From Limestone to Baldwin counties, they came in droves. Only there to help, they never asked for anything in return. Approximately 7,000 volunteers strong, Alabama Baptist Disaster Relief (DR) mobilized chainsaw teams, heavy equipment operators, chaplains, administration, child care and mass feeding personnel in 2014 to minister and help survivors of natural disasters.
Because of the back-to-back tornadoes and flooding of April 2014, last year was a “huge year for disaster relief,” said Mel Johnson, disaster relief strategist for the Alabama Baptist State Board of Missions. “Within the first 24 hours of the April tornadoes and flooding, 80 percent of Alabama’s cleanup, recovery and chainsaw units along with other personnel were deployed to various areas across the state.”
During 2014, DR volunteers logged more than 16,000 workdays. One workday is defined as one person providing 8–10 hours in relief work.
'Gospel witness'
“Our trained disaster relief personnel provide a lifetime of skills and a gospel witness.”
But DR is more than just rebuilding homes and clearing debris — it’s rebuilding lives.
“As we engage homeowners to help them begin the recovery process following a disaster, we are afforded the opportunity to witness because people are eager to know why we have come and why we care,” Johnson said.
The amount of time and preparation that goes into every response is immense and is made possible by the cooperation and support of Alabama Baptist churches.
February is Alabama Baptist Disaster Preparedness Month. Johnson encourages churches to set aside one Sunday to educate members about the mission and importance of disaster relief and how to get involved. One way to get involved is by participating in the Alabama Baptist Disaster Relief Offering.
All money collected is placed in reserve “to meet the immediate needs of the families” for future crisis events. This is a lesson learned after the April 27, 2011, tornadoes.
DR hopes to raise $200,000 through this offering, a goal that can be easily attained if each church member donates $1 to the offering.
Church members also can get involved in disaster relief by becoming a volunteer. Annually, DR trains 800–1,000 volunteers through a two- or three-day process during which volunteers earn the necessary credentials to work nationally in disaster areas and alongside state and federal emergency management.
The 2015 annual state training will take place April 10–11 at Shocco Springs Baptist Conference Center in Talladega.
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Free resources for promoting Disaster Preparedness Month are available at sbdr.org/beprepared or at alsbom.tv/disaster-relief.
For more information about Disaster Relief, visit sbdr.org or contact Mondene Coker at 1-800-264-1225, ext. 273, mcoker@alsbom.org.
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