14 Nov 2013 ... Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) Relief Update, 14 November 2013. In late September
2009 Typhoon Ondoy hit the island of Luzon and flooded all ...
Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) Relief Update, 14 November 2013
In late September 2009 Typhoon Ondoy hit the island of Luzon and flooded all parts of the province of Rizal, where KIM is located. Four years after responding to the community’s needs, we are still connected with those victims through twice weekly feedings,local church development Pastoral and nursing care. Having witnessed so many kids’/families’ lives change over the years, because of that initial response, we began to understand the need for long term care and aid through our local church; partnerships began that will last a life time. Then, just before Christmas a couple years later, thousands of lives were lost on the island of Mindanao, in and around the city of Cagayan De Oro. We were able to respond through our Filipino friends. KIM board members Keith and Teri Rascher had been there earlier in life, so through connections with them, the CDO Bible church helped us respond. Today, we have a ministry in that city where we assist young boys and girls living on the streets of CDO. We are able to share the love of Jesus daily, through Bible studies, Figure 1: This is the type of airplane (C130) that will be transporting the goods and some team members to Tacloban. education, and feedings. Now, we answer the call to Tacloban and the hardest hit areas of Samar/Leyte. I think of General MacArthur in World War 2, completing his promise to return to the Philippines. That’s what we want to do too: we will return to actionto help the Filipino.They are a resilient people, who just need a hand to get out of the very life threatening and difficult situations they face. Our plan for Tacloban is long term care and ministries that reach out and help kids stay out of the sex trade; we intend to establish spiritual connections with brothers and sisters in Christ. To help us in our effort, we’ve enlisted Greg Rauen, the Director of Operations and Disaster Relief Coordinator of World Compassion Network. He will join four of us as we fly on a Philippine military plane today to deliver 300,000 meals, and begin the set up process.
Figure 2: Command Central at KIM. Left to right: Jon Dwyer, Norman Denler, Greg Rauen, Jeff Long, Colene Long, Dewey Bland, Josie Long, Pauline Lacanilao, Jeff Watson.
Greg's organization, which relies heavily on volunteers, specializes in international and domestic disaster relief. Recently, he spent 3 weeks in Moore, Oklahoma helping out with the victims of the tornado. He was also a part of relief efforts during Hurricane Sandy, the Japan earthquake and tsunami of 2010, and Hurricane Katrina. World Compassion Network's model aligns with KIM's: we both intend to do all our work in partnership with a local church interested in doing outreach in their community. Our hearts are also in the same place: we both see each tragedy as an opportunity to witness to people and preach the gospel.
Greg's role in Tacloban is disaster relief assessment -- to find out the needs of the city and gather information in order to determine what the next steps are and to raise awareness for funding. We are so blessed our initial response team has made it through on a convoy. We have two vans dedicated to the
cause,a scooter, generator, medical supplies, nurses, dentists, social workers and construction men dedicating their next several weeks to their people. We will then begin the rotation process of our teams and eventually allow our foreign volunteers to come along side our Pinoy brothers/sisters. The initial report in Tacloban is that there is an urgent need for fuel in order for trucks carrying relief goods to be able to mobilize. Please keep that in mind as you consider your fundraising and donation efforts. Please continue to pray that God will be honored in all that we do, people will be won to Christ, and kids will be kept out of harm’s way. It is such a joy to have so many friends from around the Philippines, the region, and world, who have responded with funds, supplies, and manpower. Praise God Bill and Debbie Shaw have once again answered the call and are preparing to arrive early next week to lead theway in this long term recovery.
Jesus take the wheel, the stern and the cockpit as we go, Jeff
