Disaster Relief: Hurricanes Katrina, Rita & Wilma

From Steve, Family International missionary recently arrived from the Philippines:

We were in Houston enroute to our new mission field of Mexico when the Hurricane hit Katrina, so we postponed our trip so we could take some tim to volunteer at the Reliant Arena and minister to the victims of the hurricane. Today I had some time to talk with a woman while I was helping her find the place she needed to go to — and when I left her she turned to me and said, “I just want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for all you’re doing to help us.” Her sweet words of thanks made it worth it all!

From Fay, from the Reliant Arena:

Yesterday I met a woman who was in a lot of pain in a wheelchair, and people haven’t been able to get their medication as soon as they would have liked because there is a long line-up of people needing medication. So she was in a lot of pain and I was wheeling her around and spent time talking to her. I then prayed for her and she was really touched, and she said said, “You’re such an angel and that prayer was so awesome”. She then asked if she could tip me — and I said, “No! I’m doing this because I love you!” Then later on she shook my hand and said, “You’re my little angel” — people are very touched by the love we show them.

By Anna Pinzon, Family International Volunteer:
After fleeing New Orleans we could not believe the destruction we saw on the news. God bless our dear friends in Houston for taking in our homes from New Orleans. I have wept, cryed and prayed for miracles of God for the people there. I feel like my heart has been poured out to these needy folks. Today, I can stand on the Bible verse, ” He that goes forth weeping bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again rejoicing bringing his sheaves with him!” That verse seems to have come alive to me.
It was such a joy to me to spend the whole day personally praying with people who were so hungry for the gospel and leading them to salvation. I especially loved praying with the children, as their eyes were so big and eager to learn all about their new Best Friend who lives in their heart now. I told them if they ever had a problem they could talk to Jesus, and he would help them. Many people were moved to tears during the songs, “Peace in the midst of the storm” and “You are God’s child!”

One million and a half people are homeless from hurricane Katrina, so if you’re looking for people to help & minister to, you dont have to look far if you live in the Southeastern United States. You can go to any hotel in Texas, Louisiana, and all the way to Florida and find them packed with Evacuees, not to mention shelters.

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From Peter:

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Deaf Woman Reunited

We had about 20 volunteers from The Family International on Day Four. About 10 of them were in the George R. Brown Convention Center which is on the other side of the Astrodome area. Later in the day John B and his team came in and did a clown show there. Most of them spent most of their day going around talking to people and encouraging them. Tim was working with Carolyn who was trying to set up some kind of missing persons system — it exists, but it exists in pieces all over the place — and they’re trying to pull it together. So Tim was working in the Convention Center, Carolyn was working in the Astrodome Center and they will hopefully be able to pull something together so they will have a complete listing of everyone who’s registered, so if somebody comes and says they’ve lost my son or my daughter, they’ll be able to check if they are in the area. That will be very good and seems to be going very well.

Topaz and I went in really early to the Astrodome area because we’re trying to set up something for the children so we can have an area that we can use with tables for activities, have magazines, etc. But we spent most of our day in the medical area. They are always looking for someone with a special skill and they asked if anyone knew sign language. Topaz is able to do some sign language so she offered her services and went in. The lady was about 40, she has five children — she’s separated from all of them, and one of them she’s lost completely — a 16-year-old.

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From Shad:

Listen to the Podcast:
Comfort for Those Who Mourn

We’ve been able to sit and talk with many people who have lost virtually everything and they all have a story to tell. Several people told us that the first buses that arrived at the Astrodome were not FEMA buses but school buses that had been commandeered by individuals and picked up whoever they could on their way out of New Orleans. One elderly man had been in a house where the water rose up to cover most the second floor, until his brother-in-law found him and pulled him out and took him by boat to an elevated highway. Several people are walking around the Astrodome with signs with the names of loved ones they are looking for — not knowing if they’ve survived or not. Most have nothing to do during the day and are anxious for a listening ear and someone to talk to. We prayed with people who were in tears and have been able to give comforting messages to hundreds.

• Katrina Relief Overview
• Katrina Relief - Jaz + Topaz
• Katrina Relief - Peter
• Katrina Relief - Clare

All files are in WMV format.

Peter - Day 4 - Houston

Peter - Day 3 - Houston

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From Peter:

The next day we returned to the Astrodome and we met another team of Family International volunteers and we all headed to the hospital area that seemed to be the most needy at that time. There was already an improvement in the appearance of people — they were beginning to get washed up, and they were getting some clothes. But overnight they were still bringing in people to the Astrodome and the sea of people had grown up from the floor through the tiered seats because there was no more room for cots. That day in the medical area it was Topaz, myself and 4 young people who were also there from The Family international — and three of them were working on registration and helping people move through the medical department and getting them to where they were supposed to go.

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From Peter:

My wife, Topaz, and I were the first volunteers from The Family International to have access to the evacuees at the Astrodome. We entered the Astrodome on the 4th floor and we looked down and all we could see was a sea of green cots with people on them — many, many people milling around. At that time there were about 12,000 people there and they were coming in as fast as the buses could unload them. So we went down to the floor and most of the people hadn’t showered or changed clothes since the hurricane had hit — so they were mostly in pretty bad way. The first thing we did was we helped the new arrivals by finding a spot for them, setting up cots, getting them blankets and whatever else we could do.

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