Church’s hurricane help lifts victims, volunteers

An act of God. That is the definition given to natural disasters such as Hurricane Katrina. It is also the definition used to deny insurance coverage to those who suffer such tragedies. But when victims are stranded with little or no money to rebuild their homes and replace possessions, acts of godliness are what have helped them the most.

Last Saturday, 25 members of the Sandpoint Church of the Nazarene boarded a plane for Biloxi, Miss., where they spent the past week helping rebuild homes of people who still live in trailers nearly 15 months after the hurricane ripped apart their lives.

But as prepared as they thought they might have been for their work, it seems no one in the group was prepared for what they witnessed.

“Our group has been overwhelmed that even more than a year later, it looks like the devastation just happened,” said Senior Pastor Chad Wilks.

Kelly Hanson, a contractor traveling with the group, said he was surprised to see schools, stores and entire neighborhoods still boarded up.

“Mile after mile it is the same,” Wilks added. “The sheer geographic size is so overwhelming that it even weighs on you physically, and you wonder if this could even be real.”

But it is real, and for the thousands of families left homeless from the disaster, hope comes in the form of workers dressed in yellow shirts and hats. And they are grateful.

“People everywhere are spilling over with gratitude that people would come and help,” Associate Pastor Craig Wikoff said.

To qualify for help through the Nazarene Church, a family must complete an application through Nazarene Disaster Response. The families are then screened, interviewed and matched to teams depending on the talents and trades of a certain group as well as how much money the team is able to spend. This particular group, in addition to paying its own way, also contributed to the $6,000 in materials their church purchased to work on four homes, and maybe five if time allows.

But listening to story after story of suffering and knowing their presence makes a difference leaves left many grateful for the opportunity.

“We have discovered that everyone has a story and it helps them to share it,” Wilks said. “We hope we are offering some bit of hope to a group of people who have sustained more heartache in a year than most have in a lifetime.”

The first house on which the group concentrated its efforts was that of a man named Mr. Teeter. Although there was no water damage to his home, wind ripped off the roof shingles. His sister, who uses a wheelchair, moved in with him after her home was destroyed by the hurricane.

Teeter worked alongside the crew to repair his home while sharing stories of the effects of the disaster on his community.

As the workers moved on to the second home, they met a family not only dealing with the hurricane but also facing the challenges of a family member at war. The Altmans, who had water up to the second floor of their home, are living in a FEMA trailer with their three grandchildren, whose mother has been stationed in Iraq for a year. They recently learned she has been reassigned there for another year.

“Looking around their house, you see the toys of these three kids who are jammed into their FEMA trailer and have very little but the clothes on their back,” Wilks said. “I too have three kids, and it just breaks my heart to think of the thousands of kids who are in the same situation.”

The members of the Nazarene Church have partially rewired the Altmans’ house, installed a new hot water heater and interior doors, and hung drywall. In addition, the group made the decision Wednesday to buy the family kitchen cabinets, a sink, countertops and a range hood. Before they leave Biloxi on Sunday, they will have completed the kitchen.

“The family will be able to move in sooner than expected,” Wilks said.

Yet another story that moved the team into action was that of a blind couple. The Davis home was overtaken by five feet of water, destroying its contents.

Their roof was damaged after a neighbor, hoping to collect insurance money, set his own roof on fire. The flames spread and destroyed the couple’s roof.

The blind man told the group that without churches like theirs, the whole area would never have hope for recovery.

Although each story is different, one thing is the same: the reaction the group received when people see them in their yellow hats and shirts.

People with tears in their eyes express gratitude to all who care enough to come and help.

“Interestingly enough, we come to help and we are the ones who are moved,” Wilks said.

“I guess that’s just how it works in God’s economy. When you offer a blessing to someone else, you are the one who ends up getting blessed.”