Leavener Ministry Aspect #2

The second aspect of Leavener will be a disaster relief ministry. With the destruction of Hurricane Katrina there has been a heightened awareness for disaster relief needs. It is a ministry that will include many people in multiple situations. The opportunities to rebuild from the Katrina destruction will last for years. Currently, there are also call outs for relief teams to Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Minnesota and Ohio.

Leavener will raise support, collect resources and send teams to the needed areas. Our hope is that we can include churches and corporations to assist with these needs. We will provide opportunities for groups of people to help rebuild a family's home and support them through the disaster process.

Serving as a youth minister for 15 years, those students are now teenagers to 37 years old. Statistics show us that 70-80% of these students have left the institution of the church after high school graduation. They are not interested in what their parents so desire for them to be a part of. Although they have given up on the church, they have not given up on helping people. Leavener can provide ministry opportunities through humanitarian efforts that will intrigue this generation to get involved aside from the church. These opportunities will also allow parents and sons and daughters to work side by side in a life changing situation. Those are experiences and memories that will last for a lifetime.

Last year I had the opportunity to take my 12 year old son to Mississippi on a relief trip. It was an incredible experience for him to see the tragedy that these people were dealing with. He loved the opportunity to help them. On the way home, he developed an ear infection. Dad had to take care of him because Mom was not on this trip. That difficult moment is a treasure of mine because I got to nurture my son.

We are in the development stages right now of sending a team on a relief trip before the end of the year. If you are interested, you can e-mail me at Rusty@Leavener.com. The dates and location have not been determined at the time of this posting.

Rusty