Attending the semi-annual meeting of the board of New Orleans Baptist Missions is always an experience. It’s a four-hour-long experience, but there’s not a boring moment in the day.
Okay, stay with me here, gang. We’ll do this in question and answer form.
WHAT IS THE N.O.B.M.?
A group of people charged with the oversight of the four SBC inner city missions–the Brantley Center (for the homeless), the Baptist Friendship House (for troubled women and their children), and the two centers–Rachel Sims and Carver–which minister to neighborhood children. The chairman is David Crosby, pastor of New Orleans’ First Baptist Church, and board members are mostly local folks like Freddie Arnold and me, but we also have Dr. Wanda Lee, the executive director of the SBC Woman’s Missionary Union–she flies in from Birmingham–and Kay Cassibry, leader for the Baptist women of Mississippi. All our local missionaries are present, plus a group of our leaders from the North American Mission Board in Atlanta, people like Dr. Richard Leach, Dr. Jean White, and Dr. Mickey Caison. Fred Luter of Franklin Avenue Baptist Church serves, along with Gwen “Miss Chocolate” Williams. Dr. Guy Williams serves, as does Dr. Loretta Rivers from the seminary, and attorney John Occhipinti. Today we elected five new members of the board: Gary Mack, Skider Chatham, Mike Hammer, Denise Shannon, and Mardel Earley. (Hope I got their names right.)
WHAT’S HAPPENING REGARDING THE HOMELESS IN NEW ORLEANS?
We’re told this city has twice the number of homeless now as before Katrina.
The North American Mission Board is putting the Brantley Center up for sale. The building is old and unusable since Katrina. Volunteers have moved most of the equipment and supplies to other mission centers, and given some to Camp Living Waters, but there’s still a lot of material in the building to be moved out. “What kind of material?” I asked. “Stuff,” was the answer. Nothing of any value. It has to be out by the end of April. The power company is shutting off the D.C. power on May 15 which means the elevator will no longer function.
We have an ad hoc committee working on finding some kind of long range program to help the homeless, not simply by providing a shelter, but something deeper, more helpful, and more permanent. We are full participants with the New Orleans Mission, a downtown shelter which recently erected a tent-like facility to quickly get large numbers of homeless off the street.
WHAT’S GOING ON WITH NOAH, THE REBUILDING ARM OF NAMB?
David Maxwell, director, is “up to his eyeballs in alligators,” reported his boss, Mickey Caison. He is trying to get the new volunteer village at the Household of Faith Church ready quickly. It’s needed now. 80 people are working on the building at this moment, putting in bathrooms, kitchens, dormitories. It will take 10 days to two weeks before the building is ready. We have 300 people coming this weekend, and have worked out a “camping” solution for them. Hopeview-St. Bernard is housing people, also Oak Park Baptist Church.
HOW IS THE DISASTER RELIEF WORK GOING?
Mickey said, “We hear people say, ‘It’s a good thing the United States has not had a natural disaster since Katrina.’ Actually, we have. Our organization has responded to 19 state conventions in 2007, dealing with ice storms, tornadoes, floods, and such. To date, we’ve hosted 18,600 volunteers in New Orleans to help with the rebuilding of the city. We’ve recorded 383 professions of faith, but I’m sure that’s way low, because our people are wonderful witnesses but don’t always turn in reports. I’m confident the number is a thousand.”
Mickey Caison commented on the volunteers who come to help us. Not a lot of them have been skilled workers. “We’ve had sheetrock hung backwards, and I saw one house where some of it was backward and some was hung right; you’d think someone would have figured out that it was different.” He went on to say that many teams do not bring a skilled crew chief with them, so the NOAH construction coordinator has to work with them. He’s trying to located skilled crew chiefs who will come in for a couple of weeks at a time to direct teams of volunteers.
Even if you considered only New Orleans and left the Mississippi Gulf Coast out of the equation, Katrina would still be the largest natural disaster to ever hit America, Mickey reported.
The NOAH Rebuild is working to reconstruct homes and churches. Call them at 504/362-4604.
WHAT’S THE MENTAL STATE OF OUR PEOPLE?
Tobey Pitman works with the churches on the North Shore and reported that St. Tammany Parish (Slidell to Covington) is number four in the nation in suicides. The parish is averaging 3.8 suicide attempts per day. Many are doubtless displaced New Orleanians, since some 60,000 people from our city are said to have settled on the north side of Lake Pontchartrain. At this point, we do not know how many of the tragedies are actually from here.
WHAT’S THE STATUS OF HEALTH CARE IN NEW ORLEANS?
Not very good. Doctors and nurses are in short supply, and a wait in an emergency room can take up to 12 hours in some hospitals. Someone said he knew of people driving to a hospital in Baton Rouge or Jackson.
David Crosby appointed an ad hoc committee to seek out a way to have an ongoing free health clinic in New Orleans staffed by local doctors, nurses, and medical students. Wanda Lee is chair. Gwen Williams, David Rhymes, Kay Bennett, and I will work with her. We’re to bring a plan for a clinic to the fall meeting of this board.
TELL ME ABOUT THE WORK OF THE FRIENDSHIP HOUSE.
This is one of the great ministries of this city. Check out our website: www.bfh.lifewaylink.com. The BFH has been ministering to the downtown homeless living under the interstate…we’re working with A.P.Tureaud elementary school…we’re teaching ESL classes to the Hispanic employees of downtown hotels and to day laborers in a parking lot at Lowe’s….we’re having a health fair at the center on Saturday, April 5….Last year, the Friendship House gave away 2,643 Bibles, involved 123 women in Bible study, served 18,777 meals, counted 365 churches involved in our ministry, counted 164 NOBTS students who helped us, gave away 3,582 hygiene kits and 2,515 first aid kits. Counseled 232 people, taught sewing to 19, gave away 1600 backpacks to children, and gave 607 Christmas gifts to needy children and families of the neighborhood.
WHAT DOES THE FRIENDSHIP HOUSE NEED?
The list includes Wal-Mart gift cards, postage stamps, paper towels, diapers, and nonperishable food items. And money–they always need more money than comes in. Again, go to the website. (I did not get a list from Rachel Sims and Carver, but it’s probably identical.)
WHAT ABOUT RACHEL SIMS AND CARVER CENTERS?
Rachel Sims Center has 2 fulltime and 2 seminary interns working in the building. Carver has 3 fulltime and 2 interns. They count 68 different programs with the various people groups of the inner city of New Orleans.
Both centers are available to host out-of-town church teams that want to minister locally in prayer walking, block parties, evangelism, backyard Bible clubs, etc. Each center has 40 beds and a nice kitchen. The cost is $10 per night and the group prepares its own meals. (In contrast, the NOAH folks–presently putting people up at Hopeview in St. Bernard Parish–charge $20 per night, but provide all meals.) Director Larry Miguez explains that groups working with NOAH will almost always stay at Hopeview, although there are exceptions.
HOW ARE THE MISSION CENTERS DOING FINANCIALLY?
Skider reports that our expenses are exceeding income right now. Just after Katrina, God’s people knocked themselves out sending money this way to help minister to the needy. That has declined seriously over the last year.
Addresses:
The Carver Center, Jennifer Fannin, director — 3701 Annunciation Street, N.O., LA 70115
The Rachel Sims Baptist Mission, Larry Miguez, director (Linda Middlebrooks, assistant)– 729 Second Street, N.O., LA 70130
The Baptist Friendship House, Kay Bennett, director — 813 Elysian Fields Avenue, N.O., LA 70117
All three mission centers are pleased to welcome short-term volunteers who want to come and help around the building. And they will not be angry if you just want to send a contribution. These are some of the most wonderful people on the planet who have been on the job in the worst parts of this city for years. The Lord is using them in incredible ways. Want to give hope to the hopeless? Contact them.
THIS IS NOT A QUESTION, BUT I WAS STRUCK BY SOMETHING AT THE BOARD MEETING….
There must have been 25 of us sitting around this huge rectangle made up of perhaps 8 tables. The fellowship was so helpful, as people gave and received information, then made crucial decisions. I found myself wanting this for BAGNO, our association. As we restructure the organization of the association, that will become one of my goals, to plan for a blue-ribbon meeting at least monthly of our key leaders to share ideas, challenges, needs, and strength.
WHEN WE LEFT THE MEETING IN THE AFTERNOON…
Some of us drove over to the Noah’s Ark Baptist Church site at 2840 So. Saratoga Street in the deepest, inner-city-iest portion of this beloved city, where EXTREME MAKEOVER is rebuilding this terrific church. They were having the kickoff at 2 o’clock. Police had cordoned off the street in every direction, limousines and huge buses were filling the streets, volunteers in the scores and church members in equal numbers–all wearing colored t-shirts to identify them–were behind barriers, waiting for the program to begin. Pastor Willie Walker is about to overdose on joy. The former building was demolished after the hurricane, and the television program has erected Noah’s Ark an entire new plant. Not a large one, it appears to hold perhaps a hundred worshipers, and it is gorgeous on the outside. I gather that the inside has yet to be completed and this is where volunteers will be directed.
One block over from Noah’s Ark is Daneel Street where several murders have occurred since Katrina. One night, four young men were gunned down on a corner of that street. And this is where the Lord’s church has chosen to situate itself and minister.
We’re so grateful for the generosity of the Extreme Makeover people, for the attention they will be directing toward this needy city by their television program, and for the encouragement they are giving to this wonderful church. A number of local television news crews were on hand, and Karen Willoughby, managing editor of our Baptist Message was covering the story.
Michael Raymond came up and visited with some of us. His Ninth Ward church was ruined in Katrina, and so he is now pastoring Shiloh Church. His sister is the secretary at Noah’s Ark. As he gazed at the brand new church building being given to his friend Willie Walker, Michael said, “Man, I wish I had gotten in that Extreme Makeover line!” Don’t you know he does.
The blessings just keep on coming. We’re grateful.