Texas Baptist Mens Disaster Relief honored the outgoing Area Directors and welcomed the new Area Directors.

Since 2000, The Hurricane IKE event was the second time in the history of Texas Baptist Men Disaster Relief (TBMDR) that disaster relief volunteers and units from other state conventions were required. We want to thank all who responded to God’s call. TBMDR is grateful for the largest number ever of volunteers to respond to a disaster at one time.

There is an article that was featured in The Orange County Record about TBM's assistance in the feeding in Orange, Texas.

Texas Baptist Men, a disaster-relief organization that cooked meals for the Orange County Chapter of the American Red Cross, stir one of their last at North Orange Baptist Church.

Texas Baptist Men continue to support Hurricane Ike effortts with one kitchen unit, 2 shower units and 2 chainsaw units at this time. More chainsaw units are expected to respond as team members are able to deploy.
Communities have begun shifting into long term recovery phase. Please continue to pray for those affected by the devistation of Hurricane Ike.

Hello Joe,

Wanted to thank your chain saw crew who responded to my Dad’s house following Hurricane Ike. My father is a retired music minster. He has been disabled from a stroke 13 years ago. Ike dumped about 50 of the trees in his yard, including a large oak tree, which fell onto part of their roof.

This is  an e-mail that was sent to Joe Detterman.

This is an email received from someone who was helped by the disaster relief efforts after Hurricane Ike hit:

Hello everybody.

A member of our church, stopped me this morning to express her appreciation for the work our team did in Anahuac.

Monday 10/06/08 - There has been an update on Big Bend Baptist Associations website, go check out the additional needs posted there.

The Bridge is still closed and we still have no word as to when it will open.
Lloyd Taylor arrived in Ojinaga on Thursday Sept 25th via Juarez and Chihuahua.

This was taken from an email from the Big Bend Baptist Association.  Please check their website for any changes that may occur with the needs of the people.

First Baptist Church of Beaumont opens a website in response to the SBC Disaster Relief Efforts in the Golden Triangle region.  www.relief4ike.org offers contact information for FEMA, Clean-up tips for flooded homes, Application information for Clean-up/Mud-Out assistance, Volunteer sign-up needs, Disaster Warehouse information, and Regional Church locations serving as relief supply distribution centers.

If your church wants to help with Disaster Relief on a local level you can provide lunch for the Texas Baptist Men DR volunteers and office staff.  A good, hot lunch would be a great ministry to them. Bring enough food for 20 people by 11:00 a.m. The address of the office is 5351 Catron, Dallas, TX 75227. Call Tracie Bjorkgren at 214-828-5350 to reserve your lunch day.

9-19-08  The totals for today are:
Meals served - 268,058 with 1,611 Volunteers
Showers - 1874/ Laundry 810 with 157 Volunteers

URGENT NEED:

Please help us provide food for the hurricane victims by sending your donations now!  For donations click HERE.

The Baptist Global Response news site has been updated with an article about Texas Baptist Men volunteers conducting a feeding operation for refugees in the Black Sea country of Georgia.

To read more, go to http://www.gobgr.org and click on “Texas volunteers feeding refugees in Gori.”

Families displaced by fighting in the Black Sea country of Georgia are expressing profound gratitude for a feeding ministry Southern Baptist relief workers are conducting in Gori, a member of the relief team has told Baptist Press.

A seven-member team of disaster relief specialists from Texas Baptist Men cooked hot meals for about 2,000 people who have taken refuge in 18 kindergarten buildings in Gori, the team member said.

TBM  is serving across the state.  They were sent out at 6:00am on August 30.  The East Texas - Smith Baptist Association unit is in Lufkin.  The East Texas - Gregg Baptist Association unit is in Longview.  The Dallas Baptist Association is in Marshall.  The State unit is at First Baptist Church in Brynn.

As of September 30, 2008 here is the break down of the different units and their numbers:

Meal Served by Feeding Units - 734,863 with 3,722 volunteers

Shower Unit total - 5,726 and Laundry loads - 3,557 with 431 volunteers

Chainsaw jobs - 358 with 977 volunteers

Mud-Out Units jobs - 4 with 35 volunteers

Number of Boxes - 1,117 with 15 volunteers

Russian Troops have pulled back from Gori, Georgia, and a Southern Baptist overseas relief team has entered the city to assess the need for humanitarian assistance.

"The city of Gori is in overall pretty decent condition," reported one member of the team.  "The destruction was mostly to army bases and government building. 

Pray for the volunteers continuing to work

There is an ongoing need for
Mudout and Blue Tarp Units in the Valley.

Volunteers are need as well. 
All recovery volunteers not attached to a unit
and able to respond to the units listed above.

The Lord worked through TBM to minister to many in the Valley.

Boxes Supplied 1,418

Pray for the volunteers continuing to work

396,038 Meals have been prepared.

822 Showers have been provided.

689 Laundries have been completed.

The following Recovery units are
Active in the Valley:

Mudout
Blue Tarp
Box

Al’s truck is a big one. It is an over-the-road Volvo that has been converted into a recreational vehicle. Al and Darlene use it to pull disaster relief units on callouts and to live in while they are out.  They are proud of their big white truck and refer to it affectionately as ‘Hope’.  

The Lord Trusts TBM Again...

Edouard was not as ugly
as his sister Dolly

GALVESTON, Texas - Tropical Storm Edouard hit the Texas Gulf coast with strong winds and heavy rain, but did little more than soak the travelers who came to relax on the tourist town's beaches.
The storm made landfall east of Galveston and west of the Louisiana border, between the small coastal town of High Island and Sabine Pass, and was weakening as it headed inland.

ALL RECOVERY UNITS WITH TEXAS

WE ARE EXPECTED TO BE ON "GO STATUS" IMMINENTLY!!

ANYONE AVAILABLE TO RESPOND TO THE TBM DOLLY CALLOUT PLEASE CONTACT THE INCIDENT COMMAND CENTER VOLUNTEER COORDINATOR 214-828-5355 OR 972-754-4734 OR Rae Jones at  rae.jones@bgct.org.

Texas Baptist Men has activated five feeding units, a communications unit, nine shower units and our security unit to respond to three locations, Brownsville, McAllen, and Harlingen.

The San Antonio Special Needs unit is in Brownsville. The Dallas and Lindale feeding units is in Harlingen.  Harlingen is the hardest hit area.  The South Texas unit is in McAllen.

Click here for donation information.

Texas Baptist Men Activity Report To Date: 7-14-08

ACTIVE UNITS:

Wapello, Iowa

Sabine Neches Clean Out Unit - 2 jobs with 6 volunteers

Cedar Rapids, Iowa

Gambrell Assoc. Cleanout Unit - Assessing with 24 volunteers

Shalom Alechem (Peace be with you),  Cindy O keeper of the boxes and my true sister in the faith: Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.

On Sunday, June 15th, the Texas Baptist Men's Disaster Relief State Unit was deployed to Cedar Rapids, Iowa and Reedsburg, Wisconsin.  On Monday, June 16th, Gary Smith received the following email.

Texas Baptist Men Disaster Relief State Unit deployed Sunday, June 15, 2008 to Cedars Rapids, Iowa.  They were joined by Top of  Texas Feeding Unit along with the Shower/Laundry Unit from Lamesa.  A total of 68 men and women were deployed with the units.  They will be housed at Immanuel Baptist Church in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.  Please pray for their safety.

Texas Baptist Men were asked to respond to the disastrous cyclone in Myanmar. The invitation came from Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, CA through the Woodlands Fellowship of Texas. 

For donations CLICK HERE.

To view a map of the area click here.

For updates on the assessment team click below:

Texas Baptist Men have been asked to respond to the disastrous cyclone in Myanmar. The invitation came from Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, CA through the Woodlands Fellowship of Texas.

The strike team will assess needs so when international aid is allowed in Myanmar, everything will be in place for an immediate response.

For donations, CLICK HERE.

NAMB (North American Mission Board) reported assessments are ongoing at this time in multiple states (MD-DE, NJ, MO, OK, GA, ME) after the recent tornados and flooding. Maine has requested an ICS team, which is scheduled to arrive onsite today.

TBM will be notified if and when a multi-state response is requested by any of these states and we will be kept updated as the situation develops.

Assessments are also ongoing in China due to the major earthquake this weekend.

TBM update from Bangkok on Friday May 16th at 8:00a.mCST 
Dick Talley and the Texas Baptist Men team that is staged in Bangkok, Thailand as they wait to enter Myanmar and serve in the wake of a devastating cyclone will provide a live update as to where things stand. 

 
Click here to watch the live broatcast.

The team will be participating in the "Unto the Least of These" project to assist the rebuilding of 3 homes for the elderly, widowed and single mother who lost their homes during Hurricane Felix in September of last year.  The team will be milling lumber from downed trees.  The team includes a mill operator and others to help with hauling logs and stacking lumber.  Local believers are a integral part of the project.  Dates for the trip are April 25 - May 11, 2008.  Please include praying for the families of the team members as well as the team.  The team includes: Ted Claus, Kathleen Donsing, Dan DuBose, George Hamontree, Tony Kell, Jack Meyer, Johnny Osburn, Harold Patterson, Ernie Rice, Larry Soape, Larry Vawter and Rey Villanueva.

“UNTO THE LEAST OF THESE” PROJECT

Hurricane Felix Reconstruction Project

International Mission Board, Miskito Strategy Team

WHO ARE THE MISKITO PEOPLE?

The Miskito people are an amerindian-african people who live as subsistence farmers and fishermen in small villages of the lowland rain forest of Nicaragua and Honduras.  The Miskito people live across a large area known as The Mosquito Coast (“La Mosquitia”), which is located on the northeast coast of Nicaragua and the east coast of Honduras. This area covers over 32,500 square miles extending from the Tinto River in Honduras to the San Juan River in Nicaragua. It is made up of lowland coastal areas, savannas and rain forests. 

Annual Chainsaw Fellowship and Retreat will be held on April 28th - May 2nd in Welling, Texas.  The Training will include: Basic Chainsaw, Advanced Chainsaw - Off the Ground, and Rigging Training.

A group headed out to help the Top of Texas Unit (FBC Plains) in their Beach Outreach ministry during Spring Break.  The ministry had 387 students who had gone through 5 weeks of training in witnessing to other students.

The Texas Baptist Men Disaster Relief (TBMDR) Hispanic Trainer of Trainers Program was held at the Calvary Baptist Church in McAllen, Texas on February 29-March 1, 2008.  Trainers for the TBMDR Hispanic Trainer of Trainers Program included the following:

     .  "Child Care Specialty Training" Trainers - Erna Patillo (South Texas Area - Nixon) and Karolyn Southerland

        (South Texas Area - Alice)

    .  "Feeding Specialty Training" Trainers - Jerry Don Jones, James Dykes, Chester Hollis, Ronald Jones,

        Gene Lansford, and Charles White (All from East Texas Area)

    .  "Yellow Cap Orientation" Trainer - Ben Freeman (State)    

The TBM Disaster Relief Volunteers were invited to a Fellowship March 7 & 8, 2008 at the Dixon Building. They were treated to dinner at 6:00 P. M. Friday evening followed by songs, prayer, and a time of fellowship.  There were 75 people in attendance for the festivities. 

TBM Disaster Relief was very busy in 2007 as you can see from the annual report. Thank the Lord we were spared any huge disasters. I would like to thank all of the 1760 volunteers that responded to the 30 invitations we had this past year.

TBM continues to provide meals to the folks living in the surrounding areas of Villa Hermosa in Tobasco, Mexico. Stricken by the flooding, more than a million were displaced by the record breaking flood in that region. When the TBM crew showed up they were surrounded by people who had not eaten in days.

Call it the instant hurricane. Humberto grew from a tropical depression with 35 mph winds to a full-scale category one hurricane in 18 hours, surprising the Texas-Louisiana coast Thursday with 80 mph winds and heavy rain the morning of September 13, 2007

"Our breakfast group gathers at Midtown Foods in the Winona Mall every morning. It’s a pretty tough crowd. It takes a lot of steam to get a word in edgewise, but, as of late, we may have met our match. Each morning this week, we’ve shared our breakfast nook with the Southern Baptists Convention Disaster Relief — mostly from Texas."

Evidently a weather "wave" caused by the remnants of Hurricane Dean passed over this area around Winona (thats wee-no-na not y-no-na). Fifteen communities had up to 17 inches of rain fall on them in a four hour period. Unprecidented flooding happened to communities of old large well built homes with basements. Some reports say that as many as 1700 homes have had flood waters in them.

TBM is in the process of putting together five chainsaw teams with five to six members (25-30 Total) to go to Puerto Cabezas, Nicaragua to work cleaning up hurricane damage.

You can find out more information at www.miskitomissions.com. Please Pray for the team during this week. 

Just wanted to update you on the things happening in Winona, Minn. We have around 75 workers from 11 states feeding, cleaning out homes and ministering in the name of Jesus. The houses have basements which are filled with mud, one team has been working on one home for 4 days and are not finished so keep praying that He will give us patience, endurance and strength. The people are very open to us being here and we have made some lasting relationships. Thanks for your prayers.

The North American Mission Board (NAMB) has called on Texas to help the people of Minnesota to recover from the floods that have happened in Winona and surrounding areas. Texas Baptist Men (TBM) is responding with Gambrell Association Clean Out unit and LaGrange Clean Out unit. Gambrell is leaving at 8:00 am Saturday morning and Lagrange will be leaving Sunday morning.

This is an invitation for you to go and help. Please be in prayer for the team that is responding.  Contact your Disaster Releif Area Director if you are available to respond.

THE WORK IN HONDO AND D’HANIS TEXAS IS COMPLETED ALONG WITH WORK IN WALKER COUNTY.

Texas Baptist Men have completed the response to flood victims in Hondo, D’Hanis and Walker County.  Texas Baptist Men would like to thank all who assisted in the work and prayed for our teams.  We would also like to thank all of the generous donations given to
help the victims of the ruinous storms and floods.

Update - July 10, 2007, 8:00 AM

WICHITA FALLS FLOODING Feeding: Wichita Archer Clay BA Shower/Laundry: Park Cities BC Clean Out Collin Baptist Assoc. Lake Pointe Paramount BC

EASTLAND FLOODING Clean Out: Gambrell Assoc. 2nd BC Gonzales Cornerstone BC Coastal Plains

WE NEED YOU!
Anyone wanting to be a part of the clean out effort should contact
Rae Jones
Texas Baptist Men
214.707.7255