This week two groups came down to High Island. One from Indiana and the other from right here in Texas, the groups added up to almost 40 participants. They had a great week doing all types of ministry. Building shade for people living in trailers on the beach, prayer walking, bringing living water to the line at the ferry, beach clean-up, roofing, painting etc.
But I think Thursday was really memorable for most people. Thursday both teams did ministry together. Everybodywent to Linda's house, a woman living right near the beach. She had been through the devestation of 4 hurricanes. She needed a lot of work done to her yard and house, but most of all she needed encouragement and hope. The teams were able to mow, cut down, clean, build, decorate, and organize her yard. But most importantly talk with Linda, pray with her, and show her how much Jesus loves her. She had been hurt by so many people in the past when it came to hurricane relief. People would say they would help her but then run off with her money, so she was timid to let us help. But once the students explained to her why they wanted to serve her, and that she didn't have to do anything in return it really touched her. She was blown away by the kindness. She thought all beauty had been lost in the storm, but thankfully they were able to restore some of that for her. One boy from Indiana, Justin, bought her some birdhouses and painted them to hang in the trees, they also were able to plant her some flowers and build her a new deck and front steps.
Week one in High Island the teams did a construction project at the local Baptist church.The church had a lot of water damage from the hurricane, especially on the roof and ceiling. They gutted the sanctuary and cleaned it up so it could be remodeled.
Craig Adderly is an intern for AIM this summer and leads worship. During the first week in High Island the teams did worship on the beach, right in the midst of destruction from the hurricane. Here is Craig singing an Umbrella remix (cover)-
This morning Brookside
kids from Omaha, NE went to the nursing home in Winnie. We played bingo
and talked to the people there. Later in the afternoon we went to the
hospital where we helped set up a garage sale benefit for a 17 year old
girl with melanoma.It was really great because they had a ton of stuff
to sell, and we really felt like we were able to help. - Cassidy Wieda
This morning my
whole group got together and did ATL (Ask The Lord). As we sat in
silence praying to God for a vision, God showed Tyler Sellinger a black Dodge Ram
at the beach. A few of us got into our van and drove around Winnie to
see if we could find any of the pictures from the ATL. As we neared the
beach, we spotted Tyler's car, as well as its drivers and passengers
who were out fishing. A few girls and I went down and talked to the
woman and asked if there was anything we could pray for her about. She
told us her brother Michael was over in Afghanistan fighting in the US
Army. We surrounded her and prayed for Michael and the rest of the
family. She seemed really grateful as she left to go tell her husband.
We were all really excited ourselves about what God had just done. -
Hailey Holmes
During ATL I felt like I was supposed to go to the nursing home. While I was there I played Bingo with some of the residents, and I met a really sweet lady who was very soft spoken, but I was able to talk to her about her faith. I'm really glad I went.
This week has started off with a BANG!!! Both churches, Jacksonville Word of Faith and The Holy Apostles have joined the AIM staff in High Island, Texas with great excitement for this week. There is a great balance of talents and abilities between the two groups and they have come together both with the intent to serve Christ and the victims of Hurricane Ike.
Monday began with both groups heading out to their work sites. Jacksonville is enthusiastically gutting a house that was severely damaged by Hurricane Ike. While pulling out insulation the boys made a discovery that shocked them. They pulled out the insulation and hundreds of Gecko eggs poured out from the wall. They were shocked by the discovery, which resulted in a halt of work and a mad chase of the freed Geckos around the room.
The Church of the Holy Apostles is working to clean up a piece of land from tree limbs and debris. There is an ongoing battle in maintaining a functioning chainsaw. The fathers and boys have had a good few moments of staring at broken equipment and grunting about possible solutions.
Please continue to pray for these students and their leaders. Specifically for continued strength and motivation for the kids as they endure hot days while working. Farewall.
Ike wasn't Katrina, Galveston isn't New Orleans, and the
Bolivar Peninsula isn't the Mississippi gulf coast. Perhaps Ike wasn't the same magnitude of
storm; it certainly didn't leave Galveston flooded for three weeks or longer as
in post Katrina New Orleans. One thing,
however, is exactly the same: losing everything in a hurricane. Whether it is Katrina or Ike, Louisiana or
Texas, there are always plenty of hurting people left in the wake of any
hurricane.
I heard recently from our partner Jerry Davis that 75% of Galveston is
uninhabitable. That statistic is
surprising because it doesn't look like the damage is that bad. Houses are standing and the city seems to
have been very prompt with debris removal. Looks, as the cliché goes, can be deceiving.
What is not seen is the inside of many of the
homes below the Galveston seawall where the water came up at least three feet. Perhaps that doesn't sound like much water,
but it is enough to soak nearly everything of value below the kitchen
counter. People are returning to find
that just a shell of their home will be usable as everything four feet and
down must be removed to the studs. That's Galveston.
Conditions on the Bolivar peninsula go
from bad to worse. In the town of Port
Bolivar, the sea gutted some buildings such as the volunteer fire department,
and deposited mud and grass in others. It stinks, literally; the smell of the mud, the mold, and the rubbish
can be very strong.
Last week, I met a
young couple who was only able to salvage a few things from their home. Due to the mud, most things were a total loss
and the fate of the home itself is in question. Around the corner, I toured the wife's grandparent's house. What was an immaculate house before the storm
is now filled with grass and mud, the front door destroyed by a sea carried
piling. A lifetime worth of work and
memories is gone.
Further up the Bolivar peninsula the destruction
continues. Buildings are destroyed and
cars are flipped over or buried in the sand. In some places nothing is left. The town of Gilchrist has been virtually wiped from the face of the
earth. People are left with the
distressing thought of what would be
better - to have everything completely gone or to have something left but find it
covered in mud and mold.
People are overwhelmed and hurting. They do not know where to begin this process
and will need much emotional, physical, and spiritual support. Please do not equate a lack of media coverage
with a lack of need.
As a nonprofit, AIM depends
upon the generosity of people like you.
And yet, part of that vision isn't
simply to throw money at problems, but to expose Christians to situations that
will break their hearts and create a holy unrest in them to see the kingdom of
God come to earth.
So, we want to invite the
Body of Christ to unplug from their lives for a week and spend it being the hands
and feet of Jesus to those who are hurting in Galveston.
In a sense, we're asking
for much more than your money. We're asking for you.
The
Church made a huge difference after Katrina and it
can make a difference here.
Please
contact us and one of our staff people can talk to
you about the opportunities.
Hurricane Ike search tems to target five areas as hunt resumes for missing bodies
12:00 AM CDT on Friday, October 3, 2008
The Associated Press
GALVESTON - Search teams looking for as many as 50 people who remain
missing since Hurricane Ike have identified five "hot spots" where they
will focus their efforts, officials said.
PAT SULLIVAN/The Associated Press
Hurricane Ike blew
debris from Bolivar Peninsula to areas including Trinity Bay, near
Anahuac, Texas, where the storm destroyed a fishing camp. Dozens of
people are still missing more than two weeks after Ike struck.
Mounds of debris scattered across Bolivar Peninsula likely conceal the remains of those still missing, authorities said.
The search for bodies also is expected to move offshore to uninhabited
Goat Island, where one storm victim's body was found and where large,
remote piles of debris have collected.
The renewed efforts to
find bodies has come too late for some, including Dallas-area
contractor Raul "Roy" Arrambide, whose mother, sister and nephew
disappeared while evacuating from a beach house in Port Bolivar. The
two vehicles they left in have been found, with no sign of bodies.
"I really don't have any confidence with the way this is being done," Mr. Arrambide said.
Meanwhile,
the Harris County medical examiner's office reported the death of a man
killed when struck by a limb while cutting trees Sept. 27. That brings
the storm's toll in Texas to at least 33.
Also, the state
attorney general's office said it was suing a hotel in Nacogdoches and
one near Katy for raising their rates during hurricane evacuations.
