Hello friends of the Alabama-West Florida Conference!
We are excited to share some updates on the Hurricane Michael Recovery efforts in our conference. We have had many hurdles to jump while building our recovery program. One of our case managers likened it to building an airplane while in flight! However, we are confident that the time we have taken to put our systems into place will be multiplied back to us as we journey down this road to recovery.
The good news is that we are starting to gain traction with our construction projects in each of our three areas: Panama City, Marianna and Port St. Joe. Thus far, we are working with over 150 families and we anticipate that over 100 of them will be ready for construction in the coming days, weeks and months. Believe it or not, we are on track to far exceed our initial goal of 300 home repairs and/or rebuilds! Our summer is packed with volunteers and we are excited about the number of families that we will be able to assist thanks to your help. Please look ahead on your calendars to the fall and winter and consider helping us fill our weeks with volunteers.
If you are a pastor or leader in your local church, I encourage you to show this brief video update in your worship services and on social media. If you have not already partnered with a church through our conference, consider exploring that option. More information can be found here or by contacting Susan Hunt.
Finally, I am grateful to the United Methodist Committee on Relief and their generous $4.6 million-dollar-grant. This grant will help launch and fund the first two years of a phased four-year recovery program in response to Hurricane Michael. You can read more about that here.
If I can answer any questions you may have about how you can help with our relief efforts, I welcome a conversation. Continue to pray for us as we minister to our neighbors in the best way possible. Thank you for you care, support and prayers.
With gratitude,
Rev. Chris Ackerman