1986
Church Donates Hay to Drought-Plagued Farmers
October 1986


“Church Donates Hay to Drought-Plagued Farmers,” Ensign, Oct. 1986, 73

Church Donates Hay to Drought-Plagued Farmers

The Church has contributed more than six hundred tons of hay to help drought-stricken farmers in the southeastern United States feed their stock. The hay was gleaned from a number of Church welfare farms in Utah and southern Idaho.

The welfare farms normally provide assistance to needy members, but resources are sometimes used for wider assistance in the wake of natural disasters. Last year members contributed several million dollars for hunger relief in Ethiopia and other African nations. In past years, the Church has donated money, food, medical supplies, and other materials after earthquakes, floods, and droughts in a number of areas of the world. Latter-day Saints in the midst of the drought haven’t yet had to draw heavily on Church welfare resources.

“So far, we haven’t seen any significant change in normal distribution patterns from the storehouse,” said Charles B. Wiggens, area storehouse manager at the Church Welfare Services complex in Tucker, Georgia. “This is being called the worst agricultural disaster in the area in the last one hundred years,” he added. “There are many Church members living in the affected area, but it appears that they are relying on personal and family resources to see them through.”