What are Local Church Disaster Coordinators?

The Ohio Conference Disaster Response Team (DR Team) is looking for a person in each church in the Conference to serve as a Disaster Coordinator.  The Local Church Disaster Coordinator is the basic building block of this ministry in the Ohio Conference.

Two expectations of Coordinators:

• to be the primary conveyor of disaster-related communications both to and from the DR Team and their congregation

• to identify and catalog the resources in their congregation that might be available in a disaster recovery situation

The Disaster Response Ministry does not mean emergency services such as medical care, American Red Cross services, or any such work of civil agencies.  

Rather, in times of disaster there are enormous human needs that are not normally addressed.  These are often the kind of needs that faithful church folks can help satisfy. 

Typical needs that Disaster Response Ministry can meet:

• Pastoral care for the traumatized

• Food or housing for victims or volunteer workers

• Distribution of relief supplies

• Warehousing

• Office help

• Transportation

• Cleanup

• Rebuilding

Learn how to help in a disaster

The DR Team believes that most people want to help but are not always sure how to do it.  The Team will help your congregation find opportunities to respond and serve in efficient and truly helpful ways. 

Uncoordinated response to natural disasters by the public compounds the difficulties.

It is critical to understand the who-what-how of the disaster response and recovery environment.  Participation in a modest training event is therefore required.  Contact Jim Ditzler to schedule a training session.

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