KEEPING FAITH: BETHESDA FINDS HELP WHEN NEEDED

William and Loretta Marshall face another financial hardship with faith, the same faith that has carried the Bethesda Fellowship through 14 years with no steady income and no guarantee that the charity would continue from one week to the next.

The fellowship, which gives away food and clothing, has weathered a year of hardship to find itself facing closure -- again. Immediate donations are needed to keep the charity operating.

The Marshalls have faith that something will happen to keep the doors open. Each time it seemed certain the fellowship would close someone has stepped in to make sure operations continue.

"There have been a few times we've done a lot of praying," William Marshall said. "But we've always been able to pay our bills and help people."

It was business as normal Tuesday, when 130 Cape Girardeau families received enough food for about a week. Other people sifted through shelves of used clothing looking for something that fit.

The storefront at 630 Good Hope, formerly Unnerstall's Drug Store, is open each Tuesday from 9 a.m. to noon. On the third Tuesday of the month groceries are given away.

No one pays, and everyone working at the fellowship volunteers.

"We decided that from the beginning," William Marshall said. "We operate on gifts from people."

Sometimes churches throughout the region hold canned-food drives or take up offerings to help fund operations. Benefactors step in to provide financial support.

Such was the case in 1991 when funds had dried up. A woman stepped in and provided a monthly stipend that helped pay the rent and electric bills. In 1997, the woman was forced to curtail her donations, and the Marshalls again thought the Bethesda Fellowship would close. Another benefactor learned of the charity and offered help.

In July 1998, the Marshalls were convinced the Bethesda Fellowship's end had come. The operation was at 14 N. Sprigg, next to the Teen Challenge Thrift Store. On July 16, the thrift store burned. Smoke and water damaged the fellowship and its building. They had to leave for renovations to take place.

"We were making plans to close," said Loretta Marshall. "We thought we were going to have to quit."

As in the past, a benefactor helped the Marshalls lease a new place on Good Hope. The fellowship reopened in October, but the Marshalls have no money to continue paying monthly rent and bills.

"We have faith that the Lord will provide," William Marshall said. But, he said, it helps if people know about the need.

In the meantime, donations have been used to purchase food from the Bootheel Foodbank in Sikeston. Behind the counter where prescriptions were once dispensed, shelves are stocked with tuna fish, Cheerios and macaroni. The stock rooms are stacked with cases of food, and four freezers are filled with hams, ice cream and assorted other items.

It doesn't take long for the shelves to empty, said Patsy Toombs, a longtime volunteer who opened cases and made sure families had enough food to provide for a week.

"It's amazing they have kept this operation going for 14 years with no income," she said.

Toombs is witness to the need.

"People have no idea how many poor people or homeless people we have in Cape Girardeau," she said. "We had a homeless man come in here the other week, and his tennis shoes were tied together with wire. The soles had come off."

He left with a pair of shoes and some different clothes.

"If you need, whatever you need, come here," Toombs said. "We have plenty, and it doesn't cost you a dime. Maybe this is what Good Hope needs: people to help each other."

To donate

Those interested in making a donation may contact the Marshalls at (573) 545-3104 or the Bethesda Fellowship on Tuesday mornings.