JEFFERSON CITY – Missouri may be known as the “Show Me State”, but the award ceremony at the Southern Baptist Disaster Relief (SBDR) Roundtable, held on Jan. 23-25, revealed that Missouri Disaster Relief (MODR) volunteers are better known for showing compassion than skepticism. During the awards banquet, which was held during the annual event, not one, but two MODR volunteers were recognized with the Distinguished Service Award for exceptional service. The first was a memorial to the late … [Read more...]
MODR assists in the ultimate treasure hunt in Maui
LAHAINA, Maui – When Missouri Baptist Disaster Relief teams deploy to a disaster, it’s all about providing help, hope and healing. In most cases, it means helping families prepare to recover by cutting trees off of buildings or cleaning up after a flood so they can get on with their lives. Unfortunately, the situation is much different after a fire. “In that situation, we are helping a family grieve the loss of everything they own, often including their home,” related Richard Brummitt, … [Read more...]
MODR volunteers receive blessings in return
GLENALLEN – With a motto of “Providing Help, Hope and Healing,” volunteers with Missouri Baptist Disaster Relief strive to be a blessing to those who have suffered disasters in one form of another. But quite often, the volunteers are equally blessed by those they serve. As an example, Joe Dayringer related that while he was working as the incident commander in Glenallen, Missouri, following a flood in August, he had the joy of helping a lady celebrate her 104th birthday. “She was still … [Read more...]
MODR dedicates two homes in Hayti
HAYTI – Friday, Oct. 13, had been a long-awaited day for Tom Malott, a Missouri Baptist Relief volunteer from Doniphan, Mo. It was the day he could hand over the keys to two newly constructed homes in Hayti, Mo., that he and numerous MODR volunteers have been in the process of building through a partnership with the Red Cross since this past February. Actually, Malott and others have been working in Hayti for nearly two years, following an EF4 tornado that hit the area on Dec. 10, … [Read more...]
MODR collegiate intern program now taking applications for 2024
JEFFERSON CITY – Are you a college student who would like to experience a new perspective on life and grow professionally, personally and spiritually, while impacting the lives of others? Or do you have a student or grandchild who is teachable, not afraid of hard work and has a heart for helping people in need? If so, applications are being received for the 2024 Missouri Baptist Collegiate Internship program, which will run from May 27 to August 2, 2024. Bethany Waggoner, a 2023 collegiate … [Read more...]
Missouri DR assists Glenallen community after double disaster
GLENALLEN – It’s not unusual for Missouri Baptist Disaster Relief (MODR) teams to return to an area more than once due to back-to-back floods. But it’s rare that MODR teams would be called on to provide aid following two different disasters just months apart. Unfortunately, that is exactly what happened in Glenallen. In April, a tornado struck the area, killing five people, injuring several others and leaving a trail of devastation behind. MODR teams were on the ground in a matter of days … [Read more...]
MODR responds to derecho storm in northern Missouri
BETHANY – Until a few years ago, most people had never heard of a derecho (deh-REY-cho), even though the term dates back to 1877 when it was first used to describe an unusual wind event in Iowa. If wind damage wasn’t caused by a tornado or a hurricane, it has generally been blamed on a strong, straight-line wind. In fact, the word “derecho” is Spanish for “straight.” Today, the term, which has been used more frequently in the last 10 to 20 years, is, by definition, a wind damage swath that … [Read more...]
Missouri DR collegiate interns assist Texas Tornado victims
PERRYTON, Texas (MODR) – Having grown up in Puerto Rico before moving to Pennsylvania, Joyce Fernandez had never witnessed the aftereffects of a tornado. Granted, the damage from hurricanes in her native country can be pretty devastating; but there’s often advanced warning, allowing people to prepare. That wasn’t the case in Perryton, Texas, where a tornado killed three people, injured at least 75 more and destroyed as many as 200 houses. In many cases, the only thing volunteers were able … [Read more...]
Missouri DR brings hope, then help, to Ian survivors
VENICE, Fla. – Missouri Baptist Disaster Relief (MODR) is known for its slogan of “Bringing Help, Hope and Healing.” However, it’s not always in that order. It’s been said that following a disaster like Hurricane Ian, it takes two or three days for the shock and adrenaline experienced by victims to wear off. That’s when people realize how bad the damage really is; that they are hungry and there’s no way to prepare or preserve food without electricity, and that they don’t know where to turn. … [Read more...]
DR responds to man made disaster in St. Louis area
EDITOR’S NOTE: Tharran Gaines is a member of First Baptist Church, Lamar, and he serves with the Disaster Relief public information team. KINLOCH – Disasters come in many forms and sizes, ranging from floods to fires to hurricanes and tornados. Unfortunately, some disaster situations are even man-made. Such has been the case within the St. Louis metropolitan area, in a suburb known as Kinloch. Located just east of the Lambert-St. Louis International Airport, Kinloch was actually the first … [Read more...]