As the Southern Baptist Disaster Relief (SBDR) response efforts to Hurricane Helene continue, preparations for Hurricane Milton are underway. And Illinois Baptist Disaster Relief (IBDR) volunteers are involved in both.
IBDR feeding volunteers served in Augusta, Ga. to minister to victims in partnership with Georgia, Kansas/Nebraska, Missouri, and Michigan/Wisconsin Baptists. Hurricane Helene barreled through the area with hurricane force wind gusts late on Sept. 27, killing at least 33 in the region. From their arrival the evening of Sept. 29 through their departure on Oct. 5, IBDR volunteers assisted in preparing 58,930 meals. Other IBDR volunteers have traveled to Augusta to serve as assessors and on shower/laundry and chainsaw teams.
IBDR has almost 500 trained volunteers who serve on chainsaw and flood recovery teams, with shower, laundry, and food service, and at every callout, as chaplains.
Disaster relief volunteers clean after a long day of food preparation. Submitted photo
Roger Walker, an IBDR volunteer and a member of New Hope Baptist Church in Mt. Vernon, was in Augusta for nearly a week preparing meals, described some of the hurricane survivors he encountered. “One lady drove through Monday or Tuesday and had a dog in the car with her,” said Walker. “She said they were homeless now, living in their car.”
Another woman he met was visibly upset saying she “had lost nine pets” Walker said.
Food wasn’t their only physical need. “We handed out almost nine semi loads of water,” he noted. “People were coming up with gas cans, asking if we had gas and we didn’t. They were really desperate.”
Walker’s an active member of Illinois Baptist Disaster Relief who plans to return to Augusta in a week to serve with a chainsaw team. Last month, he was in Baton Rouge serving in the aftermath of Hurricane Francine.
Joe Jackson, a member of Harrisburg First Baptist Church, arrived in Augusta on Oct. 5 and is serving on a chainsaw team. A 10-year-veteran of IBDR, he described the tree damage as “the worst I’ve seen. … I’ve never this many trees on houses and through houses as I’ve seen in this community today (Oct. 8).”
He said the amount of fallen trees has made their work slow. “We had to cut a path into where the bad stuff was,” according to Jackson. “There are pine trees that are 100 ft. tall that have been uprooted. When one falls onto another tree, you’ve got to get that one out of the way too.”
Jackson said he feels blessed to have an experienced nine-member team with good equipment – two tractors with grapples and a skid steer with a grapple.
He asked Illinois Baptists to pray for the safety of the team and that of others serving. He also asked for prayer when the volunteers have an opportunity to talk with homeowners. “We need wisdom in how to talk to people and to let them know Jesus Christ is with them,” Jackson said. “That God is with them. We want them to know we are there because of God.”
Additional teams are slated to serve in Augusta. For more information, contact Arnold Ramage, IBDR State Coordinator, via email or by phone at (618) 889-1938.
Standby for Hurricane Milton
IBDR feeding volunteers are on standby to deploy to Lakeland, Fla., in response to Hurricane Milton which is expected to make landfall as a Category 3 storm in the Tampa Bay region. Volunteers are expected to depart on Oct. 11 or 12. Volunteers don’t have to be trained in mass feeding but must have a current IBDR badge. Contact Tom Clore, IBDR Mass Feeding Coordinator, at (618) 841-4010 if you are available to serve.
IBDR is a partner with Southern Baptist Disaster Relief (SBDR), part of the SBC’s Send Relief compassion ministry. It is the third largest disaster relief organization, after the Red Cross and the Salvation Army. Send Relief is currently supporting dozens of SBDR sites deployed in six southeastern states with teams mobilized in response to Hurricane Helene. As of Oct. 9, Send Relief reported volunteers have provided 640,653 meals, given 86,538 volunteer hours, completed 827 job requests, and seen 56 professions of faith.
While the Cooperative Program supports the administrative costs of disaster relief, volunteers travel and serve at their own expense. To donate to help Illinois Baptist Disaster Relief assist survivors of Hurricane Helene, visit IBSA.org/about/donate. Checks may be made payable to Illinois Baptist Disaster Relief and sent to IBSA, 3085 Stevenson Drive, Springfield, IL 62703.
For more information about Illinois Baptist Disaster Relief, visit IBSA.org/dr. IBDR is a volunteer organization ministering with the Illinois Baptist State Association.