Submitted by philip on
By Marilyn Stewart, Regional Reporter
NORCO – Four months pregnant, with a toddler son at her side, Amy Lingawi realized her house had flooded during Hurricane Isaac when she saw pictures posted online by her neighborhood association.
Husband Shawn Lingawi stayed behind as part of his company’s emergency response team and couldn’t check on the couple’s home for days. In Houston, Amy Lingawi could only wait.
“It was hard. I worried about our neighbors and our pets,” the young mother said. “I couldn’t even talk to my husband.”
Most of the young family’s possessions were ruined when water entered the home. Members and volunteers at First Norco, where a base camp for volunteers and an emergency command center has been set up to serve the St. Charles and St. John the Baptist Parishes, are ministering to the young family. More than 7,000 homes flooded in the area.
Disaster relief began at First Norco when Pastor Ken Tew returned home two days after the storm. He knew immediately where to start.
“When people are in a time of need, we know how important ice is,” First Norco’s pastor said. “We knew that would be the start of ministry.”
Tew and his wife Kristin have survived eight hurricanes in four states in 14 years of marriage. Ken Tew served as a reintegration counselor in Mississippi following Hurricane Katrina. Tew said he spent hours in FEMA trailers following the storm praying with people who had lost everything.
After Isaac, the church purchased 26,000 pounds of ice from a nearby supplier. A group of 30 members from the 120-member congregation went door to door, telling people ice was available at the church.
Others soon showed up with pallets of water, followed quickly by the Red Cross with meals prepared by Southern Baptist Disaster Relief Teams.
“Almost immediately, people got ice, water and a hot meal,” Tew said.
First Norco, damaged little in the storm, posted signs announcing it had electricity and inviting people in to charge phones, computers and other electronic equipment. Tew said the storm has presented numerous opportunities to share the gospel.
Michael Heath, a full-time fireman and the volunteer coordinator for First Norco, said the task of rebuilding is “daunting.”
“There’s a lot of work out there,” Heath said. “We need a lot of people.”
Skilled laborers are needed, Heath said. Volunteers may use the church’s commercial kitchen and bring cots or sleeping bags to sleep on. Heath said the church hopes to remain available for as long as there is a need.
On his own, Heath operates a warehouse food bank for those in need. Canned goods, school supplies, clothing, diapers are items that are needed.
Amy Lingawi said the volunteers have impressed her husband. Shawn Lingawi, not a Baptist, who saw first-hand the challenge. He waded through waist-deep water to enter the couple’s home and rescue the family’s dog, cat, and bird, then waded out with a cage on each shoulder.
“I have peace knowing everything is going to be okay,” Amy Lingawi said. “There will be something good to come out of this.”
To donate goods or to volunteer with recovery from Hurricane Isaac, contact Michael Heath atmheathrun@yahoo.com.