At least 200,000 to 300,000 homes in Houston are still without electricity, said Judy Fletcher, executive of the Synod of the Sun.
While early reports showed little damage to church structures, some congregations in Galveston had not been heard from when those reports were made. Now, the word is that the building of Emmanuel Church, a Hispanic congregation in Galveston, has been destroyed. First Church in Galveston has sustained damage estimated at from $750,000 to $1 million – and has an insurance deductible of $400,000, Fletcher said.
Because of the damage, some congregations may have to choose between continuing to pay their pastors or affording the repairs.
Speaking in Utah, Fletcher gave an update on the damage and the needs to a combined meeting of the General Assembly Council and executives from presbyteries and synods. She is concerned that other news – the nation’s financial crisis and the presidential election – may be pushing the impact of Ike into the background, that people may forget.
Her greatest concern: so far, Presbyterian Disaster Assistance has only received $700,000 in response to the 2008 storms of Hanna, Gustav, Ike and Fay. “The most disturbing statistic is four storms and only $700,000,” Fletcher said.
She recently heard of two small congregations each committing $500. “We need tons of $500 contributions,” Fletcher said.
Fletcher and others who spoke about the impact of Ike offered suggestions for how Presbyterians can help – and of the importance of all congregations, presbyteries and synods preparing themselves for disasters before the trouble hits.
In some cases, that can involve being creative and specific.
Paul Reiter, executive presbyter of Giddings-Lovejoy Presbytery in Missouri, said that after Katrina hit, he spoke with Susan Ryan, the former director of Presbyterian Disaster Assistance, and asked her how the presbytery could help.
Ryan said they needed to set up “volunteer villages” where volunteers who come to help with disaster relief work can stay. “How much?” Reiter asked. The cost to establish a volunteer village: $65,000 to $85,000.
So Reiter decided to try to raise the money in his presbytery. He approached some of the largest churches, which agreed to kick in $5,000 to $10,000 apiece, over and above other giving. He took those pledges back to the presbytery, and challenged the other congregations to come up with the rest.
In the end, Giddings-Lovejoy raised $75,000, which was used to establish the volunteer village in Houma, Louisiana, called Camp Good Earth.
The presbytery sent down contractors, engineers, people from the building trades. The role his presbytery played was “getting it ready for the rest of the church to come and care for the people who were hurt in the storms.”
Sara Lisherness, director of the PC(USA)’s Peace and Justice program area, also asked Presbyterians to contribute to the storm relief efforts in Haiti and Cuba. “The devastation in Haiti is almost beyond imagination,” Lisherness said. She encouraged Presbyterians to “be the body of Christ, the hands, the heart, the face of Jesus Christ” for those with the fewest resources.
HOW TO HELP?
How can Presbyterians help this time?
Presbyterian Disaster Assistance has set up special accounts through which people can designate funds directly for storm relief.
Clean-up and bucket kits are needed – “we can never have too many clean-up buckets,” Lisherness said.
Congregations can send volunteers to help with the cleanup and relief work.
Keep praying, Fletcher and Lisherness said.
And every church, presbytery and synod needs training in how to respond to a disaster, Fletcher said. Some may be lulled into thinking that because they’re not on the Gulf Coast, they won’t be hit by a hurricane, she said.
But “if you’re not on the coast, you’re not safe from hurricanes, fires, gunshots in your congregation,” Fletcher said.
Presbyterian Disaster Assistance can provide training in how to be prepared – be it flooding, tornadoes, fires or something else. They help congregations and middle governing bodies prepare to communicate, respond and provide spiritual care if something bad happens
