Dear Friends,

As we all know by now a week ago today, Tuesday, January 12th, at 4:53 PM local time a catastrophic earthquake with a magnitude of 7.0 on the Richter scale struck the island nation of Haiti just outside the capital of Port-au-Prince. Initial Red Cross estimates put the number of dead at 45,000, while government figures now put the death toll near 200,000. The death toll is believed to be so high because the quake struck a very poor area in a country with poor building standards. By comparison, a similar magnitude earthquake measuring 6.7 on the Richter Scale hit Los Angelos, California in 1994 resulting in a death toll of 72.

 

As we know there are many efforts already to help the Haitian people at this time of devastation. While donations to the Red Cross and other relief agencies are helpful, it is also helpful to actually know and support fellow Christians and local churches who are on the ground doing relief work in Christ’s name. ARBCA church, Grace Baptist Church of Papillion, NE, where the 2009 ARBCA General Assembly was held, has Reformed Baptist church contacts in Haiti’s neighboring country, the Dominican Republic who are setting up aid stations and providing direct relief in the most crucial areas. The DR brothers that presented at the General Assembly are the ones who are helping to coordinate and deliver the local relief. Grace Baptist has set up a website where you can donate online using Paypal to support their efforts. Please pray for Pastor Lou Sloger and the church in Nebraska as they coordinate this collection effort stateside. The brothers from the DR have already made trips inside Haiti and have begun delivering relief. Sadly, preliminary reports indicate that there are many pastors missing or dead and church buildings destroyed, some with the people still inside. This is the latest update as of this evening:

 

There is a coordinated effort with 7 churches in the Dominican Republic setting up 4 stations on the border between Dominican Republic and Haiti, with each station being stocked with food, water and supplies. A group of 20 departed Monday to set up and man these stations, then 25 will depart Thursday and stay through Monday. This week forward, there will then be a constant flow in and out as provisions come in. This is the plan for the immediate future and we will continue to provide regular updates here, and will also provide an accounting to anyone who is involved in giving. Please continue to pray as this will be a very long, difficult, and slow process.

 

The intial supplies for the first trip, alone, included the following:

 

* 30 Cots (Foldable Beds)
* 100 Thin matresses
* 1 Electricity Generator 2.5 kw
* 2 Electricity Generator 1.0 kw
* 1 Extension cords, light bulbs, etc…
* 10 Fuel Containers (5 gal)
* 1000 One thousand Disposable plates and spoons
* 100 Gallons of Gasoline
* 5 Tents
* Medical supplies
* Transportation
* Food

 

Total for these supplies was approximately $20,355 U.S. Dollars. Online giving is now enabled through this site. You may, alternatively, submit a check payable to Grace Baptist Church of Papillion. Please clearly mark in the memo that the same is for “Haiti.

 

There is more information about volunteering to help and links for online donation on the website or you can click the image below to make a donation through the account set up by Grace Baptist Church, Papillion, NE.