As Irma approached the Florida mainland, millions in the path of the storm were urged to evacuate. About 200 grateful Floridians took refuge at the Talladega Superspeedway where Alabama Baptists were ready to assist.
“Thank you, Coosa River Baptist Association. I was at Talladega Speedway and although we had everything we needed, it was so awesome to see the love of Christ lived out in your lives,” wrote David Friar in a post on the association’s Facebook page. “I don’t know how many of you knocked on the door of our motorhome to invite us to eat or see if we needed anything. We are so blessed and God provided all we needed before leaving, but there were many who were in great need and to see their needs being met brought me to tears. God bless you all and thank you for being God (sic) hands and feet in Alabama.”
NASCAR officials tweeted Sept. 6 that Talladega Superspeedway would open its camping facilities, including hot showers, restrooms and water hookups, Sept. 7 for Hurricane Irma evacuees.
Call for help
As the weekend approached, more and more campers arrived, some in camping trailers and others with tents. The Greater Talladega and Lincoln Area Chamber of Commerce put out a call for help.
“The Chamber provided food on Friday night, and when we heard about the need our church immediately signed up to provide a meal,” said Tommy Strickland, pastor of Ridgeview Baptist Church, Talladega.
Members of Talladega Creek Baptist Church, Talladega, joined Ridgeview members on Sunday evening to provide hamburger plates to approximately 125 people at the track.
“We had the opportunity to pray with several families who were displaced,” Strickland said. “One family pretty much spent their last dime just to get this far. My heart is heavy for such devastated lives but also rejoicing that believers were busy sharing the hope of Christ.”
Volunteers served food and listened to the stories of evacuees, Strickland said. Volunteer Alayna Pody called the experience “humbling.”
“Having the opportunity to help and serve evacuees staying at local churches and at the Superspeedway and just talking with them and hearing their stories has been an experience like no other and one that I’m likely to never forget. These people’s stories are all so different, yet they all ring with tragedy and brokenness from what they ran from and hope for what they’ll return to,” Pody wrote in a Facebook post.
Small details
Another volunteer, Paula Johnson, posted, “We saw God even in the smallest of ways today while we were feeding families from Florida. Our church made Swedish meatballs and served it over rice. Several told us they were craving rice. It is so cool to see how much God cares about the smallest details.”
Diane Smith, Mission Service Corps missionary to Anniston, gathered blankets and firewood for the campers who were unprepared for the cooler temperatures of the weekend. On Sunday, Coosa River Baptist Association Director of Missions Randy Hagan held a worship service at the track. Three salvations were reported throughout the weekend, according to Smith.
When forecasters began to warn of high winds and heavy rains on Monday, 25–30 tent campers were moved to Eastaboga Baptist Church where a temporary shelter for Irma evacuees was set up.
Eastaboga Pastor Mike Snyder said church members and community members responded to the needs in an “amazing” way.
“We had been trying to assemble a team to go to Beaumont, Texas, but it wasn’t working out,” he said. “God worked it all out for us to stay here and help the folks He sent to us.”
Once news spread of the evacuees seeking refuge at the church, people began showing up to donate food, clothing, hygiene items and pet food. At one point the parking lot was full and cars were lining the road to the church, he said. Some locals offered to wash the clothes of those sheltered at the church. The Coosa River Baptist Association shower unit was set up at the church so evacuees could bathe. Total strangers gave large donations “just because they wanted to help somebody,” Snyder said.
“The generosity of folks was amazing,” he said. “The love of Jesus is real and I’ve witnessed it this week.”
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HOW CAN I HELP?
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