Assembly of God looks to help Haiti earthquake victims
Danielle Switalski
The Assembly of God church in Plains is looking to send a seven to ten-person chainsaw crew to Haiti in order to help with relief efforts after a massive earthquake left Haiti in devastation.
The church would partner with Samaritan’s Purse, an International Christian relief and evangelism organization that provides aid to victims of war, poverty, natural disaster and and disease. The relief effort is only in its initial stages as Pastor Jim Sinclair of Assembly of God church has been in talks with a representative from Samaritan’s Purse and filled out all of the necessary paperwork to get the word out there that the church does indeed have a crew ready and willing to help in the rebuilding process in Haiti. Sinclair is currently waiting on a call from Samaritan’s Purse to confirm plans for the saw crew to begin making arrangements to head to Haiti.
If there is a need for a saw crew, Sinclair said it would be approximately 60 to 90 days before the crew would head there. Sinclair initially got a call from Samaritan’s Purse to help with rebuild efforts in North Carolina after a brutal ice storm hit. They could not get a crew together fast enough to help out in North Carolina, but they are prepared to make the necessary arrangements to go to Haiti. Sinclair said that if Samaritan’s Purse no longer is in need of a chain saw crew in Haiti, they will look to send the crew to New Orleans to help out with the two-year rebuild process that is currently underway in the areas still suffering from Hurricane Katrina.
“We (Assembly of God church) believe a lot of what they (Samaritan’s Purse) believe so it makes it easy for us to get behind them and they’re a reputable place and she (representative for Samaritan’s Purse) was very excited that we could put together someone who can do chainsaw work,” said Sinclair.
If the crew is sent to Haiti, the Assembly of God church would have to raise money to pay for the crew to get there and Samaritan’s purse would house and feed the crew for a ten-day period, which Sinclair believes will be plenty of time for the skilled saw crew to make a difference.
“They (Samaritan’s Purse) always try to use people that are located closer to the relief site, but when it comes to this type of work there’s no one around there that has equipment and the ability, it has to come from up here somewhere,” said Sinclair speaking of the rare saw work that is done in the Northwest. “If we could help with some relief there we have enough guys who could go and with our skills I really think we could put a dent in it.”
This is a new endeavor for the Assembly of God church, as it typically tries to provide aid to local residents, particularly with their annual wood donations to families in need every fall. The church has a wood crew of around 11 people who move and deliver 140-150 quarts of wood to people around the town who can not afford heat in the winter. The church funds this project by buying all of the equipment and travel expenses to get the wood.