The trinity of disaster

Having been raised in the church, one of the mysteries and wonder of faith was the Three in One—Father, Son, Spirit of God. It became more real encountering small daily miracles, graces and agape love. But as life goes, there is both light and shadow around us. Mennonite Disaster Service (MDS) exists to bring light where the shadows fall. People ask, what is it like to work in disaster? There’s no simple answer, but sometimes it feels like the opposite of grace and miracles. Natural disasters seem to have their own trinity—composed of wind, water or fire. Sometimes, it’s all three.

Rocky Mountain MDS has been onsite, in the arms of the Aspen Acres Fire, since flames consumed the town of Beulah, Colorado. It started with dry, driving winds: gusts all spring and summer—dry enough to turn beautiful forests of ponderosa pine into matchsticks. Then came the fire, driven by unending winds—changing from east to west and then from the south. It first surrounded the little mountain town west of Pueblo—then retreated, then came again, burning from three sides. Almost 11,000 people from 100,000 acres in and around Beulah were evacuated for nearly three weeks. When they returned—it was a moonscape of burned dust: no trees, no houses, no life. But that’s not the end of the dark trinity. The third part of this trinity was water. Within a month, torrential rains came. Gushing fury, washing the black and grey soils into rivers of flowing mud, piling against the remaining houses up to four feet high. One elderly resident was swept to his death. It seemed the shadows had final victory.

In the depths of darkness and despair, MDS volunteers showed up by the dozens. Even before the residents could return to the ruins, MDS, a first responder in disaster, was on the ground.  Volunteers met with fire crews, human services, senators and emergency management teams to plan a response, called “Crisis Cleanup.” During this two-month period, over 80 MDS volunteers put in over 2,000 hours of volunteer time hauling debris away. MDS set up in the local community center in Beulah, and met with more than 200 survivors. We are now in the second phase, recovery and rebuilding. MDS cannot stop natural disasters, but we can address the human disaster after loss. We bring the hope of helping neighbors like Jesus commanded, the joy of providing compassion God intended, the comfort of rebuilding lives. That is restoration.

We have a long road ahead of us as we continue to rebuild and restore after the Aspen Acres Fire. Up to 830 structures were lost in the flames. Nearly 370 homes burned. More than 200 homes in the town of Beulah were lost. You can help. We will need your donations to build homes for the most in need. One family with a disabled son lived in a tent for three months with no electricity or running water. A single mom with two children is still living in a camper shell with no sewer or lights. You can send donations to MDS, 583 Airport Rd, Lititz PA, 17543 and direct them to the Rocky Mountain Unit MDS/Aspen Acres Fire. We also need your prayers and action: we never forget the brave survivors who lost everything; they continue to recover. Volunteer for a day, a week or two weeks when we begin rebuilding early next spring. You can get information from your MDS church contact person, text Rocky Mountain Unit, or email our regional volunteer coordinator Jason Stutzman at jstutzman@mds.org.

by Paul Johnson