Before the storm made landfall in the wee hours of Aug. 29 near Buras, LBC disaster relief leaders made arrangements for what Jones called “the granddaddy of hurricanes.” A week later, 16 units from Louisiana had been activated to minister in the state. By the end of the 2005, four kitchen units, 10 chainsaw and one shower unit had responded to the largest disaster relief effort in Baptist history.
LAPLACE – Cal Jones never will forget the excitement on the faces of Louisiana Baptist Convention disaster relief volunteers in LaPlace after a physically- and emotionally-draining 12-hour day of feeding thousands of people.
One by one, workers reported leading Hurricane Katrina victims to a relationship with Jesus. Though the number varied, one female worker led 15 people to accept Christ that day.
However, the scene was not just limited to LaPlace. Site after site in Louisiana, disaster relief volunteers shared stories of leading Katrina victims to a personal relationship with Christ.
“Seeing others come to Christ is the main reason Southern Baptists started disaster relief,” Jones, who served as interim LBC disaster relief director earlier this year, said. “We wanted to show the victims of the storm that we cared and the love of Jesus was there. Our workers were feeding people, removing debris and rebuilding homes during the months after Katrina, but they also were making sure they didn’t miss a chance to share Christ.”
Called the largest relief effort in Louisiana Baptist disaster relief’s history, thousands of Louisiana Baptists came together to help their fellow South Louisiana neighbors in a time of need.
Before the storm made landfall in the wee hours of Aug. 29 near Buras, LBC disaster relief leaders made arrangements for what Jones called “the granddaddy of hurricanes.” A week later, 16 units from Louisiana had been activated to minister in the state. By the end of the 2005, four kitchen units, 10 chainsaw and one shower unit had responded to the largest disaster relief effort in Baptist history.
Both sleep and electricity were a rarity in the months following Katrina. Many businesses and homes did not have power restored until mid-October.
“Our crews operated on four to five hours of sleep a night in many cases,” recalled Jones, worked nearly 60 consecutive days at the sites in the New Orleans-area. “But that’s normal for a disaster relief unit. Most people worked a week and then returned home to rest.
“As the months passed, it was harder to find people to come out work,” he continued. “A normal disaster relief operation lasts only a month. This time, the operation has lasted well into this year. The things that got our state volunteers through the ordeal was prayer, support from others and people from all over the nation coming in to help volunteer.”
Southern Baptist disaster relief crews at First Baptist Church of Kenner served 3.8 million meals, more than the previous record of 2.5 million during Hurricane Andrew in 1992 served by the entire Southern Baptist relief teams combined. By the end of 2005, Southern Baptist crews in South Louisiana had served a record 13 million meals.
“If Southern Baptists had waited until Katrina/Rita hit to decide how to help, it would have been too late,” said David E. Hankins, LBC executive director. “The thoughtful, strategic, prayerful planning and training for decades by denominational staffers and an army of volunteers has created a world-class disaster ministry.
“Without the SBC’s Cooperative Program, this kind of expansive, expedient ministry would not have happened,” the executive director continued. “I’ve never been prouder of our denominational family than I have been during the post-hurricane recovery.”
Hours after the storm devastated South Louisiana, the state missions staff created a Katrina Relief command center on the third floor of the Baptist Building in Alexandria. Hundreds of phone calls and e-mails from as far away as Washington and Illinois soon poured into the center office, which was primarily staffed by LBC support personnel and other volunteers.
Command center volunteers answered such questions as where to send monetary donations, how to volunteer for a disaster relief crew, and the status of their church. The center ceased operations on Nov. 30, 2005, when it was no longer needed.
“The combined effort from nearly every staff person was unprecedented,” Jones said. “Though they were knew at this, everyone did a great job.”