MCC began in response to the suffering happening in southern Russia in 1920. Millions were dying from war, epidemics and starvation. Mennonites is Canada and the US heard the call. And MCC was born.
MCC @ 100
Serving the Multitudes
MCC dates its founding to a meeting in Elkhart, Ind., on July 27, 1920, when representatives of several branches of Mennonites formed a “central committee” for Ukraine relief.
At the height of the famine in 1922, 25,000 people in Khortitsa, Gnadenfeld, Nikopol and elsewhere were fed with bread that came from far away America from friends they had never met, from people who wished them well.
In June of that year, MCC
served 25,000 meals a day in its kitchens, some in homes and schools,
throughout the villages of the Mennonite colonies. In all, MCC served 75,000
people and saved an estimated 9,000 from starvation.
Not only Mennonites were fed, but also Russians and Ukrainians, German-speaking Lutherans and Catholics, Jews and others. Feeding continued until the 1923 harvest.
MCC sent tractors and seeds to help with the harvest with many of their horses either starving or eaten for food, pleas for help were sent to Mennonites in the U.S. The then newly formed MCC arranged to send 50 Fordson tractors equipped with Oliver two-bottom plows in time to seed the wheat in the fall.
Anabaptist groups came together because they felt called by Christ to do what was right. And this is still the case today. MCC believes that to build a better world, we must start with peace. We want to see communities reconciled to God, one another and creation. For 100 years, MCC has been meeting basic human needs and working for peace and justice in the name of Christ. Responding to hundreds of disasters. Caring for displaced people. Partnering with people to find smart solutions to difficult situations. Pioneering what today is know as fair trade. Starting MCC Thrift shops. Each of these grassroots movements took on a life of its own, growing larger and helping more people than we ever thought possi
Today, we work around the world, including Canada and the US, supporting local partners as they discover innovative solutions for their contexts. Through our advocacy work, MCC amplifies the voices of our partners. We do all this in the name of Christ. And we can’t do it without your support. Your time, money, prayers and donations of basic items like comforters and relief kits have been the backbone of our work. And that work is not finished…..
In many ways, it feels like it’s just the beginning. Thank you for being part of the MCC story! Please join us on this journey as we follow God’s call into our next century.
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Peter Dyck
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Making soup
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Soup for
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Serving around the world
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