Relief

Psalm 69:1 - Save me, O God, For the waters have threatened my life.

It started with one family with a trailer wanting to do whatever they could to help the people affected by Hurricane Katrina. It ended with 19 people, 6 cars, and 1 trailer full of supplies leaving the Light of Christ Church in Illinois on Saturday evening bound for Mississippi.

The trailer was set up outside the local Jewel supermarket on Saturday to collect donations. From reports from those that left, the response was overwhelming with people purchasing armloads of supplies to load into the truck. Even the competing chain across the street, when some members stopped in to get a few things that were sale priced, sent them back with cases and cases of water.

My wife, having worked extensively with Thrivent Financial for Lutherans, helped arrange for $1600 in funds specifically for this trip. The team bought chainsaws with this money as they were very much in need in the area around Jackson that they were headed. A local church there had been contacted and would be a distribution point for these supplies.

Their journey is filled with stories of compassion and love. They ran into many people travelling the same road of hope to help those in need including 60 Chicago Police in dozens of squad cars. They drove from open skies and clear roads to National Guard escorts and rationed gasoline. They worried about the diesel fuel the truck took when diesel became hard to find. They drove all night to arrive at the church in Jackson on Sunday. Disappointment loomed when the church was unprepared to accept their supplies and basically turned them away.

But through their travels, they had learned of a Methodist church in the area and took their equipment there. They were greeted at the door and when they told the man in charge that they were from Illinois and had 6 vehicles full of supplies, he turned and yelled at the top of his lungs: "We need to unload!". Almost immediately dozens upon dozens of workers streamed from the church. Before our team could even speak, the man was asking them what they needed: showers, rooms, food? These good people, who our team had driven miles and miles to help, were offering them help instead. God's love was indeed at work in this church. In minutes the supplies had been moved via assembly line from their vehicles to the waiting semi-trucks being loaded for trips further into the devestation.

I could not be more proud of our church for their response. The Evangelical Lutheran Church is responding as well with 100% of donations going to relief. I was glad to see the trip was made to Mississippi where many communities are looking for help since much of the aid effort was being focused elsewhere. The only thing that has made me more proud has been the response from my kids who have given their piggybanks full of quarters to school for donations and this weekend, packed up 6 huge Hefty bags full of stuffed animals and toys which I hope to get to the evacuees being brought to the Chicago area today.