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St. Louis, Missouri
Cohorts, Thank you for your words of encouragement!
Here is what is happening here: The survivors that we are hosting are those who were too weak to travel by bus so they were flown into St. Louis. They are tired, dehydrated, weak, and sick. All those with serious illness are being taken directly to the hospitals, and those in need of special care are being placed in a bank of 600 hotel rooms where doctors and nurses can visit them. The city has located 200 apartments in which to place families for six months free of charge. Ironically, many of these individuals will be better off here than they were in New Orleans before the Hurricane. I can see the grace of God even in this horrific tragedy, in the deliverance of thousands to greater life opportunities.
Our plan is to allow those assigned to us, time to rest and decompress. With the Lord's help we have as our goal to relocate all these families into semi-permanent housing within two weeks. We are taking the responsibility of furnishing apartments for our 100 survivors. We are providing each person with a new set of clothes (I don't think Jesus would have given them used, discarded clothing), a sleeping bag and pillow, 30 days worth of their prescription medications, and a large helping of love.
I must say that this is the most humbling experience of my ministry. My congregation mobilized in 24 hours to house these brothers and sisters (100 cots, pillows, sleeping bags, 300 towels, toiletries). Our air conditioners were not cooling well so a Heating and Air repairman came Sunday to get them cooling. The compassion of Christ is alive and well and working through the hands of believers in St. Louis. I thought you would be encouraged by this testimony of God's providicial care.
God Bless! Dave Hoke (Ministry in Complex Urban Settings)
Madison, Mississippi
Hi, this is John's wife, Janet. We finally have been able to get on-line. The Internet
has been unpredictable at best. Things here are fine. We lost power, phones and lots
of trees down around the city. Some are still without electricity. A bit overwhelming,
but everyday is better and as people get water, power and phones back on in Jackson/Madison
we are able to better assess the needs of those that have evacuated to our area and
beyond. Our church is serving as a shelter and it has been exciting to hear the stories
up close and personal -- definitely encouraging after hearing the stories from New
Orleans. It was probably best we didn't have television for five days. John took a
team to the Mississippi Coast today (not back yet) -- chain saw crew, doctors/nurses,
supply and others to help scout for the areas of need. People are still being evacuated
and John and his team were trying to find the ways to serve best. So many needs! The
school system is getting ready for an influx of new students. FEMA has asked for public
schools to put off starting back for a few days because of the gas situation. The
gas lines have been incredibly long (some even spending the night at gas stations
in hopes of a fuel truck arriving in the morning). That is the extreme, but nonetheless,
we are seeing a sense of panic.
Sunday was a day of celebration and also a day to put faces with those in crisis. As we sang "How Great is Our God," my heart was reminded that all will truly see how great is our God as this catastrophe will be used ultimately for His glory. Several people from the shelter came to the service and we were able to pray with them/for them and hear testimonies of how they are doing. One man got up to share that he prayed to receive Christ on Saturday night. They are thankful and our community has rallied to help so many who have come to this area. Please pray for the churches here. The mission field has come to us!
I wanted you to know what has been going on here and to put your mind at ease. Thank you for your concern and I will let John know that I have emailed you. Janet Butterfield (Ministering to Postmodern Generations, '04)
New Orleans, Louisiana
Dear friends and Family,
Many of you have been gracious in your support of us during the loss of house, possessions,
and vehicle in Hurricane Katrina. Many also have expressed a desire to see the pictures
and videos that I took while riding out the hurricane, along with the extensive flood
damage. A friend of mine in Spartanburg has gone to great lengths to establish a web-site
for us on his company’s web-site. To view the pictures and videos, you must first
register with the web-site, be validated, and then you will have access to view the
footage, post messages, and interact with us on multiple levels. I look forward to
hearing from all of you. We are currently residing in Spartanburg, SC with family
waiting to return to New Orleans to clean-up. Please follow the following instructions
to register and feel free to share this web-site with your friends.
First, got to www.WolverineCoatings.com
Click on “Forums” in the upper right hand corner to the page
Click on the post called “How to Register and get Set Up”
Once you are validated (practically immediately), go back to the home page and click
on “forums” and log in using your ID and password.
Scroll down and click on “Hurricane Disaster Relief.”
From there click on either “Melon Flood Pictures” or “Melon Flood Videos” to view
still photos or videos.
Feel free to post comments or questions. I will respond as able.
Grace and Peace, Michael P. Melon (The Preacher & The Message, '04)
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