Covenant News

Florida Church Offers Help to Hurricane Victims

VERO BEACH, FL (September 2, 2005) - Having experienced the devastation wrought by two hurricanes last year, the members of First Covenant Church in Vero Beach already have offered their assistance to help with rebuilding efforts in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.

"If you don't feel the compassion after what you've been through, you haven't been awake," says Pastor Tristan Hohler. "You know what they're going through."

First Covenant benefited from the generosity of Covenanters around the United States, Hohler says. "We had churches from California, Minnesota, Michigan - all across the country - help us."

Kurt Miericke, superintendent of the Southeast Conference of the Evangelical Covenant Church, says he hopes to gather a team of Covenant leaders to tour the storm-ravaged areas in the next several weeks to begin assessing damage and making contacts to help with future assistance.

Hohler says that his church has begun laying plans to send work crews to help in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. He says that crews will likely have to wait several months before going to hurricane ravaged areas, as logistics make early assistance with physical labor impractical.

"It takes a while to get things cleared up," he says. "People aren't ready to tackle (rebuilding). Also, there's no place to put people up." In the aftermath of the Florida hurricanes, "hotels and motels were filled for months and months," he says.

Construction is made difficult by the magnitude of work that needs to be done. "The building materials don't come in right away. Home Depot and Lowes wouldn't have what people needed."

Many people in the area still are recovering emotionally from last year's hurricanes, Hohler says. "This has retriggered old feelings. It hurts." They will be able to celebrate September 18, however, when the congregation dedicates its building. Miericke will speak at the special service.

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