A T T E N T I O N !! NOW! Please Come!!
Steppin Out Missions has just returned hours ago from Louisiana Flood area. Over 100,000 homes/families have lost everything!! A lifetime of family possessions and memories were destroyed as a result of the 3-4 ft. of muddy flood water. We drove through several neighborhoods where the only thing in sight were the massive Piles of household furnishings that had been saturated in water and now lay waiting for a land fill truck to come and retrieve. I could write paragraphs of what we saw and who we spoke to, but I won’t as you can visit our Facebook page (www.facebook.com/somissions/) for posts, photos and links for additional info, but I will tell you that we firmly believe this was an appointment from the Lord that we be here at this very time, meeting with this very church > Community Bible Church and their leadership! It was a mutual partnership from the very first handshake to the last group prayer before we parted. They had been praying for help and we are ready to answer that call!!
NOW – We NEED YOU! We need your help to be the hands and feet of Jesus Christ to our brothers & sisters in need. *First and Foremost – we ask that you Pray!! Pray for all those affected by this flood disaster, whether it’s the homeowner or those who now are going to help clean and counsel. Pray for SOM as we give direction on rebuilding. Pray for us as we receive team members and that our labor force would be a blessing and encouragement to those we serve.
We will need laborers who can “ready” a gutted home for occupation. That means dry-wall (hangers & finishers), basic electric/plumbing, trim carpenters, flooring, etc. Our stage of assistance will focus mainly on the rebuild phase of this disaster. Most homes have been mucked out, furniture removed, cleaned, Sheetrock & flooring removed and mold remediation has been done, although we may find some homes will need another treatment and some additional drying time. This is going to be a house by house process and may require a few tweaks along the way before any of the stages I just mentioned. There is also a Crisis Pregnancy Center whose main focus is abortion determent that was hit hard and needs all of what I just described as well. This is one of Pastor Steve’s main priorities to get back up and running as their clients have nowhere else to go and just this past week a call came in from a mother saying “I just found out I’m pregnant, I’ve lost everything to this flood and I don’t think I can keep this baby”.
As we met with the church leadership, they were strong in conveying there was no major need for supplies such as water, food, clothing, diapers, cleaning items, etc. The need is for volunteers and finances. The priorities of homes will be to assist their church members first, then their attendees, next their members families and finally their neighbors & outreach. Most every homeowner had no flood insurance because there hadn’t been a flood in nearly 100 yrs and their insurance agents advised them to eliminate this added expense, so thus the need for finances as the church sorts through the priority list and greatest need.
Our base camp will be located at the Community Bible Church http://www.516church.com/ in Baton Rouge. We will give additional team and packing info for those of you wanting to come upon contacting us either through email or a phone call.
We are looking to begin scheduling teams – Sept.11th thru Nov. We would like for you to plan your arrival either a Sat. night or Sunday afternoon giving time for set up and project prep. There is also the option of flying in to Baton Rouge or New Orleans and we will have someone from the church could come for a pick up.
Most of you reading this that have ever been on one of our disaster projects will already know what to expect and what is expected. There will be a minimal cost of $150.00 for each team member that will cover meals (15+), local fuel for job transportation, team supplies, etc. SOM is also asking for funds to help purchase some building supplies/materials as we help to take the burden off the homeowner and the church family who is attempting to assist nearly 40 homes.
Here is how to contact us via email or phone:
SOM office- shirley@somissions.com (330) 852-7855
John Corley – john@somissions.com (330) 407-0860
Joel Corley – joel@somissions.com (330) 407-0422.
Joe Linden – joe@somissions.com (330) 416-2729.
**Any/All donations can be sent to ; Steppin Out Missions P.O. Box 532 Sugarcreek, OH 44681 with the memo – LA flood. You can also go to our website – http://www.somissions.comand click the PayPal link to make a secure donation.
We are grateful and humbled that the Lord has given us this opportunity to serve Him through serving others in need. Theme for this project- Love your neighbor outreach “Bringing the community of Christ…..reaching the community for Christ”.
Thank you,
John and the SOM team
James 2:26 “For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead”!
Disaster Response Packing List
