Seventh-day Adventists and their neighbours are teaming up to provide relief and comfort to victims of Hurricane Charley, which struck August 12 in Cuba and the next day, August 13, in Florida (USA). At least 22 people are confirmed dead in that state, with another five reported dead in the Caribbean. Estimates of property damage are in the billions of U.S. dollars, as the hurricane flattened entire communities.

"We plan to be here for three weeks at least and plan to rebuild people's lives here," said David Canther, senior pastor of the Mt. Dora Seventh-day Adventist Church in Mt. Dora, Florida, a community near Punta Gorda. He is coordinating a relief effort that has already established two "chuck wagon" feeding sites, will soon open a third, and is providing construction supplies to help repair and rebuild peoples' homes.

"People are so filled with thankfulness," Canther told Adventist News Network (ANN) in a telephone interview. "We've been feeding meals every day, and the people who can't cook, they're just so grateful."

Canther said one goal of the feeding sites is to alert residents to the aid available at the main Punta Gorda Seventh-day Adventist Church campus. The sanctuary, though damaged by the hurricane, is where food baskets are being assembled; the neighbouring community services building is now a miniature building supply store, offering materials to those in need.

"We tell people who come and eat [at the chuck wagon] that they can come to the distribution centre," Canther said. "We invited them to come, receive building supplies, and get more food. We try to tie them back to the main campus, so that we're not just giving them a hot meal, but telling them where the main distribution centre is."

The efforts have been warmly received by residents and area officials, he added.

"The city mayor from Punta Gorda has been so thankful," Canther said. "We've been feeding police and [people from] different agencies. City leaders now see us as being a real blessing to their community. It's impacting the community leaders, but it's impacting our neighbours now."

Part of that blessing sometimes involves sharing the overflow of supplies with other agencies. Canther said the Adventist Church plans to share extra refrigerated meals with The Salvation Army relief effort, which is getting underway.

He added that a real benefit of the disaster relief work is seeing God's hand in the action: "The greatest encouragement of faith is to say today, 'we do not have what we need, but God will provide,' and to watch, one day at a time, what God will bring. It's a neat revelation of seeing God miraculously work. When we say we need it, another truck drives up."

According to Don Noble, president of Maranatha Volunteers International, Hurricane Charley had a severe impact on that group's church-construction work on the island of Cuba.

"The work of Maranatha has been impacted by [Hurricane] Charley," Noble wrote in an e-mail message. "Our office in Havana is without electricity, water or telephone with no idea of when those services might be restored.... Please pray that we can continue to provide church homes for the people in Cuba despite the impact of Charley." [Mark A. Kellner for ANN/APD]