For every positive action proffered by employees and volunteers at the Deseret Industries Sort Center and other generous Church members, there is at least an equal and opposite reaction of joy and gratitude on the receiving end where the items are delivered.

Here is a representative look at a few instances of clothing distribution that have blessed the lives of recipients, along with several of their expressions of thanks.

DONETSK, RUSSIA

A shipment of 324 bales of clothing from the Deseret Industries, processed and shipped through its Sort Center, arrived here Sept. 26, 1995. An average of six to 10 items of clothing per person were distributed throughout the region at orphanages, infant-care homes, a long-term care center for the aged, schools assisting large and destitute families, prisons, a mental hospital and to 20 families who had "lost everything in a fire."

"The people are very thankful for the help received," said a relief worker who helped coordinate the distribution. "Our hearts are full of gratitude toward God and you for this great help that we received from you."

Similar shipments of clothing had been sent to the Kommi and Ossetia regions of Russia a year previous, in the fall of 1994. As with the 1995 shipment, the items were distributed to many in need in a variety of difficult circumstances and locations.

"Our gratitude has no end," said four people from the Alanskaya Christian Mission. "All members of the mission thank you from our hearts for your help. We can imagine what a huge job it was for your organization to send this load. We hope that you hear our thankfulness. We are all united in our belief and let God send you a reward. Pass on a big thanks and greeting to all those brothers and sisters involved in the project."

HAZARD, KY.

Several clothing distributions in eastern Kentucky, conducted under the direction of Church service missionaries in the fall and winter of 1995-96, provided relief to many impoverished persons.

Most of the distributions were made at schools and were sponsored by local Family Resource Centers or Youth Service Centers. Missionaries also work with senior citizen groups and other community organizations to facilitate the assistance.

"At one distribution, we spoke with a man who had been out of work for several months due to an injury received working in a coal mine, and he could not support his family," said Elder Phillip and Sister Carolyn Schofield of the Kentucky Louisville Mission. "Another time, we watched as a mother took an old, torn shirt off her little boy and put on a clean shirt from the clothing rack. He was embarrassed to have his shirt off in public, but the mother was thankful for the clothing she got for her family. Children have come to distributions in the rain without coats, shivering from the cold, and have left with warm coats and smiles."

ACCRA, GHANA

Seven bales of used clothing - including white shirts, pants, socks and ties - were sent from Salt Lake City to missionaries in the Ghana Accra Mission in August 1994. The clothing arrived in "very good condition," according to a letter from the mission home to Welfare Services, acknowledging receipt of the items.

Said the letter: "It is impossible for us to express in words the gratefulness we feel in our hearts for this clothing which we received. Most of our missionaries come from humble circumstances and arrive at the mission home with the barest of necessities. Everything that was sent is most welcome and will be put to very good use."

ALEXANDRIA, LA.

More than 200 people received clothing here Sept. 23, 1995. An article in the local newspaper, The Town Talk, noted: "People lined up two hours early and carried shirts, pants and jackets off by the armful during the charity giveaway at the Boys and Girls Club of Central Louisiana. The clothes were donated by the Mormon Church in Salt Lake City and the event was sponsored by Citizens for Better Schools, a local group created to support education."

The article credited a local missionary couple, Elder Reed and Sister Deloris West of Kaysville, Utah, with organizing the drive. It noted that as missionaries for the Church, the couple had "traveled across the state bringing clothes to those in need."

"We wish to express heartfelt thanks and gratitude, on behalf of the suffering people of our war-torn country, for the continued assistance being given through these relief shipments. Thousands of families that would have gone without cold-preventive clothing are being clothed." - Relief worker in Liberia

"A group of orphans and abandoned children were assisted through the donation of clothes. These children are suffering the consequences of the civil war provoked by terrorist forces. [They] were so excited upon receiving their new clothes. Their clothes were so weary and ragged. They did not have other clothes." - Relief worker in Peru

"The children who received the beautiful clothing wanted to get to know the children who donated the clothing to them, and become their friends." - Relief worker in Moscow, Russia