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EL PASO—Southern Baptists of Texas Convention Disaster Relief ministry continues in El Paso after storms caused mass flooding on Sept. 11 and 12. SBTC DR efforts are concentrated in the Socorro community, 15 miles southeast of El Paso. Meanwhile, another DR team began work near Estes Park, Colo., aiding flood victims there.
In El Paso, SBTC DR personnel were repairing and cleaning about 25 homes with more to be added as assessments continued, said Scottie Stice, who was serving as the incident management team leader. Stice noted that the SBTC group is working alongside Texas Baptist Men volunteers.
DR workers have encountered severe and unusual damage. Homes in the Socorro community are literally filled with sand.
“Flash flooding caused water to run off the desert toward the Rio Grande. Homes have three or four feet of sand in them as well as water damage,” Stice said.
“I have never seen anything like it. The dirt and sand have washed up against the houses. It’s pure sand, like walking on the beach,” said Wayne Barber, SBTC DR chaplain who arrived Sept. 20.
As DR teams rotated in and out on the weekend, SBTC efforts centered on clearing mud and sand away from houses to allow owners access to their properties.
Chaplains continue to accompany the clean-up teams on their jobs.
“Everything is set to have a good ministry here,” said SBTC DR chaplain Bob Sapp, who was among the first wave of volunteers. Efforts involve going house to house to check on victims and offer assistance and prayer.
Chuy Avila, SBTC church planting missionary based in El Paso, is helping follow up on contacts, Sapp said.
At least four people have trusted Christ, DR volunteers reported.
Wayne Barber, the DR chaplain, with his wife Ann Barber approached a family resting in the yard of their sand-filled home on Sept. 22. An SBTC skid-steer team had cleared a path to the home, enabling the residents to begin removing furniture.
“The family was muddy and tired, grateful for a rest,” Barber said.
Barber, kneeling beside a teenage boy sitting in the yard, began sharing the gospel. The younger man did not speak English, but the Lord provided an unexpected interpreter.
“An older lady who lived in the house, I think she was the boy’s grandmother, translated what I was saying. It was so neat,” Barber said.
When the boy asked through the interpreter why Barber was kneeling, the chaplain replied, “So I can look you in the eye. I don’t want to look over you. I want you to realize that I love you and I want you to see God’s love in my eyes.”
Moments later, three members of the family—a teenager, a younger boy and a young mother—all accepted Christ while the grandmother looked on with joy.
“We gave them Bibles and encouraged them to go to church,” Barber explained. “The first thing we try to emphasize to anybody is that we are not teaching church, we are not there about church. We are there about Jesus crucified.”
SBTC DR volunteers are staying at Cielo Vista Church in El Paso, Stice said.
“The people are really receptive to us coming in and helping them. The unit directors are doing a good job. El Paso Baptist churches are doing a great job of hosting us. We are in constant contact with the El Paso Baptist Association and Texas Baptist Men,” Stice said.
DR efforts in El Paso will likely continue through late September, Stice said.
COLORADO RESPONSE
In Colorado, SBTC volunteers began work on Sept. 23 near Estes Park, Colo. Crews specializing in cleanup and recovery (mud-out), chaplaincy, operations/assessments, shower/laundry and feeding are serving victims of flooding there, said Jim Richardson, SBTC DR director.
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