds to the initiative, he added. He expressed hope other churches, associations and organizations will participate.

Donations should arrive by June 1

Refugees should receive the donations by June 1, said Gary Smith, longtime volunteer with TBM disaster relief and member of Brookhaven Church, who is spearheading the collection effort in the Dallas area.

Items will go primarily to assist refugees in the district of Dahuk, which is largely populated by the Yazidi refugees, he said. Individuals are seeking refuge across four of Iraq’s districts—Sumel, Zarko, Dahuk and Amedi. The U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees estimates more than 2 million refugees live in Iraq.

“These people fled with absolutely only the clothes on their backs,” Smith said. “They really do not have things unless people donate to them. So, we’re showing the love of Christ by providing things to people on the other side of the world who have nothing.”

Specific items have been requested to alleviate needs, and an itemized list of donations is required to prepare a manifest for shipping. Items must be new. 

List of items needed

Toiletries requested include toothbrushes, toothpaste, lotion, shampoo, bath soap, baby oil, adhesive bandages, disposable razors, brushes and combs. 

Items of clothing needed are women’s undergarments, children’s clothes, men’s socks, sandals or flip-flops, women’s long skirts and women’s long-sleeved shirts.

Other items requested are diapers for infants, children and adults; paper for drawing; colored pencils and markers; and inexpensive jewelry.

Brookhaven Church is accepting donations at 8412 Stacy Road in McKinney. TBM is collecting items at its warehouse next to the Dixon Mission Equipping Center at 5351 Catron Drive in Dallas.

Monetary contributions are being collected to cover shipping costs, as well as to purchase in-country items as needed, such as small refrigerators to help individual families. To give online, click here and scroll down to the button designated “DCFK” for Dallas Container for the Kurds.