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Disaster Relief The William Carey Baptist Association Disaster Relief Ministry Serves in Partnership with the Tennessee Baptist Disaster Relief Ministry The goal of Tennessee Baptist Disaster Relief is to bring
HELP, HOPE and HEALING to those affected by a Disaster.
WCBA Disaster Relief Director - Darrell Haney 931-652-2115
Personal and Family Preparedness Helps
WHAT WE DO
In the southeastern United States, the natural disasters that most often occur are tornados, floods, and hurricanes. Therefore the main focus of our Disaster Relief Ministry is Chain Saw/Debris Removal and Flood Recovery.
WHO CAN SERVE?
Who can serve changes depending on the type of response, state of response and organization we are serving under. Generally, if it is a TBMB response, you must be a trained volunteer, at least 18 years of age and a member of a Southern Baptist Church. Some responses allow untrained volunteers to serve alongside trained volunteers. Sometimes we serve under Samaritan's Purse. They will allow volunteers as young as 14 serve as long as they are serving with their parents.
HOW TO BE INVOLVED
1. TRAIN - Attend training events. Training is offered in many aspects of Disaster Relief at the state level every year during the spring and fall. We have the ability to offer local training events any time we have interested volunteers. Just contact the Association Office when interested in training.
2. GO - Respond to Disaster callouts. If you are interested in responding to disasters, please let us know of your interest and availability.
3. SEND - Some people tell us that they can't go for different reasons and we understand that. Those who can't go can send. There are two very important things you can do to send. First, and most importantly, Pray. Please pray for us as we go. Disaster areas can be a dangerous place to work. Please pray for our safety as we go. Also, pray that God will put us exactly where he wants us to be to minister to the people he has for us. Second is to give. Currently we have two designated accounts. One is used to cover travel expenses, equipment maintenance and most importantly the relief supplies we give to homeowners. The second account is for new equipment. You can send by giving to these accounts.
Lowe's and Home Depot Purchase Rebate ProgramDid you know you can support Southern Baptist Disaster Relief (SBDR) in a monetary way and it will cost you no extra out-of-pocket expense? This can be done on an individual basis or through a personal business.
Both Lowe's and Home Depot offer funds back to SBDR for any person or business that registers their Credit Cards (any type of credit card, not just the Lowe's or Home Depot card) or bank cards through their SBDR rebate program. Then when you go to these stores and make purchases a percentage of your purchase is deposited into the SBDR account. This does not effect any discounts or coupons you use, so don't worry, you still get your discounts.
For example, a contractor registers his/her cards with the program. During the year he purchases $1,000,000 in materials, SBDR would receive $50,000 back at the end of the year for SBDR. If an individual spends $1,000 during the year, SBDR would receive $50.
If you would like to participate in this program, click on the link below. You will be instructed on how to register your credit cards. Please pass this information on to your friends.
Special Note: When registering with Lowe's the
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William Carey Baptist Association
Tennessee Baptist Convention (TBC) recently released the 2013 Disaster Relief training dates on their WEB site: www.tnbaptist.org. Click on: Mission/ministry, then Disaster Relief, then training opportunities for a complete list of available training, location and dates. All Disaster Relief volunteers must be trained and certified to serve on a team in the field. William Carey Baptist Association's (WCBA) Disaster Relief team will be coordinating this required training. However, we need the help of our churches to get the word out to their congregation. We are urging our pastors and church staff to make this information available thru your newsletter, bulletin, announcements, etc. Please encourage any of your members that may want to get involved in Disaster Relief to contact our Association or any of our current team members. Some facts about Tennessee Baptist Disaster Relief Training: All Volunteers must be 18 years old or older. William Carey Baptist Association's Disaster relief Team Represented the Association and our local churches for the past six years. In this period of time we have seen our team respond to numerous disasters across the United States, serving in places like AL, MS, TX, OK, KS, CO, KY, OH, WI, NC, NJ and even in our own state of TN. The have helped communities recover from hurricanes, tornadoes, ice storms, and floods. It is our goal to be ready to respond to any disaster whenever TBC requests our team's help. While our mission is to help homeowners clean up after a disaster that is not our primary goal. The most important aspect of our ministry is to be a witness for our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. We always make an attempt to get to know the homeowners we are working for and share with them the Love of Christ. On a number of occasions we have been able to lead a homeowner to Christ. ON our last trip while serving in NJ after Huricane Sandy, we saw ten accept Christ. If any member of your congregation would like to be a part of this rewarding ministry, please have them contact one of the following: WCBA a 433-3631, wcba@fpunet.com CONTACT US DISASTER RELIEF REPORT 2009-2013
It is almost as if we do not have enough time nor volunteers to respond to all that we are called upon to do. However, I will say, our volunteers have been just super this past year. We have never turned down a trip because we could not get enough volunteers. This past year have seen us travel down to Louisiana to help work on a church to as far north as Alaska to help build a church. Our travels have taken us to the New England state of Rhode Island to help homeowners from flooding; to as far west as South Dakota, once again to help build a church. Our teams logged 5494 hours of volunteer work this past year. Considering our teams range in size from 6 up to 15, that is a lot of volunteer hours for some individuals. All I can say is: Thanks to each one of you.
Disaster Relief: The big news of 2010 of course is our on disaster here at home. April saw record rainfall and flooding in the Nashville area as well as other parts of Tennessee. We had teams in Nashville three times doing mostly damage assessment for Tennessee Baptist Convention (TBC). We also took our team to Rhode Island in April-May to assist homeowners cleaning out their homes that had been flooded. Prior to that, we were in North Carolina after an ice storm struck there on Christmas day. Our team spent New Year’s Eve in Boone, NC, and even worked New Year day. WCBA was asked by TBC to host a bucket truck training session for middle Tennessee in April. We had a total of 12 that took this training, including four of our own team members. TBC has 2 bucket trucks, which was donated to them. By having our volunteers trained on the operation of these truck, means we will be able to use them locally if the need arises. In May we hosted a training sessions for our volunteers. Classes included the Introduction to Disaster Relief, Flood Recovery and Rebuild.
Baptist Builders: Our rebuild teams had an outstanding year of work. We worked with Samaritan’s Purse on a number of their projects this year. We started out in the Atlanta area helping homeowners rebuild homes that had been flooded the previous year. In February we travelled to Pine Ridge Indian Reservation at the request of Samaritan’s Purse. A local ministry there had the frame work of a large building that was put up the previous year. They need a team that could put the metal roof and siding on. While normally February and March in South Dakota can be cold, windy and snow, we had good weather for most of the time we were out there. We were able to get the job done before the weather finally turned bad. Gum Springs Baptist Church took the lead in taking a team to Venice, LA to help rebuild a church there that had been destroyed by hurricane Katrina. Gum Springs Baptist Church also led a team to Nashville to help rebuild homes from the spring floods. Flintville First Baptist Church also took a team to Nashville to help out. To both churches, thank you. Finally, I guess the highlight of the year was in late August when 15 of us flew to Alaska to team up with Samaritan’s Purse on a project in Marshall, AK. They built a church, parsonage and guest home. We had a good week, and made a lot of progress on the three buildings. It was also a time of good fellowship and devotion each day. It is always great to see Christian men and women that will sacrifice of their time and resources to do the work that needs to be done. And yet, have a good time doing it. For those of you that devoted so much this past year, all I can say is, “Thanks!”
Local Missions: While the number of request we had for local missions were down this year, we do continue to provide assistance whenever we can. Once again, most of the request was for removing trees from homeowner’s yard. We did have one rather large oak tree that was close to the house that posed somewhat of a challenge. We used the bucket truck training day as an opportunity to assist with this job. Since we had the volunteers and resources available that day, we were able to get the tree down with no problem. Another project included placing a blue tarp on a home that the roof had been leaking.
As we close out another year, we turn our thoughts to the upcoming year. While it is our prayer that our team will not be needed for disaster relief work, it is also my prayer that if we are called upon, our team will be willing to respond. Also, what the team is able to accomplish is in large part due to all the prayers from our local churches. It is also because of the financial support that we receive from some of our churches and individuals that we have the resources to go out unto the mission field. The need is out there; we must be willing to accept the challenge and continue to make that sacrifice!! If you, as an individual or our churches would like to contribute to our Association’s disaster relief program, either on a monthly basis or maybe a onetime contribution, please let me encourage you to do those.
To all who have made our team what it is today, I say THANK YOU and give GOD the Honor and Glory.
Respectfully Submitted
Jim Baird
Dickey Crutcher
Kenneth Mitchell
Tennessee Baptist Convention (TBC) recently released the 2013 Disaster Relief training dates on their WEB site: www.tnbaptist.org. Click on: Mission/ministry, then Disaster Relief, then training opportunities for a complete list of available training, location and dates. All Disaster Relief volunteers must be trained and certified to serve on a team in the field. William Carey Baptist Association's (WCBA) Disaster Relief team will be coordinating this required training. However, we need the help of our churches to get the word out to their congregation. We are urging our pastors and church staff to make this information available thru your newsletter, bulletin, announcements, etc. Please encourage any of your members that may want to get involved in Disaster Relief to contact our Association or any of our current team members. Some facts about Tennessee Baptist Disaster Relief Training: All Volunteers must be 18 years old or older. William Carey Baptist Association's Disaster relief Team Represented the Association and our local churches for the past six years. In this period of time we have seen our team respond to numerous disasters across the United States, serving in places like AL,MS,TX,OK,KS,CO,KY,OH,WI,NC,NJ and even in our own state of TN. The have helped communities recover from hurricanes, tornadoes, ice storms, and floods. It is our goal to be ready to respond to any disaster whenever TBC requests our team's help. While our mission is to help homeowners clean up after a disaster that is not our primary goal. The most important aspect of our ministry is to be a witness for our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. We always make an attempt to get to know the homeowners we are working for and share with them the Love of Christ. On a number of occasions we have been able to lead a homeowner to Christ. On our last trip while serving in NJ after Hurricane Sandy, we saw ten accept Christ. If any member of your congregation would like to be a part of this rewarding ministry, please have them contact one of the following: WCBA a 433-3631, wcba@fpunet.com
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WILLIAM CAREY BAPTIST ASSOCIATION DISASTER RELIEF AND REBUILD FACT SHEET The disaster relief and rebuild program is a cooperative, volunteer ministry of William Carey Baptist Association (WCBA) and its churches. It is totally dependent upon volunteers who give of their time, energy, talents and finances to assist others in time of disasters or needs. Volunteers are trained and certified in specific areas by trainers supplied by Tennessee Baptist Convention (TBC). Originally formed in the late 90’s, the team did not flourish until 2005. In October 2005, just a few short weeks after Hurricane Katrina, a group of volunteers from WCBA served in Gulfport, MS assisting homeowners clear their property of downed trees and other debris. Upon returning home, several of these volunteers decided to explore the possibilities of WCBA establishing a more permanent and active team. After an intensive recruitment drive in early 2006, we were able to sign up and train 77 men and women in the “Introduction to Disaster Relief”. These volunteers went on to take additional training in areas of chain saw safety and operations, flood recovery, damage assessment, rebuild, laundry and shower operations, child care and crew chief. This training is done using TBC’s trainers and must be updated every three years in order to maintain their status as volunteers. Today, our team serves Tennessee Baptist Convention, Southern Baptist Convention’s North American Mission Board, and Samaritan’s Purse.
LOCAL MISSION TEAM
The goal of our local mission team is to assist homeowners with minor home repairs, building handicap ramps, removing dead trees from yards. Over the past few years we have been called on to repair leaking roofs, repairing leaking plumbing, repairing rotted flooring. Our team assisted a local church to repair a basement wall and installing a metal roof for another church.
LOCAL MISSION PROJECTS
2008- Approximately 151 man-hours on local projects
2009-Approximately 254 man-hours on local projects
2010-Approximately 506 man-hours on local projects
2011-Approximately 88 man-hours on local projects
2012-Approximately xxx man-hours on local projects
2013-Approximately 2078 man-hours on local projects
2014- Approximately 423 man-hours on local projects
DISASTER RELIEF TEAM
The purpose of WCBA’s disaster relief team is to provide assistant to homeowners in the clean-up of their property after a disaster, either natural or man-made. The areas that we focus on are: damage assessment, chain saw operation, flood recovery and fire recovery. In order to meet the homeowner’s needs in restoring their property, we needed to acquire the necessary tools. In 2006-2007, we solicited help from churches and individuals in acquiring these tools. To date our team is well equipped to perform most of all the tasks assigned. Also, in early 2007 we were able to purchase an enclosed 16 foot, dual axle trailer to store and transport this equipment.
WCBA DISASTER RELIEF RESPONSES
WCBA REBUILD TEAM
The goal of WCBA’S rebuild team is to provide assistant to homeowners that suffered damage to their property after a disaster. This could be either repairing their homes or even building new homes. We also assist churches in doing repairs or help in building new church buildings. We assist the elderly and handicapped homeowners by doing minor repairs and building handicap ramps and or rails. WCBA rebuild team is equipped to do most construction projects. From October 2007 through January 2009 we were involved in the construction of over 60 new homes along the Mississippi Gulf Coast that were lost as a result of Hurricane Katrina
WCBA REBUILD PROJECTS
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DISASTER RELIEF REPORT
2007-2008
We do serve an AWESOME GOD! It was just one year ago that we shared a dream, a vision if you will, with you in our last annual report. That dream was to build a combination storage and work shop, replace the small trailer with a larger unit and to acquire more tool and equipment.
Today we have that building. An 18 x 26 structure, built with funds contributed by our churches. A lot of the material was donated by local businesses. All of the labor was by loving, caring volunteers. Thanks to all of you that had a part in making this a success story. Praise God!
We also have that larger trailer. We purchased a 16 foot, duel axle unit with money left over from the building fund and the sale of the smaller unit. This unit has been a blessing to those of us that go out on disaster relief trips. We can now take all of our equipment when responding to a disaster.
A year ago, we had two chain saws, a generator and a trash pump. We had a few small hand tools but little else. Today we are blessed with a wealth of items. We now have six chain saws and other tools and equipment to numerous to list. Some were donated by individuals, such as the chain saws, and others were donated by our churches and businesses. This was answered prayer. Yes, we did have a list of items we needed that we prayed over. Thanks to those that contributed.
Disaster Relief efforts: This past year has been a busy time for our team members. It started in December 2007 when we traveled to Collinsville, Oklahoma to assist with ice storm damage. We spent a week there doing chain saw work. In February of this year we were in Lafayette, TN, again doing chain saw work after the tornado touched down in Macon county. June of this year saw us in Muscoda, Wisconsin assisting with flood recovery. In July we went to Wapello, Iowa to help them recover from a flood. Most recently, in September we were in Texas doing both chain saw and flood recovery. On all of these trips, we were out for seven to eight days. So yes, it has been a busy year.
Baptist Builders: We made several trips to the Mississippi Gulf Coast this past year. We took a large group down in October 2007 and again in March 2008. After hurricane Gustav hit the coast in September, it did some damage to a house that construction had just started on a few weeks prior. Essentially it blew the roof off. William Carey Assn. was asked if they could team together and dry the house in. We took a team down on the 14th of September which got the roof back on and closed in the front of the house. On the 21st of September, we had a second team that went down. They got the shingles on, closed in the back side, framed out the upstairs and put on some siding. A third team went down on the 5th of October to finish up the siding and do the wiring. It was during the first week of work on this house that we had a terrible accident. As a result, a friend of the homeowner lost his life at the job site. The next day, after one of our team members witnessed to the homeowner, she accepted the Lord Jesus as Saviour.
Local missions: This is an area that we feel is ripe for harvest. Our Association has been able to reach out to several occasions to help local residents. Most of the work has been in the area of removing trees from resident’s yards. We did have one job assisting a homeowner in repairing their home. As a result of the work done and being able to witness to this couple, both husband and wife accepted Jesus as their Savior and were baptized at Gum Springs this past August. Praise God!
Our biggest concern as we start our new year has to be the lack of volunteers. We need more folks to become involved. Once again, remember what Jesus said in Matt. 9:37-38. “The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few; pray ye therefore the Lord of harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest”. If God has burdened your heart about being a part of this ministry, please get involved.
Thanks to all the churches and individuals that has given so much to make our disaster relief program what it is today. Thanks for your prayers, and we ask that you continue to pray for us, especially when we are out on trips. Pray for the safety of our team members.
To Him, Give the Praise!
Submitted by: Jim Baird and Ken Mitchell
Disaster Relief Co-Directors