Over twenty volunteers from the Methodist Student Network (MSN) at USC spent Tuesday morning working at the Aldersgate Home on Sims Avenue, a residence for adults with special needs. Like many
other places around Columbia and the state, the Aldersgate Home was damaged as floodwaters rose and spilled indoors early on the morning of Sunday October 4, ruining furniture and flooring. Thankfully, all of the residents were taken out of harm’s way.
The team from USC joined together to help clean out the home, removing waterlogged mattresses, couches, carpeting, and baseboards. Although much was salvaged, much also had to be left at the curb in order to prevent mold accumulation. By the time the group finished mopping floors, a sizeable trash pile lined Sims Street.
The MSN volunteers worked with an energetic spirit, listening to accounts from the caretakers who assist at the home and making conversation with residents’ family members. Extensive work remains to be done at the home, but there was a real sense of community as the immediate task of getting the building’s interior water-free was completed.
One volunteer, a university senior named Michelle Bizzell, expressed a sentiment that was shared by many of her fellow students: “It made me feel better to be doing something. It was sad to think that they had lost so much, but by the end you could see that they would be able to rebuild.”
In addition to their work at the Aldersgate Home, the students and staff of MSN have been helping at other damaged properties around town, at the Harvest Hope Food Bank, and at their own Campus
Ministry Center where water damaged portions of the basement level.
