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Church of Jesus Christ Renders Aid to Oklahoma Tornado Victims

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Natural disasters of any type, and of any magnitude are prone to strike at any given moment, and normally without any prior warning. Such calamities often result in leaving people in undue predicaments such as finding themselves homeless and unable to obtain the necessities to sustain life. In the aftermath, the weight of the burden of stress that many will bear is often accentuated by the sorrow that is felt because of the lives of loved ones and friends that have been claimed by the disaster that has occurred.


A man holding a boy among the aftermath of the Oklahoma tornado.From Utah to Oklahoma – A Call to Action

Annelies Marie “Anne” Frank, a German-born Jewish girl from the city of Frankfurt, who wrote a diary while in hiding with her family and four friends in Amsterdam during the German occupation of the Netherlands in World War II, is quoted as saying, “No one has ever become poor by giving.” This expression of compassion is often exemplified by those who respond to the call to action to aid and support those who have fallen victim to any unwarranted and unpleasant circumstances in life. It is during those moments that those who are willing to lend a hand to help another begin to realize, as Dalai Lama XIV once said, “Love and compassion are necessities, not luxuries. Without them, humanity cannot survive.”

An example of individuals who have a heart of compassion is the Rev. Myke Crowder, senior pastor of the Christian Life Center in Layton, Utah, and his son, Chris. In response to the storms which devastated parts of the Midwest this past week, Crowder is “soliciting donations so in two weeks he can travel to Moore, Oklahoma, to distribute envelopes containing $500 each to tornado victims in the area hardest hit.” [1]

Nolan S. Taylor, President of the Oklahoma, Oklahoma City Mission of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is also among those who are rallying together to help those in need. The mission home is located in south Oklahoma, just three miles from where the tornado touched down in Moore, Oklahoma. He commented,

With everyone else, we grieve for the loss of life and the massive destruction that has taken place. But now we have a tremendous opportunity to serve, and our missionaries are very eager to help with the cleanup effort. I’ve asked them all to get some work boots and gloves. We’ll have boots on the ground as soon as we’re told where we’re needed. [1]

In the Service of Others

In the wake of the storm, members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (inadvertently referred to as the Mormon Church by the media and others) responded by providing such necessities as temporary housing, generators, fuel, and water to those in need. Two congregations of The Church of Jesus Christ in Edmond, Oklahoma, joined hands with a neighboring Baptist congregation to provide water and other emergency supplies for members of a Baptist congregation in Moore, Oklahoma. As members of the LDS Church await further instructions as to how they can be of more service to the storm victims, they continue to do whatever they can to help ease some of the worry and stress that the victims are experiencing.

“We don’t just rush in with our yellow ‘Helping Hands’ vests and start moving things around,” said President Kevin Graves of the LDS Church’s Oklahoma City Oklahoma Stake Tuesday afternoon. “There are specially trained teams in the area today, searching through the debris for survivors and stabilizing the area. The best thing we can do right now is stay out of their way.” [1]

“The church has a representative on VOAD (Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster), and they tell him what they need from us and then he coordinates with our priesthood leaders to see what we can provide,” Graves said. “Clearly the LDS Church isn’t the entire solution here — we’re part of a much bigger effort. We reach in and offer whatever we can to help.” [1]

Assistance for the storm victims will also be given through the welfare system of The Church of Jesus Christ. The Church has storehouses full of food and supplies in adjacent states, and is able to deliver supplies where needed in an expeditious manner.

“Our experience through the years has been that people really want to help in times of crisis, but they don’t really know how to respond,” Graves said. “So they start rushing in with food and clothes and water, and pretty soon you have more than you need and you have an impediment because you have to figure out how to deal with all of that.”

By working with VOAD,” he continued, “we know exactly what is needed and we can provide help that really makes a difference in people’s lives.” [1]

Meeting the Needs of Others – Both Temporally and Spiritually

Meeting the temporal, as well as, the spiritual needs of the people is Mission President Nolan Taylor’s objective. That objective remains at the forefront as he prepares 168 missionaries and 12 missionary couples to go to work wherever needed under the direction of local Church leadership. Taylor commented, “This is a time when faith needs to be built — and can be built — both through our service in the community as well as through our proselyting efforts.” [1]

Additional Resources:

What are Some Basic Mormon Beliefs?

Be a Good Citizen

Humanitarian Aid from the Mormon Church

Mormon Helping Hands in Chico, California


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