Children’s Disaster Services contracts with new Gulf Coast coordinator

Children’s Disaster Services (CDS) has contracted with Joy Haskin Rowe to work as the CDS Gulf Coast regional coordinator. She lives in North Port, Fla., and also serves part-time in a pastoral ministry position with Central Christian Church in Bradenton, Fla. In other news from CDS, a volunteer in Hawaii worked with the American Red Cross to provide some care for children affected by Hurricane Iselle.

CDS Gulf Coordinator
Joy Haskin Rowe

Gulf Coast regional coordinator

This position is a partnership with the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). Joy Haskin Rowe holds a master of divinity degree from Christian Theological Seminary and is an ordained minister with the Disciples of Christ. She has had experience in program planning and implementation, ecumenical and mission work, congregational ministry, children's ministry, and chaplaincy.

Rowe is working with Kathy Fry-Miller, the associate director of Children's Disaster Services, to expand CDS efforts in the Gulf Coast states. In particular, she will network with other disaster response organizations, set up volunteer training, call CDS leaders, and support the creation of Rapid Response teams to be able to respond to disasters in the area with more urgency and flexibility.

She already has begun the networking effort. Last week, she and Fry-Miller met with staff from the American Red Cross, county government, Children's Board, local VOADs (Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster), and the state VOAD chair, in Tampa, Fla., hosted by the Crisis Center of Tampa Bay. The two also met with the American Red Cross Division Disaster Director in Sarasota, Fla. Contact Rowe at CDSgulfcoast@gmail.com.

Photo courtesy of CDS

CDS and American Red Cross volunteer interacts with childrren at a DARC center in Hawaii following Hurricane Iselle

Hawaii

One of the trained Children's Disaster Services volunteers in Hawaii worked briefly with the American Red Cross to provide some care for children affected by Hurricane Iselle. The program had put volunteers on alert last week to help out at the Disaster Assistance and Recovery Center (DARC) at Pahoa Community Center on the big island of Hawaii.

“Candy Iha, CDS and Red Cross volunteer, reported that there was not enough space for setting up a children's center and no accommodations for volunteers, but that they were able to offer some comfort to children for the short time they were there with their parents in the center,” Fry-Miller posted on Facebook. The CDS volunteer distributed crayons and paper for children to draw while their family filled out forms.

Previously, as the hurricane was approaching the islands, Iha already had been providing support for children. “I have been providing support these past few days to keiki [children] in our town who are rightfully very frightened,” she wrote in a Facebook post. “The schools are closed and everyone is home waiting for it to be over. We also had a 4.3 earthquake up here this morning, so folks are being tested. Mahalo [thank you] for your prayers.”

For more about the work of Children’s Disaster Services go to www.brethren.org/cds.

Source: 8/19/2014 Newsline