As the Courier went to press, 49 South Carolina Baptist Disaster Relief volunteers had already embarked for New Jersey as part of the first wave of Southern Baptist-led response to widespread devastation from Hurricane Sandy.
South Carolina Baptist Disaster Relief workers are joining other state Baptist convention volunteers in New Jersey to assist residents in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy.Cliff Satterwhite, director of disaster relief for the South Carolina Baptist Convention, said six teams departed Oct. 31 and were headed to the town of Hammonton in central-southern New Jersey, about 20 miles inland from Atlantic City.
The South Carolina volunteers were to be joined by a team of 75 volunteers from the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina and 32 from the Georgia Baptist Convention.
Satterwhite said the South Carolina teams will stay about a week, but will be replaced by fresh teams on a rotating basis for possibly the next two months or longer as flood waters recede and “mud-out” teams are needed.
The initial wave of Palmetto State volunteers includes a mass-care feeding unit from Charleston Association, a chainsaw/recovery team from Cross Central Church in Lexington Association, a command unit from Arrowwood Baptist Church in Chesnee, a shower and laundry unit from Shady Grove Baptist Church in Belton, an assessment team from Lakelands Association and a communications team from Saluda Association.
A chaplain is embedded with each team to assist with crisis intervention, Satterwhite said.
Twenty teams from across the state are already “on the board,” Satterwhite said, and stand ready to deploy whenever the call comes from the North American Mission Board, which coordinates the efforts of disaster relief teams from the SBC’s 42 state Baptist conventions.
Satterwhite, who assisted with relief efforts in the Northeast last year in the aftermath of Hurricane Irene, said the concept of church is “irrelevant” for many of the people who live there.
“But when disaster relief volunteers provide a plate of hot food or take a tree off of someone’s house, we are the church, and hopefully the church then becomes relevant for them,” Satterwhite said.
“There are a lot of people hurting,” he said. “That’s why we’re there: to be the hands, feet, hugs and smiles of Jesus.”
Kenny Pritchett was among 16 members of Cross Central Church in Lexington en route to use their chainsaws to clear the damage that superstorm Sandy left in New Jersey, but his focus wasn’t only on the physical labor.
“It’s just about being able to hug them and pray with them and share Jesus with them. You get a lot of opportunities to do that, more than people think,” said Pritchett, a 48-year-old building contractor. “We have a lot of opportunities to share Christ, and we try to take every single one of them.”
While Pritchett had participated in rebuilding projects, he was excited about his first disaster relief trip.
“It’s really not about the work, although we all enjoy the work. It’s really just helping folks. They have a tremendous need,” he told Baptist Press. Part of their ministry, he said, is to “listen to their story and just share Jesus with them.”
“You can point them to a local church. Get them a meal. Get them some clothing. Get them a shower.” – With reporting from Baptist Press.