At collection points throughout the state this week, South Carolina Baptists are expected to collect 9,000 Buckets of Hope for Haiti relief. The bucket collection is anticipated to nearly double the state’s first expectation of 5,000 buckets.
Earles Grove Baptist Church in Westminster has put together 71 Buckets of Hope for Haiti. Pictured with the buckets is pastor James E. Dyar.“We are seeing an overwhelming response to this project,” said Cliff Satterwhite, director, Disaster Relief Group, SCBC. “Associations are behind it, and churches of all size communities are behind it. We’re going to have a busy week as the buckets are collected.”
The appropriate buckets can be purchased at Walmart (UPC – 9826250640) or Ace Hardware (Ace# 17714). There is a specific packing list for food items on the Buckets of Hope Web page at www.namb.net, and the North American Mission Board (NAMB) cautions against substitutions or adding additional items. The average cost to assemble a bucket is $30. Each bucket is to include a $10 contribution, and Satterwhite asked that churches write one check for its buckets rather than placing $10 cash with each bucket. Checks can be made payable to South Carolina Baptist Convention DR ? Haiti – BOH.
Through Monday, March 15, South Carolina Disaster Relief will collect buckets at HRS Textiles, Darlington; 13803 Highway 76, Newberry; Riverland Hills Baptist Church, Irmo; Rock Hill First Baptist Church; Garnet Logistics, North Charleston; 525 May Royal Drive, Aiken; and North Conway Baptist Church. Additional collection details are available through the SCBC Web site (www.scbaptist.org).
In addition to the buckets, South Carolina Baptists contributed $225,000 to Haiti relief efforts in February. Satterwhite said 100 percent of all contributions to Haiti relief are distributed to Haiti relief.
Disaster Relief Team Response
Satterwhite said the fourth state Disaster Relief Medical Team has returned and mobilization efforts will “start over” as his organization prepares to send additional teams beginning March 21.
“The team we send on March 21 will be a combination medical and rebuild team,” Satterwhite said. “It will be going to a different location than the previous four teams. This next team will go to Cap-Haitien located about six hours north of Port-au-Prince and near the Dominican Republic border.” Cap-Haitien is the country’s fourth largest city.
“Cap-Haitien is where many of the refugees have gone, and we will be providing third world medicine there,” Satterwhite said. “Our teams will be providing follow-up to the care many refugees received immediately after the earthquake. Medical teams will be treating infections, pneumonia, and providing a lot of pediatric care.”
Satterwhite said South Carolina Disaster Relief will continuously send teams over the next several months. After Easter, a demolition team will go to Haiti assisting with the clearing away of destroyed houses and schools. Crisis Intervention specialists will minister to affected property owners as well.
There are other ways South Carolina churches can respond to the Haiti crisis:
Visit the North American Mission Board Web site at www.namb.net, and go to the Disaster Relief page. There, Baptists can find a link to a virtual prayer walk.
Visit the Baptist Global Response Web site at www.gobrg.org, where a bulletin insert can be downloaded from the Home Page.
Follow reports Disaster Relief updates through the SCBC Web site and include Haiti in regular church prayer ministry.
Donations may be mailed to South Carolina Baptist Convention, Disaster Relief Fund, 190 Stoneridge Drive, Columbia, SC 29210. Donations may be designated for Haiti and 100 percent of funds will be used in Haiti relief. – SCBC