Hunger and medical needs are great problems in many areas of the world.

There is an effort that is being done locally, as well as many other places, to pack parcels of food, medical, and educational supplies to underdeveloped areas of the world. This is the essence of the initiative known as “Mission Expo 2020.” It is an inter-faith effort made by six ministries. This will be taking place from October 21 to 24 at the First United Methodist Church in Muncy, 10 a.m. to noon, 2 to 4 p.m., and 6 to 9 p.m. each day.

“We are partnering with six different ministries as a means to reach people with the gospel of Jesus Christ,” Paul Kinley, Project Manager of Mission Expo 2020, told Webb Weekly. “We have a great need for more volunteers. Would you be willing to help us: pack 100,000 meals for hungry people in Haiti, create 225 Action Packs for Syrian refugees, pack 1,000 International School Kits for children in Syria and Iraq, assemble 600 Family Medical Packs for hurting people in the Middle East, put together 48,000 vegetable seed bundles to assist pastors and missionaries in evangelism, sort and pack Bibles/Christian literature to assist pastors and missionaries in sharing the gospel?”

Kinley said Missions Expo 2020 started as a dream four years ago and now has become a reality.

It was the fall of 2016, and hurricane “Matthew” hit Haiti, Cuba, and other regions in that area. Immediately there was an urgent and desperate need for food as people were in short supply. He urged the advisory board of his project, “Experience Missions,” to move forward and give approval to host an immediate food packing event. They agreed, and Kinley began recruiting volunteers the week before Thanksgiving. Over the course of only 16 days, 238 volunteers, people donated upwards of $6,000, and 40,000 meals were packed in two hours for those hurting in the western hemisphere. At this point, he realized the depth of compassion that our community volunteers had for those in need. He announced his desire for a Missions Expo in the year 2020 and asked all 238 volunteers, “Should we host another event?” He received a resounding YES! At that moment, he invited the 238 volunteers standing before him to begin praying for a Missions Expo in 2020. “My advisory board and I knew it would take that long to raise the necessary funds and build a larger volunteer base, Kinley said.

According to Kinley, what started as a vision has now taken shape to become a reality. Some have asked, “So why the name ‘Missions Expo 2020?’

“The advisory board of Experience Missions and I believe there is a great need to expose people to many wonderful Christian non-profit organizations and to experience, in a small way, the amazing work the ministries are accomplishing,” said Kinley. Our mission statement reads: “To create a bridge between Christian ministries and local churches to help advance the gospel. Hosting a Missions Expo does just that! At this four-day Missions Expo 2020 event, six Christian ministries will be highlighted, and much humanitarian/ministry aid will be sorted and packed. Another goal of the Missions Expo 2020 is to see the community rally together to help people in desperate need worldwide by providing for their physical needs. We hand-picked the organizations we wanted to partner with because our ultimate goal is to see the love of Jesus Christ shared in the process of distributing humanitarian/ministry aid. We look forward to our first ever Missions Expo with great anticipation.”

To register for this event, visit online: http://www.experiencemissions.com. They will be following local, state, and federal guidelines regarding COVID-19.

They are asking all volunteers to wear a mask.