By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer VINTON – The news her Vinton home flooded for the second time in 18 months was disheartening for Sarah Going. But just when her will to continue was about to break, God sent Going not just one, but two church teams Sept. 9 to gut out her home which was took in water in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey. By the time teams from New Hope Baptist Church in Dequincy and Twin Bridges Baptist Church in Alexandria had finished the job later that day, Going and her husband, Charles, were left encouraged for the difficult path that lies ahead. "When my husband and I pulled up to our home, there were vehicles parked all around the street," a teary-eyed Going, the pianist for New Hope Baptist Church, told the Baptist Message. "A lady from Twin Bridges told me her name, held my hand and encouraged me by reminding me what I still had, even though things could have been so much worse," Going continued. "She said my family is still alive and I still have a lot of what I owned since my church showed up before the floods to help move everything out. She was reminding me of my blessings I still had and that she was available to talk anytime I needed." STRENGTH IN NUMBERS The effort to gut … [Read more...]

By Message Staff Two training sessions are scheduled for Louisiana Baptists wanting to serve on disaster relief teams for responses to Hurricanes Harvey and Irma. Westside Baptist Church in Natchitoches will host a training session 5:30 p.m. Monday, Sept. 18. After a general session that includes watching three videos, individuals will break into small groups for training in one of three areas – feeding, mud-out or shower and laundry. The training begins at 5:30 p.m. and ends at 8 p.m. Leaders for the training include Jack Ingram, a member of Westside Baptist Church, David Cheatwood, director of ministries for Rolling Hills Ministry in Ruston, and Ron Thompson, director of missions for District 8 Baptist Convention. The following week, Summer Grove Baptist Church in Shreveport will hold a training session for individuals wanting to serve on feeding and mud-out teams. Scheduled for 5:30-8:45 p.m. Sept. 28, the sessions will be led by Gibbie McMillan, state director for Louisiana Baptists Disaster Relief, and Marvin Leleux, pastor of Springhill Baptist Church in Ringgold. First-time attendees will pay $28, which includes a background check, training materials, ID badge, hat and shirt. Those already certified but … [Read more...]

By Cole Avery, Office of U.S. Rep. Ralph Abraham WASHINGTON – Three airports across Louisiana’s 5th Congressional District will receive about $19.8 million in grant funding awarded by the Federal Aviation Administration, U.S. Rep. Ralph Abraham (R-Alto) announced Tuesday, Sept. 12. The England Economic and Industrial Development District in Alexandria stands to receive the bulk of the funding, banking $17,867,492 from four grants, though airports in Monroe and Vidalia will also receive some money from grants. The money comes as part of the airport’s involvement in the Airport Improvement Program’s Military Airport Program, a designation Abraham helped the airport achieve so that it could help facilitate missions associated with the Joint Readiness Training Center at Fort Polk. “Alexandria and its airport provide important services that directly contribute to the mission of the Fort Polk Joint Readiness Training Center,” said Abraham, a member of Alto Baptist Church. “Showing continued investments in public infrastructure that support Alexandria and Fort Polk will show the military our community’s commitment to the success of Fort Polk, which will help make sure we continue to have a thriving base in the region,” said … [Read more...]