Ten Months Later, Ministry Still Hard at Work in Tsunami-Ravaged Area
by Michael Ireland
November 8, 2005
(AgapePress) - - Arguably the worst natural disaster the world has ever seen, the December 26, 2004 tsunami left a final death toll of 175,000, 15,000 of whom were in India. And long after the television crews have gone and the benefit concerts have ended, Hopegivers International's daily commitment to the tsunami victims is still going and growing stronger. "We never thought it would be short or easy," says Dr. Samuel Thomas, president of Hopegivers International. "We are dedicated to bringing help and hope to the children -- and this could take 20 years or more."
Hopegivers first responded to the tsunami by feeding hundreds of victims, building homes, and distributing much needed essentials -- stoves, cooking utensils and continuing care of orphans and widows.
With the help of groups like Medical Missions to India, Hopegivers also provided free medicine and treatment. Nearly 100 children who would have been doomed to a life of neglect, starvation, disease and homelessness after the tsunami now have three hot meals a day, free medical care and a top-notch education in a Hopegivers Hope Home.
Whether it is through home construction, education, medical attention or food and clothes distribution, Hopegivers has done its best to make sure that almost one year later the tsunami victims are not forgotten.
With eight Hope Homes hosting tsunami orphans and regular visits to the refugee camps, Dr. Thomas says, "We are helping our people rebuild their lives, not just their houses. We at Hopegivers look at all disasters as a God-given opportunity to be the messenger of hope."
"For Hopegivers," he says, "every disaster is only the starting point for long-term outreach. The commitment to reconstruct an area that sustained such damage as India did requires many years of effort and support."
Thomas pledges that Hopegivers International will stay and provide aid "for as long as it takes to help rebuild lives that the tsunami swept away."
Hopegivers has also played a crucial role in India's physical, spiritual and mental healing after last year's tsunami.
Hopegivers International is a humanitarian organization known worldwide for its tireless efforts to end the distress of orphaned and abandoned children and to provide emergency relief for disaster areas such as the regions affected by the Bombay floods, the Gujarat earthquakes, Hurricane Katrina and the earthquake on the Indo-Pakistan border areas of Kashmir.
Michael Ireland is chief correspondent for ASSIST News Service. This story is reprinted with the permission of ASSIST News Service. For more information on Hopegivers International or to support their tsunami relief efforts, visit their website or call 866-373-HOPE.
