Community Aid Relief & Development
CoAid™ is a nondenominational Christian organization that works with the local church to train, equip, and engage ordinary people to respond in extraordinary ways when disaster strikes.
10 years ago today the world was left dumbfounded as one of the worst tragedies unfolded before our eyes. The events of 9/11 left a scar that has changed the course of a nation and countless people around the world are still experiencing its effects today.
This morning at church we remembered that tragic day. The names of 2,966 souls who lost their lives were projected onto the walls of the massive auditorium as each person in the congregation reflected in their own way the day that will not be forgotten. Some people cried, some people searched for names they knew, and others wondered if anything like this would ever happen again.
For each person who died, someone else lost a loved-one -- a father, mother, son, daughter, brother, sister, husband or wife. What was it like that morning for that person to kiss their loved one goodbye, not realizing it would be for the last time? Such is the work of tragedy – it comes when you least expect it and rips your heart out leaving you screaming and wondering why.
We find an answer in John 16:33. Jesus said, “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” We should not be surprised when bad things happen because Jesus said “you will have trouble” -- it is guaranteed. However, the good news is that Jesus said that in Him...
Within 15 days of the January 2010 earthquake that struck Haiti, killing 2% of its population, Americans donated an estimated $528 million help meet the relief efforts.
This massive outpouring of government, corporate and private donations highlight the willingness of our nation to respond generously to the needs of others in a crisis such as this.
It seems only natural for people to open their wallets when they see the stark images of humanitarian need on their TV screens. When the news channels dedicate the bulk of their air-time to the unfolding disaster, people feel compelled to respond – and rightly so.
However, my belief is that this demonstration of concern, despite being rooted in goodwill, is myopic and lacks a true understanding of the nature of disasters.
Let me explain…
When referring to the Disaster Management Cycle, we teach that there are two sides to dealing with disaster events:
- Risk Management: This is what can be done before a disaster takes place in terms of community development, risk management and increasing the levels of preparedness.
- Crisis Management: This is what can be done after a disaster takes place, in order to help relieve the community and restore it to pre-disaster conditions or better.
We illustrate this with the following diagram:
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