In this report from CNN, there is a video about how survivors of Michael are desperate to get news to their families they are still alive. This is a challenge to see which cell phone company really cares about the service they provide. GET TRUCKS DOWN TO MEXICO BEACH and let people use the cell phones to contact their families! Set up phone banks for them. What it will cost you is nothing compared to what you have to gain by helping these people actually communicate in this heartbreaking time of need to hear the voice of someone they love!
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Hurricane Michael death toll climbs to 18 with new victim reported in Virginia
CNN By Ray Sanchez and Nicole Chavez October 13, 2018 CNN)Hurricane Michael's death toll climbed to 18 Saturday, after another victim was discovered in Virginia.
Fears were mounting for those who did not heed evacuation orders before Hurricane Michael bulldozed large swaths of Florida's Panhandle, and residents in the hardest-hit areas grew increasingly desperate for provisions. Three days after the monster storm, with rescue workers cutting through hulking debris piles in search of survivors, residents formed long lines outside fire stations, schools and Salvation Army food trucks to collect bottled water and ready-to-eat meals. "It's about to get stupid if people don't get food and water," Panama City Assistant Fire Chief Gary Swearingen said Saturday. Two food and water distribution centers have opened, and others are expected, officials said.
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"I just noticed the wounded feet," said Damien Morden, who often passes the statue on his lunch hour stroll."If you strip Christianity back to its basics, it's about Jesus helping people out and taking care of the disadvantaged."
Homeless Jesus in the forecourt of Christ Church Cathedral on Sparks Street. (Sandra Abma/CBC)
At first glance, it looks like a homeless person huddling for warmth beneath a blanket, lying on a park bench along the west end of Sparks Street.
A closer inspection reveals nail marks in the feet.
This is Homeless Jesus, one of a series of life-size bronze statues from Canadian artist Timothy Schmalz.
It's been sitting outside Christ Church Cathedral since late spring and it's been getting a lot of love from passersby.
"There have been people who have left flowers on the statue, one person actually placed coins in the wounds and someone put a blanket on it," said Shane Parker, dean of the Anglican Diocese of Ottawa.
Parker says the statue reflects the church's ongoing work to help the homeless.
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That is what a lot of people get wrong, especially if the church they attended ended up doing them more harm than good. The truth is, the Son of God did not come as a rich man, but spent His ministry as a homeless man among the people He came to lift up. Yes, He lifted them up by getting down to where they were in life. Some were ill, some had been suffering from demons. Each one with their own struggles, yet all of them needed the same thing. HOPE! Hope that they were not worthless than anyone else. Hope they were not unworthy of better days. Hope their pain could stop. Hope they would go to sleep without feeling the pain of hunger. Hope that everyday from the moment they heard His voice, it would all be better than the moment before was. Right now, there are people here in Florida who just lost every possession they had with Hurricane Michael. They have no idea where they will live or how to rebuild their lives. Hurricanes are horrible! We went through Charlie, Frances and Jeanne in Central Florida. None of them caused as much damage as Michael. This is drone footage of Mexico Beach, ‘It’s all gone’: Tiny Florida beach town nearly swept away by Hurricane Michael Things can be replaced and they can find another place to call home. They can find new jobs if their business was destroyed. It can all be replaced by something else including the thoughts they have. There are many more people who witnessed the destruction of this monster hurricane. The key word they need to keep hearing is, they are not victims, but are survivors! This is more about being proactive in beginning to heal. First, allow yourself time to grieve. Rest as much as possible. Above all else, talk about what is going on with you. As a survivor of multiple traumatic events, that is the way something like PTSD is prevented. Do not hold in your feelings! That is the worst thing you can do. It allows the horror to gain control over your future. Keep in mind that you could not prevent what the wind and water did that horrible day but you can prevent it from taking control of tomorrow. If you need help, ask for it. If you need to talk, find someone who will listen. Dismiss any stupid thing they may say when they do not know what to say. Keep talking and know, they do care about you, but it is above their ability to understand what you are going through now. And if you think God did it to you, remember the Homeless Jesus statue you just read about. Remember what He did as much as what He said. YOU ARE LOVED!
