Support ongoing hurricane relief efforts
“But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.” (Matthew 6: 3-4) Last week a couple called the AbbyBank office in Medford.
They live in the Ashland area and heard through friends of friends that AbbyBank was a collection site partnering with Hurricane Relief of Central Wisconsin to get needed supplies to people still digging out from Hurricane Helene.
The couple arrived at the bank’s Medford location with a van fully loaded with items from the drive’s needs list including tents, tarps, and a range of supplies. Staff at the bank described being moved to tears by the couple’s generosity and that they did not want a picture or any other recognition for their act of charity.
Hurricane Relief of Central Wisconsin is one of many nongovernmental organizations that is working to bring help to those impacted by the recent hurricanes. The footage of the disasters, of communities literally washed away, of homes destroyed and lives lost shows a devastation beyond imagining for most of us.
As it has for dozens of other disasters before this, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has responded in force, as have National Guard units and the U.S. Military. There are currently 1,500 active-duty troops involved in the recovery efforts along with more than 2,000 North Carolina National Guard personnel as well as over 200 Guardsmen from 15 states are conducting response operations in western North Carolina. An estimated 1,250 FEMA staff are on the ground in North Carolina along with nearly 400 urban search and rescue personnel. These are in addition to national relief agencies such as the American Red Cross, the Salvation Army and coordinated efforts through religious groups.
All these agencies are coordinating to help with the rescue, recovery and rebuilding despite what politically motivated disinformation campaigns may have you believe. People are doing their best to literally move mountains to get to those in need of help.
As anyone who has been touched by a disaster knows, for as much work has been done there is always more to do and more challenges and tragedies ahead. There are countless quotes and platitudes about how diamonds are formed under pressure and steel becomes stronger when tempered. These offer little solace to those who are hungry, cold, alone and homeless.
Disasters are a time to set aside politics and prejudices and come together as a people united behind the cause of ensuring that those who have been knocked down by a disaster are able to get back up again.
