More than 2o volunteers began working March 6 for cleanup and fire recovery in the Oklahoma panhandle, confirmed Jason Yarbrough, Disaster Relief director for the Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma to the Baptist Messenger.
Volunteers have been serving in Gage and other parts of Ellis County since wildfires spread through the area Feb. 26. Yarbrough said they delivered pallets of bottled water and snacks to those affected by the fires.
“As we prepare to deploy for the first time in 2024, let me start by saying thank you for being DR volunteers and being the hands and feet of Jesus!” Yarbrough wrote in an email to volunteers, the Baptist Messenger reported March 7. “Let’s not lose sight of why we do what we do … . We meet the physical needs people are experiencing to see a door opened for us to speak into the spiritual needs they have.
“Remember, we do what we do with God’s help, for God’s glory!”
RELATED: Check out other Disaster Relief stories here.
Volunteers still needed
Volunteers are still needed to serve on ash-out team and supporting units including laundry, showers, assessors and feeding.
“Things are fluid on deployment dates because of safety issues with the fire and how hot the ash is still,” Yarbrough noted. “We are in contact with potentially 13–14 homeowners as of now.”
Prior to the cleanup and fire recovery team deploying, assistant Disaster Relief director Ryan Deatherage said an Oklahoma Baptist Disaster Relief assessor was in the field in Fargo along with chaplains ministering to those impacted by the fires.
The wildfires have devastated the landscape, impacted ranchers and posed challenges for firefighters in both Oklahoma and Texas.
The Smokehouse Creek Fire in Hutchinson County, the largest recorded wildfire in Texas history, had killed two people and burned nearly 1.1 million acres (1,600 square miles) and was only 15% contained, the Texas A&M Forest Service said (as of March 3). It is only one of several fires driven by parched land and high winds in the two states.
Visit okdisasterhelp.org for more information.
Ways to give
For more information on how you can help, check with your church, association or state Baptist convention to find out how they are contributing to ongoing relief efforts in places like Oklahoma, your state and beyond.
EDITOR’S NOTE — This story was written by Bob Nigh and originally published by the Baptist Messenger, newsjournal of the Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma.
