Disaster Relief/Recovery
Update July 14, 2011
Melvin Allen (Harvest Youth Club Director) writes: I pray that all had a safe and fun fourth of July break. I want to say a big "Thank You" to each of you for your support in so many ways since the April 27th storm. The playground has been ordered and arrives mid July. Here's what's needed for this project:"
50 hardworking people for each of the 3 days
Commitments from you if and how many from your team can attend and on what day(s) and times
Tools for the work days, post hole diggers, shovels, drills, socket sets, measuring tape, hammers
Tractor or bobcat with auger (12 to 16 inch). This would help greatly
125, 80lb concrete bags (3 pallets) - if you have a Home Depot or Lowe's contact please let me know
4 ft. carpenter levels
Sledge hammers
Asbury is a sponsor of the playground and we would like to be involved in the re-build, so hear are the details:
WHEN: August 1-3, 2011 (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday) from 6AM to 2PM
WHERE: Harvest Youth Club; 230 Lockhart Road, Harvest, AL.
WHAT: Construct a playground for the HYC (replacing the one destroyed in the 4/27 tornado). A leader from the manufacturer of the playground will be on-site to direct the build. This work will include digging holes and pouring concrete in hot weather.
WHO: Anyone who can take orders and who can do hard work in the heat and who has a servant's heart
HOW: Contact
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
.
Emergency Relief Team for Asbury Families
15-20 Volunteers Needed THIS Friday and Saturday. This past Sunday night Herschel and Marge Jordan's house was hit by lightning. The Jordan's are in need of sifting through the ashes to collect any personal items that are still salvageable and putting their lives back together. There are a lot of events going on this weekend but please let us know if you can help any time Friday or Saturday. The help may include sifting, cleaning things, washing things, talking, etc. Also, if you have plastic containers to hold things for long term storage, please bring them. Questions, contact Cliff Lanham 256-325-3775 or John Serrano 256-337-1944. Please meet at the Jordan's Home, 11374 Cardinal Dr, Madison AL 35756, Friday, July 15: 9:30am and Saturday, July 16: 8:30am.
Update June 24, 2011
The Disaster Recovery Team is hard at work repairing and rebuilding. We are working in conjunction with the Harvest Youth Center (Melvin Allen) and other area churches. Based on our money and help, the HYC air conditioner has been repaired, the HYC bus is being reworked, and work on Melvin’s house has begun. Our repair teams have been working virtually every weekend on cutting wood and splitting logs. This week we were given three new addresses by Melvin that need repair. Susan Taylor has been leading prayer walks in the area and she has been managing our task to provide "Advocate Families". Habitat for Humanity has selected Ms. Beasley for the first of the houses funded by Asbury. This will be a 13 week project, working on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturdays. She is required to do 50 hours of sweat-equity prep-work on the site and she has begun that. Habitat for Humanity is starting the survey and the process of possessing the land and we are preparing to do some site prep (Bob-Cat & handwork) that must be done to get the ground ready for a foundation. Actual work on the house will start in mid-July. We are assembling teams to do the carpentry and other tasks based on the data base that Missions is completing. There are about 20-25 Asbury people involved in this effort so far, but in July we will have the opportunity for more volunteer involvement. After this house is underway, we will begin plans for the next house.
Update May 31, 2011
Your church has been hard at work responding, repairing and recovering from the April tornadoes. Teams have been cleaning debris, sawing trees, and helping shocked victims. Asbury financed the building of two Habitat houses in "Harvest Meadows", and arranged for repairs to the Harvest Youth Club building where displaced families are living. Asbury's "Family Advocate" teams are interacting with counterpart families in Harvest Meadows. We are coordinationg with FEMA, state, county, and other church coalitions to do the "right work". Asbury plans to build small homes for deserving families in the Harvest Meadows area over the remainder of 2011. We will need your help increasingly as house building gets underway. Construction and repairs of damaged homes may not commence until mid June. We really appreciate the response for volunteers. Team formation and possible work will be forthcoming in early June.
Updated May 25
We just got notification that cases of water are no longer needed on the list below.
Updated May 24
DIRT has been organized!
You are probably wondering, how do you organize dirt? At Asbury, DIRT stands for Disaster Integrated Recovery Team. This is a group of people formed to provide a focus for Asbury to assist the tornado victim's in the Harvest area. Emphasis will be placed on the Harvest Youth Center area, one of Asbury's many partners. This team is headed by Byron Reed, Clark Owen, Charlie Brown, Cliff Lanham and Susan Taylor. They are making plans to support the "Harvest Meadows" area. A data skills base for future repair and construction is also under development. Recovery team needs for volunteers to help in repair and new construction will be forth coming.
Two Sundays, Asbury has collected data from volunteers. If you have not filled out the form that was in the bulletin this past Sunday and May 8th, please click here to fill one out.
Updated May 17
Workers needed:
Date:Saturday, May 21st
Time: Meeting 8:00, Leaving 8:30, Return approximately 2pm
Gathering Location: Asbury outside of Fellowship Hall
Job Site: Good Shepherd UMC (base camp), site about 2 miles away on Chipmunk Way
Tasks: Separating, sorting and burning debris
Food/Water: Bring water, lunch will be provided
Clothing: Boots, gloves, masks, pants, long sleeve shirts
Equipment: Rakes, wire cutters, big sheet metal cutters, crowbar, chainsaw (if experienced)
Updated May 16
PRAY AND GO EVERY WEEK!
On Mondays from 4pm-6pm in the Sanctuary, we will spend time in prayer to seek God’s direction for us to minister to those in need in our community. Contact
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
for more information. Tuesdays from 4pm-6pm Five Points, we will meet at Five Points then GO and serve in the community where God leads us! Contact
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
or
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
for details.
As part of our tornado disaster relief efforts, we will be conducting prayer walks in the Lockhart Road, Harvest community. We believe that prayer needs to precede everything we do, including the relief and restoration activities associated with this disaster and in all mission-related activities at Asbury. As a volunteer in our Disaster Relief efforts, we are hoping that you will consider participating on a prayer walk team.
The purpose of this activity is to seek God's plans for restoration of the Lockhart Road, Harvest community through prayer walking the area. Prayer walking team members may also have the opportunity to pray with disaster survivors and their families. If you can support one or more prayer walks it would be greatly appreciated. To see more details and sign-up please visit the following links:
Prayer Walk Driver
Prayer Walk Leader
Prayer Walk Team Member
Updated May 12
FEMA Form Brigade needed. If you are interested in helping folks go through many forms related to insurance and disaster relief, please contact
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
UDPATE FROM JOHN BAILEY (PDF of Entire Letter)
So, here is where we are. This week, a team will be sorting, organizing and entering in a database all the information we gathered about the gifts, abilities and availability of Asbury people from the bulletin yesterday. Another team will be going out and working with Good Shepherd and UMCOR in assessing the needs of the uninsured in our community. It may take us a week or more to get both of these pieces in place. I hope to establish a deployment team in the next week. This deployment team will consist of people who will evaluate the data we get on needs of the uninsured from Good Shepherd, UMCOR or whatever group and try to match those needs with the Asbury people who desire to serve.
Here is what we need from you. First, we need you to pray. We are overwhelmed. Pray for Grace. Go to the Storehouse Mondays at 4-6PM and pray. Please pray for wisdom, direction and guidance. Pray James 1:5 for us. Secondly, please be patient. This will take time. Third, please be Grace-filled, flexible and refuse to take offense. You may not be plugged in exactly the way you want to be plugged in. You may say, “I want to do _____.” And you may be asked to do something else. The needs are what they are, we cannot change the need, but we can be flexible to meet the need. For example, if the rule is that no-one under 19 can serve on a specific work site, we need you to submit to that and not try to go around the rule. Thirdly, we need your help. We are in a time when we need committed leaders in for the long haul. We need people to say, “I will take the lead on this.” We have a lot of people who desire to follow someone and who need direction, but we need people to lead them. If you are one of those people, please call me. Finally, we need you to pray some more. The only way we will get through this is by God’s good Grace.
MAY 14 OUTREACH EVENT
We are hosting a special outreach event for survivors of the storm and disaster relief workers. This day will include special counseling sessions, medical Q&A sessions, massage therapy, youth and children’s activities with inflatables, a special meal and more. We have about 50 sponsor families ready to sponsor a family that has been affected by this storm. The sponsor family will provide transportation for the affected families to come to this event. We need your help to make this day very special for these families once they arrive at Asbury! This Sunday at church there will be a special bulletin with all the information on how to help.
May 4
We will continue to update our facebook page with details if teams are forming and heading out. Visit facebook.com/asburyumcmadison. If you are headed out with a group or an organized team, please feel free to post the information on our facebook page.
We are in contact with our sister churches, Crosswinds, Good Shepherd and Ford's Chapel. Crosswinds and Good Shepherd are right in the middle of all of the disaster relief and are coordinating efforts with us on needs. Ford's Chapel's building was devastated and will continue to let us know their needs. Please continue to pray for those who have lost family members and homes.
The biggest need right now is skilled volunteers with heavy machinery/large tree removal equipment. Contact
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
at 256-837-9696 x226 or 256-714-1110.
Here's what you can do to help:
- Volunteer at the Decatur UMCOR warehouse sorting clothing and receiving donated goods. Call 256-341-9661 or just go to 2342 Breckenridge Ave. Directions are below.
- Register online at Madison County VOAD website with your skill sets.
- Volunteers are needed to serve at a call center at the North Alabama Conference office in Birmingham. Volunteers will work 4 hour shifts. Skills needed: Good hearing, good handwriting, patience, and compassion. If you are interested in this, please contact Mary Simpson at (205) 226-7974 or
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
to be added to the call center volunteer schedule.
- Donate money for relief efforts by making your check out to Asbury and adding Disaster Relief in the memo. Click here to make a one-time donation through the month of May. Select "Make a Gift".
- Donations of ONLY the following items are needed. Please bring to the trailer that is on the west side of the Hope Building on Sunday or take directly to Decatur UMCOR warehouse at 2342 Breckenridge Ave during the week. Volunteers are needed to load trailer correctly. Contact John Bailey to volunteer 256-837-9696 x226 or 256-714-1110.
- Roofing tarps with 1x2 strips and 3" screw nails
- Cases of water
- Depends adult diapers
- Baby diapers
- Wipes
- Latex gloves
- Sunscreen
- Hand sanitizer
- Toothpaste
- Hand towels
- Washcloths
- Insect repellant
- NO clothing needed
Directions to UMCOR warehouse in Decatur
65 South to Exit 334
Go west on 67 for 4.2 Miles
South on HWY31 for about 1 Mile
Go left at the Ford dealership on Breckenridge (see Disaster Relief sign)
Blue warehouse on left Bldg F
|
