Following the April 27 tornadoes, Oak Mountain Missions and Mercy Ministries sent out Gorden Thomason to find where best to focus local disaster relief efforts, resulting in the selection of Pleasant Grove. Exciting work has been ongoing since the day following the tornadoes with plans for long-term projects. This Oak Mountain initiative became Locally Organized Volunteer Effort (LOVE), it's name adopted in part to foster trust in the local community there with a logo used to advertise our presence. Because of LOVE's creation, many entities have become involved and have had an opportunity to participate in an already organized effort. To see a bit of what your prayers and gifts are accomplishing, check out one of our newsletters.

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Disaster Relief - Operation Repair & Rebuild

Note that the heading of the response to the Alabama Disaster Relief effort is beginning to change. Based on a collaboration meeting with churches in Pleasant Grove Friday morning June 3, there is still a push to complete the "moving storm debris to the curb" effort to take advantage of the costs being picked up by FEMA at 90% and the State of Alabama at 10% for debris removal with the deadline currently set to expire July 12. Bulldozers have been contracted by Birmingham Baptist Association to move destroyed homes to the curb in McDonald's Chapel and may move more debris in weeks to come in Pleasant Grove and Pratt City. The churches are going to be establishing relationships within their churches and then to others through their network to gather more detailed Mercy Ministry information to try to focus on the uninsured and underinsured. Christian Services Ministry is continuing to provide material and personnel resources in this effort.

Oak Mountain is scheduling Saturday, June 11, for tree and debris removal and to care for several properties that have not been completed that are not in the bulldozer category. This may be our last debris effort until we move to the next stage. Please email us if you are able to participate on Saturday, June 11.

Gorden Thomason, retired trade school teacher, with significant home, school building, and other construction, remodeling and missions experience, has agreed to continue serving as the Oak Mountain Church, PCA Project Manager for the next several months. His efforts will be particularly focused on repair and rebuild opportunities for ministry, but we are also talking about "rebuilding lives" spiritually through longer-term relationships. There will be a time-lag as we identify projects and begin the process of securing permits, materials, skilled labor, and funding. The assessment will include Oak Mountain's continued efforts, as well as other Evangel Presbytery churches, the Birmingham Baptist Association and other networked churches. Oak Mountain efforts will continue to be coordinated through Pleasant Grove, PCA and teams still may, in the future, be housed at Westmont Baptist in Minor Heights where we have served from the beginning of our efforts.

Thank you again for your participation in ministry to people in need. Please keep checking for updates in the newsletter or here on the website.

Opportunities to Serve

Wednesday Prayer
We now have three times available to meet for prayer on Wednesday:

6:00-7:00am - Join us in Bob Flayhart's office for a time of corporate prayer.
1:30-2:30pm - Join Cathy Barrington in the Prayer Chapel to pray for those affected by the disaster and for those responding.
7:00-8:00pm - Meet in the Prayer Chapel for a time of corporate prayer.

Saturday Prayer

Prayer: 7:00-8:00am - We invite all those not going on work teams to join us in Bob Flayhart's office for a time of corporate prayer.

Weekday Needs

Office Helpers: Volunteers are needed to assist with office support for Gorden Thomason, who is serving as Project Manager / Team Leader for Oak Mountain through the Pleasant Grove PCA church. The ministry area is anticipated to be in Pleasant Grove, Pratt City, McDonald's Chapel, and Wylam. We need men or women with basic computer/office skills to assist him from 9:30am-2:30pm Monday through Friday. It is about a 30 minute drive at those times of day, and we'd love to schedule volunteers each day from now through June 30. Please email us for more information or to sign up for a day or two.

Assessors & Runners: Gorden Thomason needs assessors with construction or repair experience to obtain work orders each week. He is also looking for runners each day to assist the work teams in the field, pick up supplies, deliver meals, etc. Please email us for more information or to sign up for a day or two.

General Opportunities with Other Groups
If you wish to volunteer at times that Oak Mountain is not coordinating work, please contact one of the groups listed below:

Watch our emails and website. As needs arise during the week, we will alert you and request volunteers.

Our Sister churches in Evangel Presbytery are also coordinating relief efforts. Check these websites for updates and opportunities:
Briarwood, PCA
Covenant, PCA

Samaritans Purse, a national relief organization, will continue to meet in the Hueytown area through this weekend: The rallying point is the Garywood Assembly of God, 2730 Allison Bonnett Memorial Dr, Hueytown, AL 35023. Monday Through Saturday you may report at 7:00am or 1:00pm each day. They offer a brief orientation, then transport you to the field. They service the areas of Pratt City, Pleasant Grove, McDonald Chapel, Concord and Wylum.

Christian Service Mission: CSM has a warehouse and distribution center and need for help with loading/unloading of trucks, supply management/sorting and drivers for distribution. Serving times: 8:00am - 6:00pm (12:00pm -6:00pm on Sunday) They are located at 3600 3rd Ave. South, Birmingham, Alabama 35222.

Donations

You can give financially through PayPal or by mail. Tax-deductible donations for relief efforts may be made by writing a check to "Oak Mountain Church" marked "Tornado Relief" in the memo line. In response to this disaster, and to support victims of this tragedy, PayPal will credit transactional fees incurred from April 28 to May 27, to any registered charity fund-raising to aid tornado relief.

Checks can be mailed to:

Oak Mountain Church
5080 Cahaba Valley Trace
Birmingham, AL 35242

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