DirectBuy of Little Rock makes local efforts for long distance disaster.

And that’s why the service staff at DirectBuy of Little Rock donated their time and efforts on March 27, 2009 to help fill 4,000 disaster relief buckets for the recent flooding in North Dakota.

Ferncliff Disaster Assistance Center in Arkansas coordinated local relief efforts for the flood disasters in North Dakota. The buckets contained essential items for residential cleanup like: garbage bags, sponges, scrub brushes, masks, gloves, and detergent. Little Rock’s service staff helped fill and palletize close to a hundred extra large buckets before returning to work that day.

"Our service staff participates in community outreach every month," said co-owner of DirectBuy of Little Rock Paula Schmidt. "We’ll be back to help fill First Aid kits anytime there is a disaster."

Months of rain and bad weather caused the Red River that runs through eastern North and South Dakota as well as western Minnesota to swell and spill over its banks. Floodwaters that made it through the levee damaged roads, public buildings, businesses, and homes.

A week after record flooding in North Dakota, cleanup efforts were under way. Thanks to the help of Ferncliff Disaster Relief Center, residents and businesses were prepared for immediate cleanup as relief buckets were sent on Saturday March 28, 2009.

In order to obtain high levels of service, DirectBuy of Little Rock has service trainings 3 days a week. Once a month, the staff reaches out to the community as part of those trainings. Little Rock’s Catalog Updater Eden Carroll introduced the staff to the relief center where her father serves as Director.

"Although the Red River is out of immediate danger, the river is still roughly 37 feet above flood stage. Should the river flood the area again, and we pray that it doesn’t, we would be more than willing to contribute further efforts in the relief of North Dakota," said Service Manager Joey Sammons.

DirectBuy clubs across North America are active contributors to many local non-profits and charities. Some of the more notable beneficiaries of DirectBuy’s generosity include the Boys & Girls Clubs, Salvation Army, Habitat for Humanity, Homes for Our Troops and Children’s Hospitals.

About Ferncliff Disaster Assistance Center
Ferncliff has a 10,000 sq ft Disaster Assistance Center (DAC) that works in cooperation with Church World Service (CWS) and Presbyterian Disaster Assistance (PDA). The warehouse receives CWS Gift-of-the-Heart kits from churches around the country. Churches west of the Mississippi are invited to send their completed kits to Ferncliff. Churches to the east are asked to send their kits to the CWS national warehouse in New Windsor, Maryland. Kits received at Ferncliff will either be consolidated and sent in quantity to Maryland or can be sent directly to disaster sites.

About DirectBuy
For 38 years, DirectBuy has been showing thousands of consumers unparalleled ways to save as they shop for virtually everything for in and around their homes – from furniture, carpet and flooring, and custom window treatments, to kitchen and bath cabinets and fixtures, appliances and much, much more. DirectBuy enables members to purchase products from several hundred manufacturers at more than 160 clubs across North America. To learn more about DirectBuy, visit www.directbuy.com or www.directbuycares.com.