Christian Radio Network Sponsors Gulf Coast Storm Relief Project
by Wendy Christian and Randall Murphree
June 14, 2006
(AgapePress) - - As a sponsor of 8 Days of Hope II on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, American Family Radio (AFR) broadcast from the Hurricane Katrina-ravaged area during the May 28-June 3 project. More than 1,100 volunteers completed 260 projects in 202 homes in Waveland, Pascagoula, Bay St. Louis, Pass Christian, and Gulfport.Volunteers rebuilt walls inside the home of Paul and Florence Jordan, where seven feet of water had gutted the structure. The blessing worked both ways. Jeff Scofield of Tullahoma, Tennessee, told AFR what a blessing the Jordans had been. "We had a gentleman with us who got news while we were here that his son was going to lose his leg," he said. "As we were praying, Florence Jordan jumped right in and was praying with us and then began to sing praise songs to God. We were all in tears before it was over."
Read Part 1 of this series, about 8 Days of Hope II
Eight Days of Hope I occurred in December 2005. Coordinator Steve Tybor III of Tupelo, Mississippi, hopes to announce dates for 8 Days of Hope III next month.
AFR on-air personality Wendy Christian recorded the following conversation with Florence Jordan during this spring's 8 Days of Hope II.
AFR: I understand you have some people here from 8 Days of Hope.
Jordan: Yes, we do, and they are wonderful. I'm telling you, they are just fantastic. They gave me walls.
AFR: Tell us why you needed walls. What happened to you guys?
Jordan: Katrina came and destroyed our home. We had over seven feet of water in our home, so we lost everything. The insurance didn't do much, so we had to rely on wonderful people to come down and help us. And we're so blessed that this has happened, that people are so wonderful to stop what they're doing in their lives and come here and help us get back our lives that we had lost. We're thankful.
AFR: I understand that you didn't evacuate before Katrina hit.
Jordan: It was scary, especially because I had my grandbaby and I was worried about him. I felt we should have left like we were supposed to .... We have run from every hurricane. This time, my husband said, "You know what? Nothing ever happens in Waveland, Mississippi. We're going to stay." I said, "OK."
AFR: How did you learn about 8 Days of Hope?
Jordan: Someone else signed us up for 8 Days of Hope. My good ol' husband here, he's the type [who says], "Oh, I can do it myself. I don't need any help; they've got people that need it more than we do."
Some of my friends kept saying, "Florence, you need to sign up, you need to get some help." So 8 Days of Hope came and did our electrical [in December].
AFR: How did you feel when you knew 8 Days of Hope was coming back this spring?
Jordan: When we heard they were coming back to work on houses again, I was like, "Sheetrock! Yes! I can get some walls!"
I could feel like we were finally moving, because we had been waiting a long time to get things to happen. Because everybody needs everybody. It's hard to hire people because they're all tied up. They say, "Yes, we're coming." And you sit and wait and wait and nothing happens. But when 8 Days of Hope came, we knew it was going to happen.
AFR: I understand it was a special day when you got walls?
Jordan: It was our anniversary! Thirty-five years. When he called and said they were coming, we forgot about going out anywhere. We're going to stay here and get our house back. We know we're married!
AFR: Have you had a chance to get to know any of the people who came as volunteers?
Jordan: Oh, yes, we have. the people that are in here now -- Jeff and Jim and Karen and Laurie and Jordan and Aubrey. We have so many who have come in here and touched our lives. We will never forget them. We are so grateful. We praise the Lord.
Randall Murphree, a regular contributor to AgapePress, is editor of AFA Journal, a monthly publication of the American Family Association. Wendy Christian is an on-air personality with American Family Radio, a nationwide network of 180 stations with its flagship station, WAFR (88.3 FM), in Tupelo, Mississippi.Learn more about 8 Days of Hope through its website or by writing P.O. Box 3208, Tupelo, MS 38803.
