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Orange Grove Church of Christ in
Gulfport, MS

Forest Park Christian Church in Crowley, LA

Master Provisions

Hurricane Relief

UPDATED 11:30 A.M. EST THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2005:

With the assistance of another volunteer relief worker, the Forest Dale team had the truck unloaded by 1:00 p.m. EST on Wednesday.  The Orange Grove Church of Christ accepted the three pallets of books provided by Standard Publishing and plans to distribute them to children in FEMA temporary housing trailer cities.  The Orange Grove facility has sustained damage along with much of the Gulf coast.  The damage you see in the photo of the church sign is consistent with the damage to the signs in front of many of the businesses along highway 49.  Even the golden arches were not illuminated when the team arrived late Tuesday night.

After an afternoon driving tour of the area, the entire team agrees that the television coverage seen in Cincinnati does not begin to tell the story of the devastation the Gulfport area has experienced.  The disaster relief liaison estimated that $1.8 million worth of goods have gone through the Orange Grove Church of Christ distribution center.  The people with whom the team has had conversations tell stories of living in tents, fleeing the area as Hurricane Rita approached, and the hardship of returning to “normal” life.  One woman commented that, “If it weren’t for the churches, the military, and the Red Cross, I don’t know what we would have done.”

The team has safely returned to Cincinnati and thanks you for your prayers.  Be sure to come to our Thanksgiving Eve Service to see more pictures from the trip.