God's Perfect Timing

BY TINA V. BRYSON

It was more than 100 degrees, but nothing could dampen the spirits of community members from Dawson Springs, Kentucky, waiting for the arrival of essentials from Christian Appalachian Project’s (CAP) Operation Sharing Program. The tractor trailer emblazoned on the side with the words “We Deliver Hope” felt like hope personified in a town where seven months prior nearly 75% of homes were destroyed by an EF-4 tornado.

“The tornado was horrible. It came through and destroyed one side of the town. When I arrived at the church that morning, the whole roof was peeled back and I just stood there and wept,” said Jeff Winfrey, pastor of the Dawson Springs Primitive Baptist Church. “The Holy Spirit said it’s a building, go check on your people.”

He did just that and says he found some miracles of people who survived, and stories that broke his heart like the sisters whom he’d known all his life, their home was just flattened. They were found together about 80 yards away. Their sons were devastated that their mothers had not survived the storm.

“There were times I nearly cried, in the middle of the night sometimes was the hardest times. The Spirit Himself just gave me encouragement,” Winfrey recalled describing the community as a Mayberry kind of town, where everyone knows each other and looks out for each other. “Since those early days, we have seen help and money pour into this town, like you can’t imagine. There’s a lot of good folks in this world.”

Early after the tornado, the church used the donated funds to buy building materials for a warehouse to keep the truckloads of donated food that had been sent to Dawson Springs. The Amish provided the labor to rebuild some homes and the much-needed warehouse. Then, the church financed the building of a food bank in the downtown area, so that people in need would have easier accessibility to the food.

“When Operation Sharing called with a donation of bathtubs, kitchen sinks, and vanities, we had just moved the food,” Winfrey said. “Now we had this warehouse to house those essential household items that could help families when they are ready to rebuild. The timing was perfect. God is awesome and CAP is a blessing.”

The community developed a Long Term Recovery Committee to determine how to help families when they get to the point of rebuilding. Local leaders and volunteers help coordinate donated items and funds, and work with groups outside the area on logistics to get building supplies, furniture, and other household essentials to help families get back on their feet.

In many cases, when there is a natural disaster, Operation Sharing is the first CAP program to respond bringing in water, cleaning supplies, and other necessities. Wesley Howard, a CAP tractor trailer driver, has been on the frontlines making sure that these items make it to people in need immediately following a disaster and months later when families may be still struggling to put their lives back together.

“It gives you a sense of pride that you can help people in need,” Howard said. “CAP builds hope in these communities by delivering the items they need the most. It takes some time to figure out how to get the items to the people because the tornadoes tore up so much including the warehouses to store items.”

Seven months after the tornado's impact, Howard estimated he had driven over 10,000 miles delivering goods and supplies to partners at the local level that can manage the distribution in the community.

“It’s sad to see the devastation firsthand. What you see on the news just doesn’t do it justice when you see the damage for yourself,” Howard said. “I’m glad we can play a part in letting them know that people are thinking about them and want to help.”

The tornado ripped the roof off of the Dawson Springs Primitive Baptist Church.

PHOTO COURTESY OF JEFF WINFREY

Operation Sharing delivers bathtubs, kitchen sinks, and vanities to the community.