Disaster Preparedness 2022

Thanks to St. John’s parishioners for your generous donations of hurricane relief supplies that were delivered to Fort Myers, FL.
Stephen Haynsworth and Bill Anderson departed Haut Gap on Sunday morning, November 6th, after Fr. Jeremy’s blessings. St. John’s disaster response trailer was loaded with Bibles, chain saws, tools, flood buckets, cleaning supplies and health kits.
They worked with eight Anglican Relief and Development Fund (ARDF) volunteers who joined forces with Eight Days of Hope, a national relief organization that responds to disasters across the country.
A typical day on the jobsite began with prayers for the homeowners before work, at lunch, and at the end of the day. Team members removed flooded drywall, trim, flooring and damaged furnishings.
Disaster relief supplies collected by St. John’s, St. Paul’s and St. Michael’s were donated to Gladiolus Food Pantry, Inc., https://gladiolusfoodpantry.org/ a non-profit serving individuals and nearby communities with critical needs.

Archbishop Foley Beach had a vision of ACNA churches uniting in service to God's people through disaster response. It is a joy knowing that Anglicans from Virginia, South Carolina, Texas and Florida assembled to serve survivors in need of comfort, hope and strength to carry on through the storm’s aftermath and to be transformed by the loving example of others as we are called by our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Thank you for your generosity.

Nov 6 Update
Stephen and Bill from St. John's Parish Church, along with partner churches, St. Michael's and St. Paul's of Conway left for Sarasota on Sunday Nov 6. Please pray for their safe travel and strength to support the recovery effort from Hurricane Ian.

Anyone interested in serving in Sarasota from Nov 6 to November 12 can sign up with the National Disaster Network of Anglican Relief Development Fund on the linked Hurricane Ian webform.

• Stephen Haynesworth will be going to Sarasota with the St. John's Parish Disaster Response trailer and has room for three people to travel with him. Contact Stephen if interested.
• All volunteers are expected to pay for their air travel to and from Tampa, but once in FL, there will be no further expenses as room and board are provided by ARDF's partner organization Eight Days of Hope. Once in Tampa, transportation will be provided.
• Because the partner mission does not provide bedding, an air mattress or bedroll will be provided by the Gulf Atlantic Diocese so that volunteers will not have to travel with them.

Work will most likely be cleaning up debris and homes.

To prepare for Hurricane Ian, the St. John's Parish Church Disaster Response Trailer is loaded with tools, supplies, chainsaws, food, buckets, and Bibles. This Sunday Oct 2, we need parishioners to help put all cleaning supplies into the buckets, write encouraging notes, and load the trailer. Anyone available the next few weeks can let Stephen or the church office know.

St John's Parish Church Emergency Response Team will meet Thursday August 11, 6 p.m. at Stephen & Cindy's home, to plan and prepare for this year's hurricane season. Please call Stephen if you are willing to help.

In the next 2 weeks we will ask each family to fill out a survey on their hurricane plans, needs and resources. The form is attached below, you can print and mail back or you can email Reponses to Sally Dixon here. We will also be handing out the form on Sunday.

Stephen Haynsworth
Parish Disaster Response Coordinator