The Ripple Effect of Disaster Relief
“That little saying YES changed my life.”
- Deacon Shelly Sorem
Testimony from Deacon Shelly Sorem
Deacon Shelly Sorem shared her testimony at the ACNA Provincial Council in June.
The ripple effect of disaster relief is incredible. In a testimony given at the ACNA Provincial Council, Deacon Shelly Sorem shares how reaching out in seemingly little ways during a time of distress actually has a huge impact.
In 2017, ARDF partnered with the Diocese of the Western Gulf Coast to assist victims of Hurricane Harvey. The Diocese supported churches, organizations, and individuals with funds from ARDF donors. Deacon Shelly was asked to be part of a discernment team to help disperse funds sent by ARDF, and she shared how “that little saying YES changed my life.”
After Hurricane Harvey, many people who had lost everything were living in hotels across Houston. Deacon Shelly and her Daughters of the Holy Cross chapter decided to reach out to these hotels to see if anyone needed help. They connected with three single moms, taking them shopping for groceries and toiletries. As they helped one mom unload groceries into the hotel room’s kitchenette, they saw that the cupboards were barren. This mom had tears in her eyes as she explained that before Deacon Shelly reached out, she did not know how she was going to feed her three year old son. Deacon Shelly and the other women were able to share that they were there because of Jesus and his love for her and her family.
One of these single moms in particular has an incredible story. Before Hurricane Harvey even hit Houston, Brittney was struggling to get by. With mental health problems that were exacerbated by the trauma of natural disaster, ARDF was able to provide funds to get her the mental help and medications she needed. However, she had previously committed a crime and ended up in prison. When Deacon Shelly visited her, Brittney showed them the Bible she brought with her and was now reading to the other women in her pod. Shelly was amazed to see Christ’s transforming love still working, rejoicing how the “funds from ARDF go way beyond just giving someone a meal or just giving someone a Bible - the ripple effect is incredible.”
Today, five years later, Brittney is clean, sober, and has completed FEMA disaster response training to help women struggling through similar experiences like hers. She often has conversations with Deacon Shelly about why the church helps broken people in messy situations. A ministry of presence to those who are grieving and struggling is one of the most important ways the Church can show how much they care. Deacon Shelly says that “ARDF provided the funds so that we can sit in the mess and we can walk through the mess. That’s what you do in the body of Christ - we walk together through the good, the bad, and the ugly.”
“It’s through the power of the Holy Spirit that we can minister to these people, with the gifts and the empowerment from ARDF, to reach into the community so that someone like Brittney (who was just baptized in January) can be a better parent, can be a better servant for Christ, and she can take it out to other people.”
ARDF is excited to have Deacon Shelly serving on ARDF’s National Disaster Response Task Force. It is our prayer that this Task Force can help equip and mobilize more churches to reach out to those in need after disaster strikes, showing the love of Christ in powerful ways which continue to ripple outward.
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