www.cbfla.org

In This Issue:

Tornado in Lake Providence During Pandemic:A Good Time for Resurrection

by Kyle Kelley

CBF-LA Coordinator

As if the times were not already strange enough, with masks andgloves, virtual church and zoom now our primary social outlet, thencomes a phone call. We were in the middle of our Easter lunch,dressed up, with a fancy table set to imitate normal. When the caller IDlights up "Marc Boswell," my wife, Charlene sighs, "he would not becalling on Easter unless something was really wrong."

His voice a little shaky, but determined, Marc begins, "Kyle, theMission House just got hit by a tornado." He too was celebrating anEaster meal with Emily Coady a now "virtual" Doctoral student andrefugee to the Delta after the University of Arkansas campus recentlyclosed. They had heard the town siren a half hour earlier and weremonitoring the storm warnings.

When they heard the tell-tale sound of the "train" as universallydescribed by tornado victims, they headed for the hallway forprotection, when an explosion of glass (7 large window panes) ignitedin the back two bedrooms. They retreated to the pantry waiting for thestorm to lull and began to hear rain gushing into the house.

In the backyard two large oak trees on the edge of the Mission Houseproperty snapped in two with one half of one resting on the garage and

driveway.

About 20% of the slate roof tiles had flown off. The flat roof sectionover the laundry room and guest showers was down to bare wood asthe roll roofing was harnessed like a sail and left its moorings.

In the front of the house fewer tiles were gone, but the Together ForHope sign had vanished, perhaps floating down the Mississippi leavingits framing shattered and posts scattered. Only about 10 feet fromwhere the sign had once stood, our "little library" (a project from lastyear's Mission Day) was unscathed and the books still perfectly dry.

I quickly told Marc, "I am on my way," though "quickly" will take over 4hours after packing, gathering tools, and recruiting our volunteerextraordinaire Emilio Lozano from Church for the Highlands,-- thenmaking the 175 mile trek.

Our Home Depot stop in Monroe for tarps was more surreal as wedetour around numerous houses themselves only recently struck bywinds that blew off roofs and knocked trees into dwellings. Many trafficlights were out and Home Depot itself was on emergency back-up

lights.

Meanwhile, local volunteers rallied around the house thanks to theCassie Condrey family and friends. By the time Emilio and I rolled in,all 7 broken windows had been boarded up, much of the glassremoved and the part of the tree covering the driveway cleared out.Cassie also provided alternative housing for us for the evening at thenewly restored and gorgeous Bernard House.

Monday morning, Marc contacted a glass company in Delhi and theywere there in a couple of hours and had all seven 28"x30" panesreplaced in about an hour and half at a reasonable price. We were allamazed as Emilio and I had figured we would have been lucky tocomplete that in a day.

Then the Mennonites invaded. Can we take care of your trees? Forfree? Yes, we do that. Soon about 15 Mennonites arrived, probablymost of the men in their little congregation down the road. Theyappeared to range in age from teens to their 70's, each with achainsaw. It sounded like a motorcycle convention.

These are large, tricky trees Emilio (who does this professionally)noted, about a $2,000 job. They were organized like an ant colony andclearly knew what they were doing. After the trees were down anddiced, they hauled the 3'x3' chunks to the road by dragging them with a4 wheeler. The huge job was finished in about 3 hours and theyseemed to enjoy every minute of it. They did allow us to give a nicedonation to their church.

Around lunch time, the Condrey family had a trailer dumpster delivered

which we all filled with the bulk of the major debris. Emilio and I beganmaking repairs to the fence with remnants, though there were still 3sections whose contents were missing. Later, on Tuesday, the banknext door sent a contractor who said they would like to totally replacethe fence with a new one and had everything removed that afternoon.

We are feeling blessed by the support from so many places and realizethings could have been worse. The interior of the house, particularlythe back two bedrooms, laundry room and guest shower area took a lotof water. So far we see no water damage as plaster fares much betterthan sheet rock and our wood floors look fine.

With the massive amounts of glass shattered, we were advised todiscard linens. St. Charles Avenue Baptist Church quickly responded toa facebook post from Marc with an offer to have those replaced. Weare so appreciative for other offers of support from churches andindividuals that have come in.

The major focus now is the roof which will need to be replaced andafter talking with three contractors, we selected one last night and workbegan today. With the pandemic, our insurance adjuster is "virtual," soMarc is collecting and submitting information to the link today. We hopeto have insurance kick in on the roof, but it likely will not cover all thecosts, plus we have a deductible. So those who want to help and areable, donations to the roof fund is the critical need. Those who wish togive on-line can do so here, or mail a check to CBF-LA, 520 OliveStreet, Shreveport, LA 71104.

Another survivor of the storm is the Purple Martin house just outsidethe side door. Each year for the last 10, I have watched the PurpleMartins return in the Spring. The bird house was there long before wearrived in Lake Providence. I suspect it is a relic of the 70's and couldwell be 50 years old.

On Monday, the Martins were as busy and active as ever. Their househas lost a few doors along the way, but these guys are undeterred.They represent for me resurrection and resilience and that God is with

us through the storm.

Marc and I visited again today by phone and shared that we both feltblessed, as harrowing as this ordeal has been. I know we are in a timewhen many feel grief and pain well beyond what we have experienced.There are many vulnerable folks in our state, country and world rightnow and we must remember them in prayer and in our actions. But fornow I thank God for our churches and friends and the small still voicethat says, "I will never leave you."

Events Still Tentatively Scheduled Pending the Covid-19 Pandemic:

Bags of Hope & Lake Providence Mission Day August 1

Stagg-Tolbert Forum Stagg-Tolbert Forum October 17October 17Broadmoor Baptist - Baton Rouge

featuring Paul BaxleyCBF Global Executive Coordinator

Contact Us:

Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of Louisiana

c/o Sabra Hicks 520 Olive Street

Shreveport, LA 71104

Coordinator: Kyle Kelley 318-780-4127 cbflouisiana@gmail.com

Together for Hope Director: Marc Boswell252-363-8098 mjboswell3@gmail.com