Mennonite Disaster Service volunteers in Kansas collaborate in cabinet-building for community

In a small, quaint building on the side of a gravel road, volunteers with the Kansas unit of the Mennonite Disaster Service build hardwood kitchen cabinet sets in an effort to help communities after disasters.

The Cabinet Shop allows volunteers to complete each step of the process, such as cutting, assembling, staining and storing, all while in Goessel, Kansas, a town that can easily be missed driving down K-15.

MDS Kansas project manager Cleo Koop said the cabinets ship all over the country, which is shown on a U.S. map inside, decorated with threads and push pins to all the delivery sites.

“That gives you an idea of all the different scopes of where we’ve delivered cabinets to, for different long-term rebuilding projects, or they’re also responses to asylum-seeking immigrants,” Koop said, pointing to the map.

The Kansas unit shipped around 70 sets of cabinet last year, and so far this year, they’ve shipped 85 sets.

While a niche area, Koop said MDS helps significantly reduce building costs; he said they save around $3,000 per cabinet set.

“$3,000 saved times 80 houses is almost a quarter of a million dollars,” Koop said. “That’s where we’re generating our savings that can go for other houses that we’re rebuilding.”

With each set built, Kansas MDS also sends a free cutting board to each house.

While there are different sets of volunteers throughout the week, one group of volunteers, an army of Kansas retirees, come every Monday and Tuesday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. By 10 a.m., though, the men are on a coffee break.

“I remind the guys we’re retired, and we don’t have to work 40 and 50 hours a week,” Koop said.

Harlan Bartel, who assembles corner cabinets for the project, said woodworking has always been a hobby for him.

“I don’t really focus on one project — that gets too boring,” Bartel said. “I’ll usually have about three different things going. (I) build toys for the grandkids. I enjoy making wood puzzles, and once in a while, I have to do a job for my wife.”

Before retiring, Bartel helped engineer lawnmowers at Excel Industries in Hesston. While he has plenty of extra time on his hands, he said he has to pick and choose what to do.

“Realistically, you know, I don’t have a lot of years left,” Bartel said. “Volunteering is one thing that’s important for me.”

While the 10 or so volunteers are busy working on Monday and Tuesday, the camaraderie was a point that continuously came up.

Ron “Flick” Flickinger called the group of volunteers “one of the best crowds to be part of.”

“There’s an attitude of humility that you don’t see a lot of places, and that’s a good company to be with,” he said.

Retired from working in civil service, Flickinger said while the volunteer work is different, it’s more fun. In his free time, the retiree likes to build wood games, puzzles and musical instruments.

“I just think it’s a worthwhile project on something that I can make a contribution,” Flickinger said. “(Woodworking has) always been my hobby; it’s always been my interest. And I would like to do what I can for the greater good.”

While some volunteers have training and passion for woodworking, Koop said there’s work for all.

“Other people come who’ve never worked with woodwork, and we find places for them to work,” Koop said. “We’ve got, you know, people like respiratory therapists, retired farmers. We’ve got engineers … Various different skills that they bring to The Cabinet Shop.”

Dedicating the shop

While the Kansas unit has been in service for years and the shop for over two years, a dedication will be held on Sunday from 4 to 8 p.m. at The Cabinet Shop at 604 E. Main St.

The dedication will feature tours of the shop and warehouse.

Family band September River will perform a fundraising concert to help the nonprofit continue to raise money for cabinet-building at 5:30 p.m.