PCCR News and Updates

US DISASTER RESPONSE [Barre Vermont Flooding] The last few days in Vermont have been highly rewarding! We’ve put in long days of hard work, and we are usually tired but satisfied by the time we get back to the church house, which doubles as our base. For many of the locals, this is not the first flood in the past few years and they seem to have adjusted to the reality. These are their homes and houses where their parents and grandparents lived and grew up and their children now live. Some of the houses in this city go back generations. One older lady said the hardest thing was losing her treasured heirlooms from her mom and grandmother. Working here has given me an opportunity to see a glimpse into the lives and hearts of people who otherwise would never have opened their hearts in this way, and it gives us a direct access to bless them and their lives and love on them. ~ from a volunteer #USDisasterResponse #VermontFlooding #PCCR #hope

Haiti 🇭🇹 While I was in Haiti to visit the project, I sat in a meeting with a few of the Haitians who help manage the work that we do there. It was fascinating to be a part of this meeting. They shared how grateful they are that we empower them to help their fellow brothers and sisters. It touched me to see their deep passion and drive to help their fellow Haitians and are willing to go to great lengths to help those in need. With some support, they can make a big impact, but they really struggle to do it on their own. They are very grateful, both for the help and how we are going about helping the Haitians, and I want to extend that gratitude to our supporters. Thank you! #Haiti #CrisisResponse #InternationalCrisisResponse #HumanitarianAid #hope #PCCR

Ukraine 🇺🇦 The Kherson region has been devastated by the dam break and flood. At one of our distributions, we walked around to check on the damaged caused by the flood. One place in particular was absolutely heart-wrenching. As the couple told their story, they broke down in tears, recounting the events that happened. When the dam was hit, they could hear the water rushing toward their home, and ran to grab their important documents, before escaping to higher ground. The water levels reached around 11 feet in some areas and completely obliterated buildings, livestock, and personal belongings. After the water went down, they came back to their home. It looked as though it had been turned upside down. Furniture was broken and strewn everywhere. Walls were broken and floors were non-existent in some places. Millions of dollars worth in tools, gardens, livestock, and feed for the livestock were swept away with the water. In its place, the water left a stinking sludge over everything it touched. I could feel the heaviness and heartache they were experiencing. Kind neighbors are providing them with a place to stay while they are rebuilding their home. #Ukraine #UkraineWar #InternationalCrisisResponse #HumanitarianAid #HumanitarianCrisis #Hope #PCCR

A PEEK INTO THE NEWSLETTER In the last quarter, we have focused a lot of time on internal development, as well as developing the training. Amidst all of that, our Field Director in Ukraine, Daniel Beiler, returned from Ukraine with his family and a small team of staff and volunteers went to Haiti to help with a localized flood response and to visit the project. It has been a productive time. In this newsletter: - Ukraine: Flood response to the dam break - Haiti: An update from our Field Director - US Response: The First Response Tool Trailer and RV are fully equipped, set up and ready to go! Follow link below to read or signup for the newsletter https://plaincompassion.org/newsletter/ #Haiti #Ukraine #CrisisResponse #InternationalCrisisResponse #USDisasterResponse #HumanitarianAid #hope #PCCR

SIGNUP IS OPEN FOR THE NEXT TRAINING!👏🏼 For all of you who like planning months ahead, here’s your chance to sign up early. We have limited spots so make sure to claim your spot. The dates are January 28th through February 8th. For more details, visit https://plaincompassion.org/training-program/. To sign up, please fill out the form at https://form.jotform.com/213517548196160. We would love to see you there!

Haiti 🇭🇹 In the Prison service we lead songs and preached on the consequences of sin using the story of Achan as a example. Afterwards, we had testimony time and some of the ladies sang and then two of the young men got up and sang a song of testimony. I find it encouraging to see the young men getting more involved. In closing we sang “Vini chak moun ki plen pêche Kris genyen mizèrikòd” “ Come, every sinner, Christ has mercy”. One of the older ladies came to the front and fell on her knees in tears. I prayed for her while the rest sang and then she shared her testimony, repented of her life of sin that has made her whole family suffer and asked God for forgiveness and then she asked the Lord to forgive her and save her. One of the things I am very burdened with is that each one of these inmates, who have come forward, accepted Christ and have repented, need discipleship. At this time, it feels we are harvesting the harvest without a plan keep the fruits from rotting. Commitment and openness is the first step, but long term discipleship is what many of these prisoners need. Pray for the lady who gave her life to the Lord today. Her biggest request is that her family would forgive her and accept her again. For the 28 year old young man that has been in prison since he was 17. He was arrested for fighting but because he has no family, no one has ever paid for him to go before a judge to be sentenced. In a sense he is sentence to life, unless someone gets him a attorney and gets him before a judge. And the saddest and most touching prayer request is for a young man of 18 that has been in prison since he was 14. He has also never been before a judge yet. He had a small notebook hidden in his clothes that he pulled out and used to give me his mom’s phone number. He asked me to call her for him and plead with her to come visit him. She has never been there to visit him in 4 years. For my father and my mother have forsaken me, but the Lord will take me in. Psalm 27:10 #Haiti #CrisisResponse #InternationalCrisisResponse #HumanitarianAid #hope #PCCR

Ukraine 🇺🇦 The pizza projects for soldiers and military hospitals with our chaplain are one of my favorite projects in Ukraine. A few weeks ago, we had the opportunity to go to a base that housed soldiers and make pizza and share the gospel with these guys. The hard things they see and experience every day are shown in their eyes and written on their faces. Making pizzas for them and then preaching and praying for them feels like a very small way we can bless them. As we were leaving the base and saying our goodbyes, one of the soldiers said, "Thank you for doing God's work." Moments like this make what we do 100% worth it. ~From one of our volunteers #Ukraine #UkraineWar #InternationalCrisisResponse #HumanitarianAid #HumanitarianCrisis #Hope #PCCR

US DISASTER RESPONSE [Barre Vermont Flooding] I would say that floods are probably one of the worst types of disasters to clean up. The water rises quickly, destroys or ruins anything in its path and leaves basements, yards and homes filled with mud and debris. As people work through hard-hit areas, there’s a seemingly endless task of cleaning out houses and washing out sludge. The air has a hopeless feel, and even though people are bravely tackling the task of moving out ruined furniture in their houses and cleaning up yards, it’s clear they need more help. Floods tend to make a newsflash and then disappear as quickly as they came, as though the damage left with the water… it usually takes weeks to get a sense of normalcy back again and often, the people who have been hit by a flood get forgotten as quickly as the news change. When in reality, the needs are still there and a helping hand is still very much appreciated by anyone who is struggling to get back to normal. Homes need to be cleaned, gutted to the water level and re-done inside, piled up debris needs to be hauled off to landfills. In a few days, we’ll have a team on the ground to help the people of Barre with cleanup. The response is open for volunteers and we’d love to have your help on the ground! If you aren’t able to volunteer, consider donating to help cover the costs of the response. To Volunteer https://app.smartsheet.com/b/form/ca56ae0d7fac4e9b97ff3c9a93cf7c30 To Donate https://plaincompassion.kindful.com/?campaign=1264575 #USDisasterResponse #VermontFlooding #PCCR #hope

Last week, we completed another First Response Training consisting of two guys and three girls. One of the guys will be going to Vermont this weekend, to help with flood cleanup. During this training, one of my highlights was seeing the team’s leadership skills develop as we went through some challenging scenarios. To help them understand that making mistakes is not a reason to stop trying but to learn and grow was a rewarding experience. If you are interested in serving with us, or in taking the next training, we’d love to hear from you. The next training dates are from Jan 28 - Feb 8, 2024 and signup is open. -Merv King #CrisisResponse #InternationalCrisisResponse #USDisasterResponse #HumanitarianAid #hope #PCCR

Mervin was one of the first guys to take the First Response Training back in August of 2022 and has been with us ever since. In April of 2023, he stepped up to become the US Response Director and successfully led multiple responses, including the flooding in Kentucky and the tornado damage in Mississippi and Arkansas. During this time, he put a lot of thought and hard work into developing the US Response branch of the organization, purchasing and setting up equipment, tools and procedures, and brought it to the point where someone else can step into his role, With time it became apparent that, while he was doing well as a US Response Director, his real passion is teamwork, leadership, communication and troubleshooting. As such, the position of Operations Director suits him perfectly. With a heart to hear people out, seemingly endless patience, the ability to read between the lines and bring understanding, he’s the right person to have as a link between the field and the office. We appreciate his dedication, insights and energy that he brings to the team!

US DISASTER RESPONSE [Vermont Flooding] Approximately 500 buildings in Montpelier have been damaged, and many of these are small businesses. Fortunately for the people of Montpelier, they have been on the news and there is a fair number of volunteers showing up to help. In Barre, a town situated 20 minutes southeast of Montpelier, there are about 400 buildings that got water damage from the flood. The biggest needs here are volunteers to clean out the basements and gut the walls. Unfortunately there are significantly less volunteers in Barre than in Montpelier. There are also many smaller towns with 20-30 buildings affected in the surrounding region, but the Barre and Montpelier took the hardest hits. This cleanup is going to be an overwhelming amount of work and while the local people are pitching in and doing their best, it will be huge and depressing job on their own. We are now taking volunteers and accepting donations to help the local population. To Donate towards flood clean up follow link below https://plaincompassion.kindful.com/?campaign=1264575 Or to volunteer https://app.smartsheet.com/b/form/ca56ae0d7fac4e9b97ff3c9a93cf7c30 #USDisasterResponse #VermontFlooding #PCCR #hope