Baptist Global Response

BGR Executive Director Jeff Palmer explains disaster relief efforts underway in the aftermath of a typhoon and two earthquakes in Asia Rim.

Traumatized residents of the Philippines and Indonesia face more difficulty as another strong earthquake rocked Sumatra and a new – even stronger – typhoon is bearing down on the Philippines.

Read more at http://www.baptistglobalresponse.com/new/details.php?id=87

On a recent trip to China’s Sichuan Province, Baptist Global Response staff visited “Hope Two,” a center that helps pregnant women who are survivors of the May 2008 Sichuan earthquake. Many women lost their one and only child in the earthquake and now are trying to have another child. In one resettlement camp, however, 75% of the pregnant mothers were miscarrying because of the high levels of post-traumatic stress they were experiencing.

A special room at Hope Two has been set aside for these mothers. It looks like a living room. Posters of babies decorate the walls. Obstetricians come to the center once a week to monitor the women, and hopeful mothers-to-be are benefiting from the “Bears and Books” provided by BGR partners – helping them mourn their loss and look to the future.

Praise God that the books and bears are providing comfort to these women! Please continue to pray about giving toward this project. A bear and a set of six books costs $11. The comfort and hope they are bringing to these young mothers-to-be is priceless! For information on how you can help, click here.

A new video from China explains how Southern Baptists and other believers are helping children traumatized by the 2008 Sichuan earthquake.

Thousands of teachers in Sichuan province are being trained in techniques of trauma counseling through a project in which Baptist Global Response is partnering with the Chinese government. Through BGR, you have an opportunity to provide crucial tools those teachers will use to help 150,000 traumatized children to verbalize their feelings, at a cost of just $11 per child.

The video will be useful to help you understand the important role these tools will play in helping children find their way to lives of meaning and purpose. They also will help Sunday school classes, small groups, and congregations realize the tremendous impact they can have on the lives of these precious children.

To watch the video yourself or screen it for a group, visit gobgr.org and click on the “Resources” tab at the top of the page.

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras — A powerful earthquake struck the Caribbean coast of Honduras May 28, killing six people, injuring 40 and damaging homes and buildings across the northern stretch of the country. A Southern Baptist relief response is not expected, however.

Tremors from the 7.1-magnitude quake also were felt in neighboring Belize, El Salvador and Guatemala, said David Brown, Baptist Global Response area director for the Americas.

“Fires were reported in and around San Pedro Sula and there is significant infrastructure damage in the earthquake area,” Brown said. “Traffic in and out of El Progreso is hampered because of damage to bridges.”

Damage on the resort islands off the coast, which were over the quake’s epicenter, was not as severe as expected, Brown added. The airport in San Pedro Sula is open.

Emergency services officials said the number of deaths and injuries could rise as reports come in from poor villages in the mountainous area along the coast, the Reuters news service reported.

Brown said he is receiving reports from the area through local pastors and Southern Baptist field partners. Once he has a more complete picture of the scope of the need, a decision will be made about whether an assessment team should be sent in.

“A Southern Baptist response is probably not planned, since most of the damage was to infrastructure and buildings,” Brown noted. “That could change, however, as we receive more reports. An assessment team, as of today, will probably not be needed.”

Brown asked for prayer on behalf of people who live in the disaster area.

“Although the death toll and reported damage do not appear to be massive, the impact on the lives of people in the quake zone still will be very serious,” Brown said. “Loved ones have been lost or injured. Homes have been damaged or destroyed. Livelihoods have been seriously disrupted.

“When a disaster like this strikes, people need to experience God’s love and comfort,” Brown added. “Pray that in the midst of this great difficulty, God’s people would demonstrate the love of Christ for people in need.”

Further reports on the situation in Honduras — and whether a Southern Baptist relief response is needed – will be posted on http://gobgr.org.

One year after a massive earthquake devastated China’s Sichuan province, Southern Baptist gifts are helping the region’s survivors find healing and new hope.

Read more here

Southern Baptist disaster relief specialists are monitoring the situation in L’Aquila, Italy, after an April 6 earthquake killed at least 207 people and left 100,000 homeless.

Baptist Global Response has categorized the response as a Level 2 emergency, meaning that any response will most likely occur through local Italian partners trained in specific disaster relief techniques.

“Italy has a long history of earthquakes and the government there has responded very well to the situation,” said Jim Brown, BGR’s U.S. director. “The situation is under control and they are not seeking additional help. We will, however, continue to monitor the situation and will mobilize Southern Baptist disaster relief teams if that becomes necessary.”

Abraham Shepherd, BGR’s area director for Europe, said he is in contact with field partners about response needs. They are investigating the need for an assessment team to visit L’Aquila.

The quake, which registered 6.3 on the Richter scale, struck at 3:32 a.m. at a point about 70 miles northeast of Rome, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. A total of 280 aftershocks have followed, one registering a magnitude of 4.7 that collapsed several damaged buildings.

Rescue workers have pulled 150 people alive from the rubble and 15 are reported as missing, according to news reports. An estimated 1,500 people are being treated for injuries. The quake flattened buildings in 26 communities. Rain was falling on the region as bottles of water and food boxes were handed out to survivors who were preparing to spend the night in tents or cars.

Lori Funderburk, BGR’s prayer coordinator, asked Christians to focus on five concerns:

– Pray that those who are still missing will be found.

– Ask God to comfort people who are injured.

– Pray that quake victims’ needs will be met quickly and effectively.

– Ask the Lord to provide shelter for those who lost their homes.

– Pray that people would experience God’s love in this crisis.

The 6.2-magnitude earthquake that struck Costa Rica Jan. 8 was widely reported to have caused widespread destruction, but in fact was a localized disaster that has been blown out of proportion by the media. While prayer for the survivors is needed, relief supplies and volunteers are not.

That word comes from David Brown, BGR’s area director for the Americas.

“The 6.2 earthquake caused serious damage to various structures in the tourism parks in the area, which is about 30 miles north of San Jose,” Brown writes from Costa Rica. “No one should minimize the trauma to families that have lost loved ones, homes, and livelihoods, but the disaster did not affect large numbers of people.”

The quake triggered landslides that trapped nearly 1,000 tourists; the 31 people listed as dead or missing are Costa Ricans, Brown reported. The biggest problem now is the need to replace about 3 kilometers of road that was destroyed in the quake.

“While we have been flooded with stateside inquiries concerning the need for volunteer assistance, relief supplies and volunteers are not needed,” Brown added. “The immediate emergency has been well managed by the Costa Rican Red Cross and the national civil defense agency. Food and other supplies have poured into San Jose from various agencies and nations. Warehouses are overflowing, and the government is beginning to sell some of the food items to avoid spoilage.

“Homes were destroyed, but that number is pretty low. I would guess from all communities about 500 homes were affected, ranging from minor damage to complete destruction,” Brown said. “I met with Steve Duvall, a field partner from Costa Rica, to discuss possible interventions, but they see no evidence of the value of providing assistance. As of Jan. 20, only 250 people remain in one governmental shelter. We will continue to monitor the situation.”

In the meantime, Brown encourages Christians to pray.

“Ask God to comfort those who have lost loved ones and possessions in this tragedy. Pray that he would give Costa Rican believers opportunities to demonstrate the love and compassion of Christ to their neighbors,” he said. “Pray that God would work through these circumstances to help people understand his love for them and to bring honor and glory to his name.”

Southern Baptists are assessing relief needs in the aftermath of a strong earthquake in southwestern Pakistan that killed at least 150 people in the pre-dawn hours of Oct. 29.

Thousands of homes were destroyed or buried by landslides that also have blocked roads, according to news reports out of the region. Pakistan’s government is using helicopters to ferry troops and medical teams into the quake zone.

Many survivors will be faced with near-freezing nighttime temperatures. Government officials reported they were distributing tents, blankets and food into the quake zone. A Southern Baptist assessment team will work to identify which needs they can help with and look for communities not being adequately reached by relief efforts.

“We are closely monitoring the situation and waiting to hear from our field partners on the ground,” said Jim Brown, director of the U.S. office for Baptist Global Response. “We ask all Southern Baptists to pray that God would preserve life and speed rescue efforts. Pray that God would work in this crisis to help people understand how much he loves them and wants them to experience lives filled with hope and purpose.”

The following testimony came to us from a Chinese believer who served as a volunteer in the aftermath of the Sichuan earthquake:

My heart can’t stop thinking and praying for the people I encountered in Sichuan province. This morning I received a text message on my cell phone that said: “Within the past year I have lost nine close family members, can you tell me how I can live on?” I didn’t recognize the number, but I knew it had to be one of the people that I had met in Sichuan.

I sent a reply text, and the woman related to me that her son had met me outside one of the towns where we were dispersing supplies to those devastated by the Wenchuan earthquake. I had given her son my business card, and she had gotten my phone number from it and decided that she could possibly reach out to me for help.

It was amazing to me how God opened the door for me to encourage this woman I had not even met. I told her I would like to help out any way I could and will continue to call and talk with her. She seemed very encouraged. But this is only one life that touched me. There were more.

Let me go back and start at the beginning. The last time I visited Sichuan province, I had joined a group of believers there. One of the leaders was a Mr. Lee. On May 12, only minutes before the Wenchuan earthquake hit, Mr. Lee had arrived in Chengdu, a city south of the earthquake zone. He was coming to work with a school support system for children in poor areas, but his focus quickly changed to disaster relief and recovery and he has been there ever since. Mr. Lee has now stationed an earthquake relief center for believers in his hotel.

I have had the privilege to work with Mr. Lee and his group. Believers have come from all parts of the country to help. Volunteers were stationed in villages within days after the quake, striving to meet the urgent needs of the victims. As the needs of those villages became less acute, the workers began traveling farther and farther out, looking for people who had not received any help. These workers are there for the long term.

The government is working feverishly to rescue, feed, house and rebuild, but it is so huge there are areas that are not being helped. Those are the areas Mr. Lee and his volunteers are looking for and ministering in.

I was able to go out with Mr. Lee’s team only one day, but it changed my life. The village we went to is close to a town where 80% of the houses totally collapsed in the 8.0 quake. Most of the villagers have not left their condemned homes, but instead made very simple huts from plastic tarps in their courtyards or in more open areas of the village. On the day I arrived, the two-man distribution team had already been there for more than two weeks. Living in the area has allowed them to know the most urgent needs of the people. As they relay to Mr. Lee the needs of the villages, supplies are bought and trucked in for distribution.

On this day, we were distributing rice, cooking oil, and other needed supplies. There we are, working in the middle of total devastation, nothing but piles of rubble around us where homes and businesses had been. The landscape is spotted with the color of tents and tarps that shelter the residents.

As we are working, an old woman approached us and began to share with us how much good these Christian volunteers had done for the community. It was difficult for me to understand all of what she was saying because of her accent, but I knew she was thanking us. She left us and I thought she had just gone home – or to what had been her home.

Actually, she did go home, but as we were leaving the village, we spotted her coming down the mountainside. We could see by the way she was walking that she was carrying something in the apron of her shirt.

As she got closer, we could see what it was: 10 large gardenia flowers. She did not say anything but only proceeded to put them into our hands, with tears in her eyes. I knew she had nothing left of her former life to share with us but these gardenias. They were the only thing she could find to express her gratitude.

Our hearts were touched and we were very grateful that God gave us this opportunity to touch lives in need. A gardenia – the fragrance lingers in my memory, but now it will always bring to mind the face and tears of this woman and her village, one place we had the privilege to serve.

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Contributions to the Southern Baptist World Hunger Fund and the Baptist Global Response Disaster Response Fund help Southern Baptists respond in crisis situations like the earthquake in Sichuan. For information on how to donate to those funds, visit our Giving page.