United Way Awards Grant to Community Church for Storm Relief Efforts

The United Way of Oxford-Lafayette County approved a grant to Community Church Oxford to cover electric bills for Lafayette County households still struggling with the aftermath of Winter Storm Fern, directing the church to render payments straight to applicable electric service providers rather than distributing funds to individuals.

The grant is the second disaster-related award issued by the United Way of Oxford-Lafayette County since the storm struck. In early February, the organization awarded $5,000 to Lovepacks through a grant funded by the Walmart Foundation. The partnerships and positive outcomes produced by Community Church Oxford and Lovepacks following Winter Storm Fern made each a logical grant recipient, according to Kurt Brummett. The United Way of Oxford-Lafayette County established its Disaster Relief and Recovery Fund soon after the onset of Winter Storm Fern to organize and deploy community support. The specific dollar amount of the Community Church Oxford grant was not disclosed.

The mechanics of the relief are straightforward: Community Church Oxford will supply the name, address, and account number of each selected household to the applicable electric service provider, and coordination with local agencies could take place to support and substantiate disaster relief and recovery. That means no check changes hands at the household level; the credit goes directly onto the bill.

Lafayette County residents affected by Winter Storm Fern can apply through the emergency assistance application at helplou.com. Applicants are expected to document what they went through. "Lafayette County residents should provide pertinent details regarding the difficulties they experienced during and following Winter Storm Fern as the furnished information will factor in the selection process as need along with impact will be key considerations," according to the announcement from Brummett.

The disaster grant sits within a broader annual funding effort by the United Way of Oxford-Lafayette County. For fiscal year 2025-2026, the organization's board of directors approved $171,000 in grant funding spread across 22 local programs and initiatives covering four impact areas: youth opportunity, healthy community, financial security, and community resiliency. Community resiliency alone received $64,813.36 in the current cycle, supporting programs run by organizations including Interfaith Compassion Ministry, American Red Cross, CASA of North Mississippi, Faith Planters, and Doors of Hope Transition Ministries, among others.

Whether the Community Church Oxford disaster grant draws from that $171,000 pool or from the separately established Disaster Relief and Recovery Fund has not been clarified by the organization. No application deadline or timeline for when electric credits will be applied was announced.