It is not hard for visitors from the mainland United States to draw comparisons between Campamento El Guacio and Presbyterian camps back home. “You can just imagine kids there in the summertime,” says Bryce Wiebe, director of
Special Offerings for the Presbyterian Mission Agency, reflecting on the facility with the requisite dorms, dining hall and fields you expect at a summer camp.
It’s been more than a year, but the mere mention of the devastation causes Lourdes Perez’s chin to tremble. Tears fill her eyes.
Everything was lost. The coffee trees. The plantain trees. Everything from the farm she and her husband, César Oliver, had been building for more than three decades.
After Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico last year, Presbyterian pastor Manuel D. Silva bore the dual burden of caring for his family and his congregation.
A delegation from the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)’s Office of the General Assembly visited Puerto Rico this past fall and came away surprised and encouraged by what they saw. The six-member group met with presbytery leaders and pastors to share information and to look at ways the national church can help local churches move forward.
Pastor Richard Rojas describes walking into his sanctuary at Puerto Nuevo Presbyterian Church after Hurricane Maria and sitting down and crying. The Category 4 storm hit his church in Puerto Rico hard. Roofs were torn off adjacent buildings, a metal fence lie twisted on the street in front of the church, and there was water damage in the sanctuary.
For most of last week, leaders from Presbyterian Disaster Assistance (PDA) and the co-moderators of the 223rd General Assembly (2018), made their way across Puerto Rico to listen, learn and share with congregations impacted by Hurricane Maria.
It’s been more than a year since a trio of hurricanes wreaked havoc on Texas, Florida and Puerto Rico, leaving a path of destruction, major power outages and many people without homes. Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria, in quick succession, pummeled their targets over several days late last summer.
It’s been a year since a trio of hurricanes wreaked havoc on Texas, Florida and Puerto Rico, leaving a path of destruction, major power outages and many people without homes. Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria in quick succession, pummeled their targets over several days late last summer.
A recent Harvard University study about Hurricane Maria’s impact on Puerto Rico reflects the tragic situation that Presbyterian Disaster Assistance has reported on since responding to the disaster.
