Presbyterians love their PDA!

"No PDA" is something people have been saying since middle school.  It has something to do with refraining from groping with your significant other in front of everyone, but what's wrong with Public Displays of Affection?  Christians are supposed to show love in public, right?

Ok, so this article is not about PDA as far as kissing and holding hands, but another kind of PDA.  PDA is one thing the Presbyterians can  be proud of.  PDA may involve sleeping in a room with someone who snores.  PDA has blue "sweat-shop-free" T-shirts.   PDA values ministry of presence, self care, and personal narrative.   PDA is pretty darn awesome.

PDA is Presbyterian Disaster Assistance.

Image from PDA on Facebook

Image from Southern Comfort Mission and Ministry Team Facebook

What does that mean?  Well you may be familiar with "Presbyterian Disaster" at least if you've seen my friend Marcus and I together...

Presbyterian Disaster ASSISTANCE is providing care, love, and support to areas going through disasters.  This could be tornadoes, like those in northern and central Arkansas earlier this year, floods or hurricanes like Sandy, Katrina, Ike, etc. It may be other disastrous situations like all the migrant children crossing our boarder right now, or the Ebola virus outbreak. They are an area where Presbyterians are doing good in the world.  And it's sort of a Public Display of Affection.........well maybe more a public display of God's Love. The emphasis is on helping people through the struggle.  Not going in and preaching, or telling them "it's part of God's plan," but listening and holding their hand through it all in between acts of kindness such as cleaning up or rebuilding.

PDA volunteers set up shop in disaster areas alongside FEMA, American Red Cross, World Cares, the Salvation Army, and dozens of other relief organizations.  PDA organizes churches to host volunteer teams and connect them with work to be done rebuilding lives after disasters.  In most cases PDA stays longer than other groups because of the stable funding by the denomination.  We can be proud to say that PDA is still cleaning up from Hurricane Sandy among many others even though most aid organizations have moved elsewhere. But we can be angry, sad, and aware that our brothers and sisters are still suffering from damage from nearly ten years ago. Angry that PDA still needs to be there. Angry that there is injustice in recovery.  Angry that those who cannot afford insurance have a harder time recovering physically and emotionally.  Angry that race, economics, and social barriers unequally hinder people from recovering.

As of October 27, 2014 PDA is currently responding to disaster in the following states.
Arizona      (border crisis and helping migrants in distress in the desert),
Arkansas (tornadoes in spring 2014) and Ferncliff Disaster Assistance Center
Washington state      (mudsilde March 2014), Colorado (flood Sept. 2013),  Also working on training Presbyterian Camps and Conference centers to respond to school violence across the nation.
California      (earthquake),
North Dakota      (Spirit Lake Sioux Reservation),
Illinois and Oklahoma      (tornadoes),
Missouri      (Joplin tornado May 2011 and Ferguson shooting),
Louisiana      (helping 2005 hurricane survivors rebuild and return home),
Iowa, Nebraska, Kansas, Alabama      (various wildfires, hail, floods and tornadoes),
New York, New Jersey, Coinnecticut, and West Virginia,      (Superstorm Sandy, Oct. 2012),
South Carolina      (Feb. 2014 ice storm)
Tennessee      (home repair 2010 flood)
Mississippi      (April 2014 tornadoes and June 2014 hail, flood, wildfire damage)
Florida      (spring 2014 flooding in panhandle and June 2014 hail, flood, wildfires)
West Virginia, (flood recovery and other projects)
Maryland      (home repairs with NAILS ministry)

There is also PDA going on in the Philippines (Typhoon Haiyan), South Sudan, Afghanistan, Gaza, Iraq, , Ebola Crisis,  China (Earthquake August 2014),and  Syria (refugees of violence).  And given current events PDA is even working on Voilence across the US, and the Unaccompanied children and the border crisis, Visit pda.pcusa.org to learn more about each situation.

Here are pictures of a college spring break group I joined in Nashville that did some PDA a year after the 2010 flood in Nashville. (you may have forgotten the flood which was swallowed in the press by the BP oil debacle in the Gulf soon after).  Three nostalgic cheers  to Goo Goo Clusters, and the good times with Alicia, Tedd, Danielle, Michelle, Kathleen and Pastor Kerry!

My good buddy Tedd and I trimming bushes in a field full of flood debris

This deck was washed from the house into a guy's yard during flooding.
Several PDA teams--30 people total-- picked it up and put it back in place.

JMU Campus Ministry PDA team helping Mr. Glenn clean up
his outdoor cookhouse from flood damage a year after the flood.

JMU Spring break volunteers cooking supper for PDA volunteers

Sound like a good idea? Maybe you want to get involved with your church, your family, your bridge club, your college club, or neighborhood group.  Check out this page for ways to get involved.  You can make an impact for so many, and you can see some places you may not otherwise.  Pray, stay informed, assemble kits, volunteer, or give money.

Outside of sending volunteers, PDA works with Church World Service to get volunteers to buy and donate kits or care packages to send to disaster areas, or even school kits, baby kits, and hygiene kits to send overseas regardless of natural disasters.  You, your church, your garden club, your sports team, or whoever can make and send kits to disasters.  Mail them to us at camp Ferncliff in Arkansas or to Church World Service in Maryland where they are stored in warehouses.  If you send it here my fellow YAV Dan will make sure it gets stored properly and sent out when needed.  They will be sent out whenever disaster strikes or there is need.  Follow these links for information on what supplies to buy and where to send them. http://pda.pcusa.org/page/kits/ and  http://pda.pcusa.org/page/act/

 

Photo of disaster kits by Kathy Broyard, PDA NRT.
Retrieved from pda.pcusa.org/page/kits.

Dan (at end of the table) helping the youth group at Second Pres. Little Rock inspect and prepare for shipping kits made and shipped here to Ferncliff by churches and community groups across the US. Photo from Second Pres LR Facebook page

I recently did some PDA with Dan and Molly on the Jersey Shore and New York City.  I will post more on the work and journey there in the coming days.   Please stay tuned.

Have you done PDA or other disaster response?  When, where, why? Please comment below.