Category: Floods

One family that sought the assistance of Adventist Community Services in the aftermath of the devastating floods were David and Wendy Kratz, who lived in the town of Pocahontas. They came to our local Distribution Center and expressed gratitude for all the help we could provide. David told the DR team his story of how he and his wife were addicted to Meth about ten years ago, but have fully recovered and are now raising their3-year-old daughter. Through this crisis, they were able to get in contact with the Seventh-day Adventist by meeting a group of people who he stated “live out their religion.” His wife added that the support was very much appreciated and they never realized how great the Adventist people were until now. David invited the ACS volunteers who were assisting in the area to visit on Labor Day as they grilled in his backyard. His kindness was greatly appreciated!

Another resident of the local community rushed up to some of the team members with a couple of Bibles in her hand. She explained that they had enough for each person in the house and she knew many would be stopping by our location, and perhaps we’d be willing to allow them to take one with them. As she was leaving, she asked if she could post our location to her Facebook and twitter page so others affected by the floods could stop by and receive the needed items.

The Bayfills also truly appreciated the services ACS DR was providing. Gary and Shella Bayfill, whose home was flooded by the devastating floods, left the house within hours of being evacuated. This family had nowhere to go and only had what they could fit into their vehicle. Both were recently baptized into the Pocahontas SDA Church. Calls went out from the local ACS team to support this local community with tangible resources, which included the Bayfills. When the team heard the family didn’t have anywhere to stay, the doors of the church were opened and the church basement was turned into a shelter. Shella could not stop expressing how blessed she was by the local SDA Church. She stated “no one knows what we go through when you experience something like this.” She went on to say how extremely grateful she was that the church stepped up, and believes that Jesus is strengthening her through them.

The Greater Spokane Emergency Management is looking for volunteers to assist with distributing drinking water to residents in Airway Heights, Washington State from May 17 – 20. Leonard Westermeyer from Upper Columbia ACS will be heading up this distribution of water for Spokane County. Several wells have been contaminated by flood waters in the past few weeks. The floods carried foam used to fight fires from the military base into the water supply.

Where: 12825 W Sunset Hwy, Airway Heights, WA 99001 (Behind the Yoke’s Grocery Store)

When: Between the hours of
— 7:00 am -11:00 am
— 11:00 am – 3:00 pm
— 3:00 pm – 7:00 pm

Duration: 4-6 volunteers are needed per hour.

Report to: Leonard Westermeyer 509.941.6125 for instructions.

Scheduling contact: Cindy Thompson, Chair of COAD (Community Organizations Active in Disaster).
– Please call Cindy at 509-280-3057 in advance in order to ensure they have adequate volunteer coverage.
– Notify them if you have access to any other volunteer groups that could assist.

Check out a video here on ACS involvement in supplying clean water to the affected community.

The record-breaking 2017 Missouri Floods have impacted close to 1000 homes that either sustained major damage or were totally inundated. It was also reported that several small towns in South Central Missouri were destroyed, wiping out most of the region. The ACS DR Teams are supporting 18 Multi Agency Resource Centers (MARCs) with Ambassadors in two different locations. These Centers are led out by Nancy Tarasenko (St. Louis) and Kathy Beijen (Kansas City).

We have partnered with various other help agencies such as Gleaning for the World – a Virginia based organization and Convey of Hope, who have donated a tremendous amount of distribution supplies. Delivery trucks are provided by Penske Truck, another partner organization. Two Penske trucks loaded with immediate need supplies were distributed at the MARCs in Valley Park in St. Louis and Van Buren this past weekend. There are two other Penske trucks deployed in St. Louis, and two stationed in Lebanon.

One storage trailer was deployed to the Newton County Office of Emergency Management in Neosho where 350 Flood Buckets where delivered. The DR Team also purchased 500 Storage totes from Lowes in Joplin who graciously gave them a 30%+ discount which translated to over $5000.00 worth of Totes for $3400.00 without any tax. These were in answer to a request by the Emergency Manager Charla Gelker, for distribution to all of the flooded families in her county which was one of the hardest hit.

The State Emergency Management leaders are looking to set up a Warehouse and a Point of Distribution in West Plains. Jody is in contact with Derrick Lea, NAD ACS DR Director, to get an additional warehouse management team on standby, once a warehouse is obtained. The city of Sunnydale has been gracious enough for allowing us to use the empty Industry space to house the donations that have come and are on the way. Jody Dickhaut has personally received a lot of positive feedback on just how much our ACS (Yellow Shirts – as we’re called) mean to our peers and especially to the survivors of the floods.

The ACS DR Team continues its efforts to assist individuals experiencing crisis in the aftermath of the devastating flooding that occurred last week in Missouri. W. Derrick Lea (NAD ACS), along with Nancy and Bob (IA-MO ACS), prepared flood buckets and storage totes to be delivered in some of the affected areas in Neosho. In addition, Nancy and Bob drove a delivery truck that carried much-needed items to a distribution site in another area that was 6 hours away from Neosho.

ACS DR and ‘Gleaning of the World’ Teams also delivered water, flood buckets, and blankets to Sunnyvale on Friday morning. In addition to the Gleaners, we have partnered with Convoy of Hope and Penske Truck, which has loaned us the use of three large trucks for delivering goods, along with a trailer for temporary storage.

The State of Arkansas has been heavily impacted by the floods as well. The waters from Missouri are flowing into Arkansas and causing substantial flooding. Our Arkansas/Kansas Conference ACS DR Coordinator, Lavida Whitson, is in the process of setting up a Warehouse and Distribution Center for the communities in the affected areas of Arkansas.

The State of Missouri experienced a sudden downpour over the past weekend that has resulted in devastating floods across the region. The weather continues to affect not only those living in Missouri, but also in Kansas and Arkansas. Approximately 400 homes have been inundated; and several roads, property, and businesses also have been heavily destroyed by this massive natural disaster.

ACS DR Teams have set up a Multi-agency Resource Center in the affected areas that is providing flood buckets, clean water, and other needed items. They were able to partner with other agencies such as “Gleaning for the World” which provided roughly $35,000 worth of blankets with lids to preserve personal items, clean water for drinking, blankets for warmth, and stuffed animals for the children who have been displaced or traumatized by the upheaval of the flood waters.

The DR Teams toured the area of Joplin, MO, assessing the needs to ensure an effective response. They also distributed Storage Totes to members of the Neosho community whose homes were affected. They used a Penske Truck that had been donated to ACS DR Iowa Nebraska for the duration of the Recovery efforts.

The Distribution Center in Baton Rouge, Louisiana will be closing operations effective October 31, 2016. On behalf of the Southwest Region Conference President Calvin Watkins, Church Ministries Director Elder Durandel Ford, Sr., ADRA International, as well as the North American Division Adventist Community Services, we want to express our sincere gratitude to all those involved for their dedicated support and assistance in the Recovery efforts of the Louisiana floods.

It has been a pleasure not only to serve, but also collaborate with other individuals and organizations. A huge appreciation goes out to the following: Irene Williams; Lyn Hykeem; Area Seventh-day Adventist Churches; Sung Kwon; Elizabeth Tomenko; Lavida Whitson; W. Derrick Lea; Pr. William Little and the Nashville Area S.D.A. Churches; Nashville, Tenn. YMCA; Royliene Johnson; Pr. Michael Bailey, Sr.; Portia Perkins; Evelyn Edwards; FEMA; Salvation Army; VOAD; State of Louisiana; T. Ron Weegar; Mildred Dunn and her staff; Brenda Clark and staff; Vendetta Smith and staff; Theresa Paris and her staff; Elder Benjamin Francois and staff; Sherlette Burkhalter and staff; Lucinda Keller; Pr. Robert Davis; Pr. Alfred Booker; Westbank United S.D.A. Church Van & Pr. David Hinds and his staff; Pr. Eliot Brooks; Charlene Thompson and her staff; H. and H. Equipment of Baton Rouge; Clio Place Baptist Church & Pastor Sherman L. Hughes, Sr.; ARK- LA- TEX; American Red Cross; Mediannites; The Baptist Associations; Mormons; and many others.

We would also like to thank Mr. Freddy Lawrence for his patience and expertise in the area of record keeping for the Grant that supported the victims, volunteers, and management of services of the “Great Flood of Louisiana 2016”. Let us continue to keep all those who are still being affected by this tragedy and also others affected by such weather-related events.