Haiti Updates
Haiti Update 2-18- 2010
Thanks to all those of you who joined in the Day of Prayer for Haiti last Sunday. The critical need in Haiti is still for prayer. 44 people were won to the Lord the first night of the three-day prayer weekend by the Haitian Baptists. Our Southern Baptist volunteers have reported 161 professions of faith to date and 7,896 patients seen by by our medical teams.
We need a doctor to accompany an Illinois medical team to Haiti right away. We have nurses and other personnel, but we need at least one doctor. If you know someone who can fill this slot, please let Jim Weickersheimer ( jimkipp@peoplepc.com; cell Phone: 217-419-1175) know right away..
We are making progress toward being able to place more Southern Baptist volunteer teams in Haiti. The airport at Port au Prince is scheduled to reopen today or Friday. This will greatly simplify travel to Haiti, but many logistical problems on the ground remain. Housing, food, transportation, and security are still serious concerns.
· Karl Ragan is working on the rotations of additional medical teams, incident command team members, inspector/chaplain teams, and water purification/well drilling teams. We expect that significant opportunities for more teams to be involved will be opening up in the coming weeks.
We are having a very good response to the "Buckets of Hope" emphasis throughout the state. In fact, the response is so good that we are making contingency plans for a second semi-trailer load.
Please pray for Jack, for the teams, and for the people of Haiti, especially during the next three weeks while our people are there.
I am still in need of 4-5 people for each day (Mar 23 &24)( 8:00am to 4:00pm) to load “Buckets of Hope” at the IBSA. E-mail me if you can help.
Southern Baptists -- getting things done, genuinely caring for people, offering hope.
Del Halleman
CCBA DR Coordinator
Central IL VOAD Vice-Chair
217/502-3982
Haiti Update 2-5-2010
The Mississippi medical team that is working in Port au Prince led 10 people to the Lord this morning. What a praise. Three men accepted Christ earlier this week.
If you are medical personnel who would like to participate, please contact Jack at once. (They must be Southern Baptists, but do not have to be DR trained.)
The collection points for "Buckets of Hope" have been worked out:
Northern Illinois | Buckets can be dropped off at Streator Baptist Camp from now until March 21, between the hours of 8 a.m. and 4 p.m.
Central Illinois | Buckets can be delivered to the Baptist Building in Springfield on March 23-24 (these two days only), between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m.
I am looking for four to 5 volunteers each day to help collect and load these buckets at IBSA, in Springfield on March 23 and 24. If you can help on one or both days e-mail Del Halleman. We could also use some pallets and a fork lift.
Southern Illinois | Williamson County Baptist Association will accept buckets March 22-25, between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m.
Check the IBSA web site (http://www.ibsa.org) frequently for updates.
You will also want to check the NAMB site (http://www.namb.net/bucketsofhope) for updates from time to time.
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3.Dr. John Sullivan of the Florida Baptist Convention has issued a Call for Prayer on February 14th. The Haitian Baptist churches will conduct memorial services countrywide that day. This is a good opportunity for us to join them in an expression of unity. Please urge your churches to participate.
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4.We are still enlisting rebuild teams for American Samoa for the months of June and July. Travel expenses for these teams are being paid by FEMA, so they will not need to pay their own way! If you can send a team, please let me know right away.
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5.We are also enlisting rebuild teams for Haiti for May and June. Teams for Haiti will need to pay all of their own expenses.
Haiti Update 01-28-10
The Haiti assessment team have returned to the U.S. They reported that Housing, Security and in-country transportation continue to be significant problems in Haiti.
The airport is still closed to commercial flights. Right now, all teams must go through Santo Domingo, DR. This adds at least $300 (round trip) plus motel charges, to the cost.
The assessment team outlined three categories of needs:
Urgent Needs: Medical, food, water, chaplains, Repair (Churches & Homes)
Intermediate Needs: Water (Purification or Wells?);
Long-term Needs: Rebuilding, Medical Clinics, food, water, chaplains.
NAMB will conduct another meeting February 11-12 to develop a more detailed long-range strategy.
Two Medical Teams from Mississippi will leave for Haiti on Sunday to work out of the Florida Mission House. Another Medical Team from Florida and one from South Carolina will leave for Haiti next Wednesday.
The Haitian Government is putting new volunteer credentialing requirements in place today. Teams need to take translators with them.
The initial response is still primarily a military and government response. As Southern Baptists, we need to plan for a long-term response. There are four things we can do right now:
Pray for those in Haiti who have been impacted by the earthquake, for the medical teams going to Haiti next week, and for our military personnel and all those who are working to relieve the suffering, both in Haiti and here in the states.
Give – Send gifts for Haiti Relief to:
Baptist Global Response
402 BNA Drive, Suite 411
Nashville, TN 37217
Toll Free: 866 974-5623
www.GoBGR.org
Designated for “Haiti Relief”
If you wish to help with IBSA Disaster Relief expenses related to the Haiti response, those gifts may be sent to:
IBSA Box 19247
Springfield, IL 62794-9247
Designated for “Haiti Response”
Plan – Prepare now by organizing a rebuild team and e-mail me to let me know:
a. Names, Passport Numbers and Dates of Birth of team members.
b. Dates when your team will be available. (For now, we in Illinois are looking at dates in May and June.)
Be alert to other ways you can help. For example, BGR is preparing a “Buckets for Haiti” similar to the “BGR Buckets” project for South Africa they coordinated last year. Details on this project should be available within a few days.
Jack Shelby
Disaster Relief Director
Illinois Baptist State Association
http://www.ibsa.org
217. 299.3412 (cell)
217.391.3137 (office)
217.391.5137 (fax)
jmshelby1@yahoo.com
Southern Baptists -- getting things done, genuinely caring for people, offering hope.
Del Halleman
CCBA DR Coordinator
Central IL VOAD Vice-Chair
217/502-3982
UPDATE 1-22-2010
Not much has changed. Safety and Security are still very precarious. Phone service is very unreliable.
The airport is still not fully open. Only cargo and military flights are taking place, hauling supplies and personnel.
The situation is extremely fluid; it changes by the minute.
We are still waiting for the recommendations that will come out of the Tuesday debrief of the Assessment Team. We will not be able to do any definite planning for a state response until Wednesday, at the earliest,
Pray for Myron Taylor who is en route to Miami with 20 tons of food for a Hope for the Children of Haiti.
Pray for the people of Haiti.
Pray for the relief workers in Haiti.
Pray for the Assessment Team and for Tuesday's meeting.
Pray that we will be ready when our turn comes.
Jack Shelby
Disaster Relief Director
Illinois Baptist State Association
http://www.ibsa.org
217. 299.3412 (cell)
217.391.3137 (office)
217.391.5137 (fax)
jmshelby1@yahoo.com
Southern Baptists -- getting things done, genuinely caring for people, offering hope.
Del Halleman
CCBA DR Coordinator
Central IL VOAD Vice-Chair
217/502-3982
Haiti Update 01-18-10
Update on our Southern Baptist Disaster Relief involvement in Haiti. Daily State Disaster Relief Directors conference calls continue, but there have been few new developments. The mounting problems with food, water, fuel, medical care and communications persist. Security is a big concern. Our NAMB DR assessment team is due to arrive in the Dominican Republic tonight to rendezvous with IMB personnel and go into Haiti tomorrow. Please keep this team in your prayers.
As you are aware, we are using one of our IBSA Disaster Relief semis to transport 20 tons of food to Miami for anotherChristian organization which has its own distribution system in place. I realize that there is no assurance that it will get beyond Miami any time in the near future, but they have a system in place to handle it. Pray for Myron Taylor as he leaves for Minnesota tomorrow to load up and drive to Miami.
(Although we are doing this to assist a sister Christian organization, please remember that shipping food, clothing, etc. generally is not feasible. Please actively discourage churches from organizing food drives etc. for Haiti,)
Three things you can do now:
1. PRAY for those in Haiti who have been impacted by the earthquake, for the NAMB/BGR/DR assessment team, and for our military personnel and all those who are working to relieve the suffering, both in Haiti and here in the states.
2. GIVE through BGR (www.gobgr.org ), NAMB (www.namb.net ) and the American Red Cross (http://www.redcross.org/ ) to assist with earthquake relief efforts.
3. PREPARE (spiritual preparation, passports, immunizations, travel funds) to go to Haiti to assist with rebuild efforts when the time comes.
We are enlisting rebuild teams to assist with the long-term rebuild effort in three or four weeks. If you or your team can be available to serve on one of these teams, please notify me, telling me what dates you can be available. Volunteers will have to pass a preliminary screening and a security check. They must also have passports and immunizations. DPT, Tetanus and Typhoid would be essential for everyone. Cholera would be necessary if there is a cholera outbreak. Hepatitis inoculations will be necessary for health care workers and those in contact with blood and bodily fluids. Malaria medications will be necessary if they are working in an area where Malaria is a threat. Costs of passports, immunizations and travel are personal expense.
Updates will follow.
Jack Shelby
Disaster Relief Director
Illinois Baptist State Association
http://www.ibsa.org
217. 299.3412 (cell)
217.391.3137 (office)
217.391.5137 (fax)
jmshelby1@yahoo.com
Southern Baptists -- getting things done, genuinely caring for people, offering hope.
Del Halleman
CCBA DR Coordinator
Central IL VOAD Vice-Chair
217/502-3982