Director of Volunteer Services Visits
Jamaica to Report on Hurricane Damage

First, I want to thank my Lord and Savior for His faithfulness to me and the privilege to be found worthy to serve Him in the service He has called me to. May He receive all honor and glory. Amen.

At the request of the BWM and Livingston Thompson, President of the Jamaican Province, brother Mark Pardue of the Friedberg congregation and I traveled to Kingston on September 28, 2004. During the next six days, we visited approximately 50 churches, manses, schools, and homes. We found our brothers and sisters saddened but not discouraged. They have given God glory and praise that the destruction is no worse than it is and that no lives were lost within the Moravian community. They are in prayer for those who did lose family members in the storm. They are also in prayer for all other victims of this hurricane season, remembering Haiti, the United States, and others as well.

We found that the damage was mostly limited to the loss of roofing and roof structures. It varied from just a few sheets of zinc missing to entire roof systems destroyed. Most of the churches and manses visited were constructed between 1880’s to early 1900. They are built of Spanish wall, a mixture of cut stone and clay. These types of structures have lasted this long with great success, but once exposed to the elements of rain and wind, they are in danger of failure. Some churches are far worse than others. Some are only in need of new zinc, while others have structural damage with the walls falling in on wooden floors and destroying much of both. Some structures will have to be evaluated and prayed over to determine whether they should be repaired or replaced. This will have to be the decision of the church in Jamaica. Regardless, all buildings visited need new roofing in the near future.

Some of the churches in Jamaica own buildings that are used to house starter and primary schools. These buildings also sustained the same amount and range of damage as the churches. These schools are supported by the government, but the buildings are not maintained by them. The church is mostly responsible for repairs and maintenance. Most of them can be repaired quickly with roofing and labor. To see those children in one corner of a classroom trying to stay dry while the teacher continues to teach is a picture of the way in which they are coping with the problem. One classroom had moved some potted plants inside to water them!

The college at Bethlehem, Jamaica, also received major damage, with the director’s house losing its entire roofing system. Classrooms and administrative buildings were also damaged, while the church there only lost one window. In my opinion, the schools and the college should receive some priority since they reach so many lives from day to day.

Many homes sustained roofing damage with much less structural damage. Most of the homes visited were repaired or under repair, some temporarily until more help and/or material can be arranged. Some work is underway with the help of a donation from the BWM Disaster Relief Fund, churches from the British and U.S. Provinces, and others.

In our debriefing with the PEC President, Brother Thompson asked us to convey how grateful he and the Moravian Church in Jamaica are for the quick response of the rest of the Unity and that our Savior receive all glory and honor for it. He also asked that we pray and consider how else we can be of assistance physically and financially.

As Director of Volunteer Services, I committed to recruit teams to travel to Jamaica if, when, and wherever he felt they were needed. Work will be arranged by what the church in Jamaica feels is needed most and will be forwarded to me for recruitment purposes.

I pray that in all of this that we will respond according to the Lord’s will and purpose for us all. I praise our Savior for all that He has done in the lives of all those we visited and of their faithfulness to Him and to each other. May we all become one as the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are one so that the world will know just how good He is, and that many may be brought to His saving knowledge.