In this update, Linda Nichols-McCarty, an elder in GCI’s church in Ripley, West Virginia, reports on the work her congregation did in helping the community of Spencer, West Virginia recover from recent flooding.
The clean-up in Spencer continues. The first floodwaters hit on June 13th; another came on the 18th. The two nearby dams could not control the 7.5 inches of rain that fell in about 45 minutes. Many members from our congregation helped in the clean-up.
Following the first day of flooding, many elderly people rescued from an apartment building were brought to a temporary shelter wet and in muddy clothes. We helped them get dry clothes and some food. We also gave them lots of hugs and words of hope. We made many trips that first day to various places, taking care of basic needs like medications, dry clothing, snacks and meals.
I met one family that lost their home and all their possessions. My husband and I own rental apartments and one was vacant. So I got air mattresses, bedding, towels, toiletries and we told them they could stay in the apartment for as long as they needed it. The wife begin to cry and said she had never experienced such love. I replied that many times through disasters like this, God’s love is pronounced and magnified.
Many members in our small congregation rolled up their sleeves, waded through mud, carried ruined items to the street to be hauled off—acts of love and concern for the many in need. I thank God that we could be of service in this way. God is so good to allow us to be included in the love that he is. Our little congregation has been blessed to help people in need as far away as Uganda and as close as our next-door neighbors.
