Late at night on Nov. 7, 2013, a woman named Belinda sought shelter under her kitchen table. She and her family huddled together as winds from Typhoon Haiyan battered their home in the Philippines.
They prayed they would survive. They did, but the gales tore off their roof.
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BGR Photo Volunteers work on a structure in the Philippines after Typhoon Haiyan. |
“I will never forget Nov. 7, I will never forget the typhoon!” she told visiting volunteer workers. “I will always remember that day and will take the feeling of fear to the grave with me.”
According to CNN, Haiyan was a category five storm, possessing winds of up to 235 miles per hour. USAID reported that it caused roughly 6,300 deaths and displaced more than 4.1 million.
In the past year, Baptist Global Response (BGR) conducted many projects on affected islands, including rebuilding schools and homes. State Baptist disaster organizations also adopted cities and sent teams to help repair buildings and encourage villagers. Volunteers from Texas Baptist Disaster Relief even helped Belinda repair her house.
All of these efforts have paid off considerably. Work on the island of Bohol, which suffered an earthquake in addition to the typhoon, progressed so that BGR began closing out its recovery operations in the area. Also, Baptist Global Response Area Director Ben Wolf said work on the island of Gibitngil even expanded from recovery into community development, and Christian workers started agriculture projects with locals.
Tacloban, however, still needs help today. A major city on the island of Leyte, it sustained the worst damage.
“The infrastructure was so destroyed that it takes so long to rebuild, and unfortunately … there’s still people in tents a year later,” Wolf said.
Wolf and his wife and co-director, Pam, said the Filipino people have very resilient spirits, but they were still devastated by the damage. And for many, those struggles continue as they try to return to school, to work and to normal life. Some are trying to get out of tents. BGR will still be there to help as many as possible.
Pray for the people in Tacloban who still need homes and jobs. Pray they will find comfort in God as they struggle to get back on their feet, and ask God to grant endurance to Christian workers associated with BGR so they can see this recovery to the end.
Visit goBGR.org to donate toward disaster recovery in the Philippines and all over the world.