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It was a brisk February day in Youngstown just outside of Panama City. They were sitting at a makeshift dining table in front of a camper. The front yard was scraped earth where a mobile home and pine trees used to be. Tangled branches, refrigerators and moldy clothes sat in a soggy heap at the end of the driveway.
They were talking with the owner of the camper, a woman who escaped Hurricane Michael with only minutes to spare. She and her husband were trying to rebuild their lives and their home while dealing with the complications of her recent back surgery.
Katie Marshall and Susan Craig, ladies from Jefferson County, were in Panama City as volunteers for Samaritan’s Purse (SP). Most people first become aware of SP through Operation Christmas Child, a program that distributes shoe boxes of Christmas gifts to children around the world. This is only one of their ministries. This nondenominational evangelical Christian organization seeks to follow the Biblical story of the Good Samaritan by providing physical and spiritual aid to hurting people around the world. Their goal is to arrive on the scene of a disaster to provide immediate help. They have been a constant and comforting presence in all the areas ravaged by Hurricane Michael.
When Marshall and Craig arrived in Panama City they were surprised to find themselves in a sea of 150 volunteers from all over the United States. Their commitment was to work three days in whatever capacity they could help. With a team of 12 people from cities in Florida, Alabama, Pennsylvania and beyond they were assigned the job of 'mud out.'
Everyone met in Youngstown at the mobile home belonging to the couple. Since October they have lived in the camper trailer next to their home. There was mold and water damage all through the house. The team worked steadily for two days. They tore out sheetrock, pulled down ceilings and insulation, tore up flooring and moved stacks of boxes. Marshall and Craig were busy pulling nails from studs, cleaning, hauling out ruined materials and vacuuming. When the group left after two days, the house was close to ready for renovation. Knowing that the owners plan to do all the work themselves, the volunteers tried extra hard to do everything they could.
Samaritan's Purse still has a list of 600 families waiting for help. Mounds of debris and blue tarped roofs are the physical signs of residents still traumatized by the devastation. Volunteers from all around our country are coming together to work, listen and encourage these residents in the challenges they face every day. Some volunteers give their week of vacation, students give their spring break and seniors give their retirement to let suffering people know they are not alone in their struggle. It is truly a modern day example of The Good Samaritan.
For Information about Samaritan's Purse Disaster Relief and how you can get involved, go to samaritanspurse.org.
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