In November 2006, a tornado ripped through a residential area in Riegelwood, just west of Wilmington, killing nine people and destroying more than 40 homes. Community members felt hopeless and overwhelmed, so North Carolina Baptist Men’s Disaster Relief Team devised a new strategy—a building blitz, inspired in part by the television show “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition,” which completed a project in Raleigh not long after the Riegelwood tornado.
The goal was three homes in three weeks. To expedite the building projects, each home had the same floor plan and the foundations were built before most volunteers arrived on site.
But God’s plan for the Riegelwood community extended further than just three homes. Some families needed help fixing a roof, replacing siding, repairing a storage shed, or raking trash out of the driveway. Baptist Men also took on a fourth home that a different volunteer group started but could not finish. And all the work was possible because of generous gifts to the North Carolina Missions Offering, which provides support for the NC Baptist Men disaster relief ministry.
God sent the right volunteers at the right time, including a drywall team from a Hispanic church in Durham. Their pastor, Roberto Rodriguez, was drawn to North Carolina from Honduras following Baptist relief efforts after Hurricane Mitch. “This is our opportunity to work hand in hand as we will in Heaven,” said his wife, Delia Rodriguez.
Pray for the Riegelwood Community: