• Our church in Hackleburg — Emmanuel Baptist — was destroyed in the April tornadoes. We lost all of our Vacation Bible School music DVDs that our kids really enjoy singing with. If anyone has the following DVDs with performance tracks, we would be interested in purchasing them: “Big Apple Adventure,” “Saddle Ridge Ranch,” “Outrigger Island” and “Artic Edge.” I can be contacted by email at wolfetimjudy@hotmail.com.
Tim Wolfe
Hackleburg, Ala.
• May 15 was not a typical Sunday for members of Clairmont Springs Baptist Church, Talladega. Instead of attending the usual morning worship service, about 40 members of the Carey Baptist Association church — from 10-year-olds to senior adults — packed into vans and headed to Webster’s Chapel, a community devastated by the April 27 tornadoes.
Pastor David W. Cornett initially heard of the destruction in that area through news from his daughter-in-law. After relaying the area’s needs to his church, Cornett made arrangements to transport the congregation to Webster’s Chapel to feed the community.
With grills, tents and a variety of food in tow — barbecue sandwiches, jambalaya and cakes, the church set up its food distribution area on what was left of the Webster’s Chapel Fire Department property.
Cornett sent out several church members in two trucks to distribute food to residents who weren’t leaving their homes. He said some residents had only sheds that remained standing on their property and others had set up tents to sleep in.
Church members served approximately 200 plates of food to residents and other volunteers.
Cornett said despite the trials these residents faced, they lifted his spirits and inspired his congregation with their positive outlook. “It was an eye-opening experience,” he said.
• For Ken and Judy Conaway, traveling and missions opportunities go hand in hand. Through their dedicated work with Campers on Mission (COM), this couple has covered a lot of territory in Alabama since the April 27 tornadoes hit the state.
COM, with more than 30 chapters nationwide, is “a fellowship of Christian campers who share their faith while they camp.”
The Conaways, who are members of First Baptist Church, Wedowee, have been involved with COM since 2005.
Serving as part of the COM Alabama chapter — sponsored by the Adult Volunteer Mobilization unit of the North American Mission Board — the Conaways accept short-term volunteer assignments that typically send them on the road 20 weeks out of the year.
They have worked in several different ministry capacities throughout their COM experience but recent activity has been in aiding Baptist disaster relief and rebuilding teams. Deployed through Alabama’s Baptist disaster relief effort, the Conaways drove their RV to Tuscaloosa a few days after the April 27 storms.
Once at Cottondale Baptist Church’s disaster relief site, the couple delved into many administrative duties for Baptist chainsaw crews: managing a shower unit, locating lodging, handling logistics and tracking paperwork through completion. During their stay, the couple lived in their RV that was parked in Cottondale Baptist’s parking lot. About 15 other COM workers also were assisting at the same site, while many others worked in Cullman, Hackleburg, Phil Campbell and Rainsville.
Most recently the Conaways were in Phil Campbell helping construct a home for the widow of a former Baptist pastor who lost her home April 27.
Now, “we’re back in administration trying to keep things running and keep people out in the field working, and we’re not actually out in the field doing the chainsaw work ourselves, but we’re supporting the units,” Ken Conaway said.
For more information about Alabama’s COM chapter, visit http://alabamacom.org.
• Venture Expeditions held the Hope Tour, a two-week cycling adventure to benefit Convoy of Hope’s disaster recovery efforts in Joplin, Mo., Tuscaloosa and other disaster work. The Sept. 25–Oct. 9 tour had raised $50,000 at press time.
Thirteen participating cyclists departed for the 766-mile journey through Missouri, Arkansas, Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia from Joplin and Springfield, Mo., ending in Atlanta. Participants assisted tornado survivors and encouraged communities to continue to help their neighbors. In Alabama, some of the cyclists were at Cedar Grove Baptist Church, Leeds.
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