Update - August 30
Adventist Community Services (ACS) has been asked by a number of emergency managers to deliver some of the products we have been preparing and stocking in semi-trailers from the ACS Depot in Keene, Texas. On the morning of August 28, a truck left for San Antonio to deliver clothes, hygiene kits and other needed items. Many of the residents housed in the San Antonio shelter were evacuated from Houston, where dirty flood waters forced them out of their homes. Shelter management requires those residing there to shower and have a clean change of clothing before they can enter the shelter. The ACS trailer arrived later in the afternoon to begin distribution of clothes in all sizes for the thousands that had need.
The work also continues in the city of Houston. ACS has been asked to manage a warehouse for the city.
Emotional and spiritual care providers will be ready in the next couple days to deploy to the flood-ravaged area for two weeks. These individuals will be assigned to work out of shelters that have been set up around the state.
ACS is forming a resource and needs listing that will be used over the next few days to determine how to support the local efforts. ACS recognizes that the efforts to support individuals, families and children will be long term, and we’re preparing for the long run.
Update - August 29
We greatly appreciate your thoughts and prayers for the survivors of Hurricane Harvey. Currently, we are accepting monetary donations that will go towards the preparation and distribution of flood cleaning buckets. We are so grateful to those who are willing to help out; however, volunteers are not needed at this time due to the limited access to affected areas and inadequate safety precautions. Once the rains have subsided, we will have more information on how to provide assistance in the recovery phase. Please visit this page for updates.
Update - August 28
NAD ACS DR Director W. Derrick Lea reports that there is preparatory work that is taking place in response to Hurricane Harvey in Texas. ACS volunteers have already started filling Disaster Response (DR) buckets with supplies for delivery. These supplies will be used to assist in the recovery effort both within the state and outside. Please pray for the flood victims and emergency responders!
On August 25, 2017 Hurricane Harvey slammed into the southern coast of Texas, leaving a path of devastation in its wake. The areas surrounding of Galveston, Corpus Christi, Rockport and Houston have been greatly affected by the damaging winds and rising flood waters. The storm is currently moving at a slow pace and will impact the greater southeastern Texas area for several more days, dropping more than 40 inches of water on the region.
At present Adventist Community Services (ACS) through national and regional network, is in the preparedness phase and waiting to respond to needs there once they have been established. Teams from throughout the United States, are standing by and ready to help. ACS is also collaborating with the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA), the Red Cross, the United Parcel Service, and others, and will be ready when called upon to serve those impacted. ACS will continue working with local and federal agencies to identify the greatest needs and how they can be met effectively.
Please pray for all of those affected by this tragedy and consider making a donation to Adventist Community Services. Donations may be made by:
· Making a donation to your local Seventh-day Adventist Church labeled “ACS Hurricane Relief”
· Calling 1-800-381-7171
· Making an online donation at www.communityservices.org
· Mailing a donation to:
Adventist Community Services, 12501 Old Columbia Pike, Silver Spring, MD 20904
“Assuredly, I say to you, in as much as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.” Matthew 25:40 (NKJV)
