Operation Compassion Dedicates New Warehouse
Cleveland, TN—Operation Compassion, an independent benevolent agency with roots in the Church of God, held a day of celebrations for the opening of a massive warehouse and office space to better serve the ministry and its outreaches.
On Tuesday, March 4, leaders of the community of Cleveland and Bradley County gathered at 10:00 am for the first of two ribbon-cutting ceremonies for the 125,000 square-foot warehouse that serves as a command center for distribution of product during disasters and other benevolent causes. At 6:00 pm, OC leaders welcomed constituents of the Church of God, including General Overseer Gary Lewis, First Assistant Tony Stewart, Second Assistant T. Wayne Dority, and Third Assistant Mark Williams. Dority serves as liaison to the Division of Care, which includes Operation Compassion.
Tony Clanton, director of Operations for Operation Compassion, prepares to snip the ribbon on the grand opening of the new warehouse (click photo to enlarge)
Since its inception more than 25 years ago in the garage of its founder David Lorency, Operation Compassion has responded to over 100 natural disasters, including some of the most devastating hurricanes, floods, tsunamis, and wildfires that have hit the United States and around the globe. Outreach efforts have reached 48 states and 73 nations. Every year OC serves more than 2.6 million people by transporting and distributing 7,400 tons of disaster relief supplies worth more than $93 million.
“On average we send 50 containers full of supplies around the world every single month,” stated Kelvin Page, director of Operation Compassion. Containers may include food, water, medical supplies, clothes, cleaning and sanitation products, building supplies, and children’s toys.
“While disaster relief remains at the core of our mission, Operation Compassion continues to expand our efforts and outreaches,” Page continued. “These include our Living Waters program, Second Chance rehabilitation and job training, and food distribution networks.”
Operation Compassion Executive Director Kelvin Page, center, is joined by members of the Executive Committee (l-r) Mark Williams, Wayne Dority, Gary Lewis and Tony Stewart displaying “Blessing Boxes” prepared at the new warehouse on dedication day (click photo to enlarge)
The new warehouse is a major step forward from the previous warehouse, which had only 75,000 square feet. The dedication represents a thrust into a larger reach of ministry and expansion with a greater emphasis on the Living Waters and Second Chance initiatives. Operation Compassion recently enlarged its footprint with the opening of warehouses and operations space on 105 acres of land in cooperation with Southwest Indian Ministries (S.W.I.M.) in Gallup, New Mexico.
“This is a huge, huge day for Operation Compassion and the Church of God,” Dority stated as he led a responsive reading for the dedication. “We look forward to even more developments coming for this dynamic ministry.”
