need worldwide for over 55 years. The Center, owned and operated by
the Church of the Brethren General Board, was founded on the site
of Blue Ridge College in 1944. The Church bought the facility, four buildings
on 26 acres, at public auction for $31,300. It was purchased to provide
a location for organized relief efforts of the Church of the Brethren in
response to the devastation of World War II. It was soon apparent that
no single denomination could provide for the vast needs arising from the
war. Consequently, in its early years, the Brethren Service Center entered
partnerships with denominational and private nonprofit organizations including
Church World Service and Lutheran World Relief to provide material aid
to persons across the globe.
M.R. Zigler, the driving force that established the Center, had the vision to see the need and to find a site that would meet the requirements. The New Windsor location was perfect because it was far enough from urban areas to concentrate on the mission but close enough to the Port of Baltimore and other transportation facilities to be effective.
To get the Center immediately under way, Zigler secured fifty thousand yards of cloth to be prepared with special cutting machines. Women's work groups throughout the church completed the garments which were packed by workers at the Center for distribution to war relief agencies.
There
was intense activity in 1944 to establish programs at the Center and set
up the clothing and food relief projects. M.R. Zigler reported "Clothing
is coming rapidly. Seventeen bundles came in one day just recently. It
is coming in from all over the United States, revealing a great joy on
the part of the church people that we have set up our own clothing bureau."
New Windsor was a training site for Civilian Public Service
and housing was provided for CPS men working in a soil conservation camp.Plans
for the Brethren Volunteer Service were approved at the 1948 Annual Conference
and the first basic training program began in September. Other programs
which developed at the Center included the Polish Agricultural Exchange
program and International Christian Youth Exchange. It was also an assembling
station for shipment of Heifers from eastern ports and a location for training
of church relief workers.
The 40's and 50's were years of tremendous growth with the development of SERRV and the Refugee Resettlement program. SERRV started in the late forties when Brethren relief workers in post-war Germany saw the need for a first step beyond the crisis concern for food and shelter for the many refugees and displaced persons. A vision of economic independence inspired the relief workers to provide a means of income through sale of the refugees' handcrafts in the U.S. The first items were sold informally at the Center. This later became one of several SERRV International gift shops and led to the development of the wholesale and consignment sales programs with items from over 35 countries. SERRV International, Inc. became a separate non profit organization in 1999.
In 1949 Congressional action opened the way for large numbers of refugees to enter the United States. The Center became an important location for resettling refugees through Brethren Service and Church World Service. This program has continued to provide a temporary home to thousands of refugees who have come through New Windsor to start a new life in America.
For many years Church of the Brethren congregations have responded to appeals for money and volunteers for disaster relief. At the 1973 annual conference Brethren Disaster Network was officially recognized. Training and workshops continue to be held to prepare Disaster Response volunteers. In 1984 the Disaster Childcare program was established to help care for children at disaster sites. In 1998,working with the American Red Cross, the CAIR (Childcare Aviation Incident Response) program was added.
M.R. Zigler's special legacy carried on through the development of On Earth Peace Assembly. It was his dream that New Windsor be the site of an ongoing peace program. On Earth Peace Assembly was established in 1974 with a mission to clarify the issues that the Christian church must face regarding violence and conflict resolution.
Interchurch Medical Assistance, Inc. (I.M.A.)is an ecumenical
program whose administrative offices relocated in 1981 to New Windsor.
The Service Center has been shipping medical products for I.M.A. since
its founding in 1960.
The facilities at the New Windsor Conference Center are used by a variety of organizations for meetings and retreats. The conference facilities expanded with the opening of Zigler Hall in 1968 and the renovations of Old Main in the early 70's. All three conference center buildings are handicap accessible.
For more than fifty-five years the Brethren Service Center has been blessed with the faith, hard work and dedication of all the staff and volunteers who have spent time sharing their gifts with others in need.