Van, TX Tornado Relief: Stories from the Ground

by Christine Farquhar, Mission U-Too Bastrop North Site Coordinator & Donor Relations/Administrative Assistant

A few weeks ago we sent a team to Van, Texas to serve the 50-100 families that were displaced by a devastating tornado, as well as the many volunteers who showed up to help. These are a few of the stories from the people we met, and how we were individually impacted by serving there.

LAURA
Laura said that she has been impacted because she saw how the community very much appreciated a hot meal. Especially the ones who lost everything. Laura said she knew her calling was to come to serve instead of proceeding with her other weekend plans. She said that she believes this has changed her more than the people she served, and that it was an honor to serve.

JOAN
Joan and her son lost everything and were able to provide them with hot meals all week. She said Mission U-Too helped her to focus on taking care of finding another place to live without the financial burden of food. She was very grateful that we also fed the volunteers by delivering meals as well.

BRETT
Our team was able to pray for Brett and their grandchild who was in the hospital with jaundice. We were there to lend a listening ear and encourage him as they dealt with the disaster and for the baby’s health.

WENDY
Wendy recently lost her job and her financial aid, but came out to volunteer and helped provide the supplies needed out of the trailer. She was overjoyed to see how we were able to provide for the community and bring unity to the body of Christ. Having the opportunity to go out and serve and pray was very impactful for her, as well as being able to make people aware of resources and serve them as much as they needed. She was excited to be able to provide for a family that had no car. She said this is what she needed, that it was amazing to watch God multiply the food which increased her faith and lit her fire again.

DAKOTA
Dakota came to Texas because his mother wanted him to get into a restoration home because of drugs and alcohol. He was struggling to feel welcome at this restoration home. We spent a lot of time with him and just rained down love on him. We shared the love of Jesus and provided transportation to get where he needed to go. DeAnnah, Our site coordinator from Grand Saline was able to share her testimony with him. He felt more love from us than he had with the ministries he was in and left with the feeling of desiring what DeAnnah had.

CHAD
As one of the leaders at Mission U-Too, it was amazing to watch a team come together and serve with Mission U-Too within the community and serve with passion and authority under Chad’s leadership. Chad was prayed over by Billy Graham’s ministry, and they said that they could see God in his face and that where ever he goes he will prosper because he has God. The people of Van have said that God is using him and has designed him to lead others in the area of disaster relief.

You never know what someone is going through when they get that hamburger, whether it be loss of material possessions, dealing with anger, a new baby needing healing…they all need the love of Christ. It’s amazing to see how God impacts the people we serve as well as the people who volunteer to serve.