GREEN BAY (NBC 26) — A local church came together this weekend to raise money in support of Ukrainian refugees.
People at Green Bay Community Church believe it's their mission to serve others in any way they can: That's why the congregation hosted a bread bake sale to help raise money forWorld Central Kitchen, an organization that serves thousands of fresh meals to Ukrainian families and those who remain in the country.
“As you walk out, grab a loaf of bread. And when you do, you get a sticker that says ‘Pray for Ukraine.' Let’s together be praying for them,” said one of the church leaders at the end of Sunday’s morning service.
Patty Hendrickson is the church’s lead volunteer and was the one who came up with the idea of having a bake sale fundraiser.
She said she presented the idea to the pastor of the church and the event quickly came together.
“I’m all about food. I like the whole concept of making food. When things happen to people and when things happen to people in serious situation. Either world wide or just here. Especially women, we have a need to do something physically. We either are busy cleaning or baking is a big thing,” said Hendrickson.
Church members got busy baking and donated over three hundred loaves of bread to sell.
“We heard stories this week, people were getting together with their neighbors and baking the bread together. We had so many kiddos coming in and so proud of the bread they baked with their families,” said Kathryn Kroll, the church’s leadership development specialist.
Within a few hours, Green Bay Community Church surpassed its goal, raising more than double of what they had originally hoped for.
“People were just so generous. Oh my gosh, some people didn’t even buy a loaf of bread and they wanted to donate larger amounts,” said Gail Nohr, a church volunteer who helped at the cash register.
Each bread loaf was a ten dollar donation and by the end of the bake sale the church had raised nearly $11,000 to help benefit World Central Kitchen.
“We had three tables right before our service concluded. I was a little worried we were going to have leftovers and I think they went in about three minutes,” Kroll said.
With the situation only continuing to escalate in Ukraine, church goers said they’re just glad they're able to take a small part in helping Ukrainian refugees.
“People are good. We have to remember that. People are good,” Hendrickson said.
If you missed the bake sale and want to still donate to help World Central Kitchen, you can do so by donating directly to the nonprofit. Click here to do so.
