There is a deep connection in the soul when we see tragedy strike. Reaching out and acknowledging that connection with compassion helps us to find redemption in the memory of our own sufferings. This week we surpassed $30,000 in Mudslide Relief Support funds. Gifts come not only from within the Diocese of Olympia, but across the Episcopal Church. One such $2000 gift came from the Church of the Holy Innocents in Beach Haven, New Jersey. Their rector, the Rev. Frank B. Crumbaugh, III, writes, “We on the Jersey Shore send our love and prayers along with this money. We know the human cost and heartache that comes with disaster, and we want you to know you are not alone as you face the Oso mudslide.” The connection transcends the distance from one coast to another as they support people in the wake of this tragedy here in Washington.
The Rev. Janet Loyd, vicar of Church of the Transfiguration in Darrington, a few miles from the slide site in Oso, has been on the ground from the beginning. She has provided resources with the use of our donations to begin the recovery process. So much goes to help with basic human needs, needs that other relief funds might not address: food for funeral receptions and community meals, clothing for families who no longer have their home, candles for candlelight vigils, payment of utility bills due to the loss of work, assistance with medical bills, gas to travel to doctor’s appointments, and gas cards for a commute that has increased to 160 miles a day until State Route 530 is cleared. Janet states, “Meeting these needs on a personal level allows us as a church to respect the dignity and relieve the suffering of God’s people in a very special way.”
After the initial surge of relief work is completed, there still will be physical and emotional rebuilding to be done. There will be financial costs to this work, too. In the meantime says Janet, “Thank you for your generous outpouring of love and support, and above all for the prayers you have offered on behalf of Transfiguration and the communities of Darrington, Oso, and Arlington. The slide at Hazel Hill has truly changed us forever in ways both negative and positive.”
In his Oso Mudslide Update of April 12, Bishop Greg Rickel noted that President Obama will visit the area on April 22nd. By declared the area a federal disaster area, this brings in additional resources, especially for the victims. He added his thanks for the generosity of support, adding, “There will be a greater need; donations are encouraged and being accepted now and for the conceivable future.”
Bishop Rickel reminds us that our work is to pray, to give and to remember that we are all in this together supporting our sisters and brothers as the Body of Christ reaching out with compassion as they find their way. Keep praying for all those effected by this event. They will know this Holy Week in a way most of us will not.
