The Baran Family

Last Thursday we made our third trip to Malapascua to bring relief goods to the survivors of Typhoon Haiyan. We loaded our church jeep with over 5, 000 packages of noodle soup, 2, 500 cans of meat, and 1000 pounds of rice! It took 3 days to shop and load the jeep! Pastor Travis then left Cebu City at 1 am Friday morning to deliver this relief shipment. They arrived at 5 am and loaded a boat to take everything to Malapascua island. Unloading the boat took 4 hours! The people were so thankful for everything we brought! We packed the goods in bags to be given away. Each member of Malapascua Missionary Baptist Church received enough food for one week. We also gave out 400 relief packages to the people living in the community! Our college guys used the  tarps we brought to provide temporary shelters and even put a tarp on the roof of Missionary Timothy Owens home! They worked tirelessly to pick up debris and help these people move on after the storm. A faithful lady from our church set up a medical clinic for two days and saw over 70 patients. That Sunday they held services and many new people were at church for the very first time! Your sacrifice has made such a difference in the lives of these people! We have trips planned every week for as long as there are funds. If you still want to give, mark your gift…Travis Lewis Philippine Disaster Relief Fund and send it to Word for the World P.O. Box 849 Rossville, Georgia 30741-0849. There is still a great need on this little island. With God’s help these resilient people will recover from the storm!

Our third shipment getting ready for the trip to Malapascua!

As the entire country begins recovering from typhoon Haiyan, we are trying to do our part in Cebu. Our third shipment of relief goods was sent to Malapascua early this morning! Medical supplies have been donated and we have sent a nurse from our church to help with the people’s medical needs. Food and water was also sent with the shipment. The island is completely cut off from the mainland so drinking water is one of their biggest needs.  Many have lost their homes and are sleeping in the open air. Pastor Travis and our Bible college guys are there right now trying to set up tarps for shelter and clean up some of the wreckage.  Because the island is so small they are not receiving a lot of attention but their need is great. If we don’t help them who will?  This is a need that will not just disappear in a week’s time. Recovering from the devastation will take months.  Please pray for the people and consider helping them in these uncertain times.

In these past few days we have seen unfathomable damage across the Philippines. In Tacloban, a city that took the full brunt of the storm, it is estimated that ten thousand are dead. That is just one city. The government is still trying to make contact with other cities that we still have no communication or information from. As for northern Cebu there is still no relief. Our church took some supplies to our missionary pastor and his family on Malapascua island on Monday. When I stepped on the island the people thought we were a news crew surveying the damage.  Miraculously the church building is still standing, the Bible didn’t even get wet. Yet others lost everything. The island is completely devastated-church members lost their homes, and you could find boats and furniture strewn all over the island. While Malapascua is not receiving a lot of media attention, the eye of the storm passed right over them. Our church will be focusing our resources to help these people on Malapascua Island. Many of you have contacted us and asked if you could help. If you want to help you can send money to Travis Lewis at Word for the World…marked Philippine Disaster Relief Fund. The address is P.O. Box 849 Rossville, Georgia 30741-0849. The phone number is 706-866-8826. Pastor Travis is our missionary partner in Cebu. He shares our burden to help the Filipino’s through this crisis! 100 percent of what you send will help these people rebuild their lives. We sent our first load of supplies on Monday. Our next shipment will leave for Malapascua on Thursday and then again on Friday. People need food, water, medicine, and basic hygiene necessities. We want to help these survivors get back on their feet. As we minister to their physical needs we will also look for ways to minister to their souls. Please keep praying that many would come to know Christ!