Praise God Our kitchen is now deployed and fully operational within sight of downtown New Orleans! By God's grace and mercy, and thinks to lots of help from generous donors our kitchen, truck, van and supply trailer are now cooking meals for disaster responders and victims in Gretna, Jefferson Parish, directly across from downtown New Orleans. We have joined forces with the Friend Ships ministry (refer to www.friendships.org) to help cook and distribute food supplies (and pray!).
The Disaster relief ship "Hope" docked across from downtown New Orleans
Our Mobile Kitchen deployed along with Friend Ships Kitchen.
We arrived in Louisiana on Tuesday, deployed to Slidell, Louisiana the next day, and from there we were given permission to cross the still closed Lake Ponchitrain causeway into New Orleans itself. The area is still closed to all but security and relief workers, so it is a mostly empty city, littered with debris and downed power lines. Most of the people and vehicles are either military or power company trucks, both of which deserve a great deal of credit for their tireless efforts to stabilize this city. Yesterday a power company truck was fired on in our area by snipers, but the snipers did not take into account that the air is full of helicopters and within moments two of them were dead courtesy of a US Army Black hawk helicopter. We are very pleased to have a SWAT team from West Virginia patrolling our dock and the neighborhood around us!
Our kitchen is in a warehouse at the dock where the relief ship "Hope" is tied up, and it is now working day and night to prepare meals for both local residents and security personnel. Local churches are now beginning to use this same warehouse to bring and distribute supplies from.
Mike Clow of our ministry has now returned to Lake Charles to help the next relief ship, the "Mersea" (pronounced"Mercy") sail to the same dock.
We will keep you updated as we are able, and we want to express our deepest appreciation for your prayers and donations, both of which are crucial to us. In the meantime here are some pictures we have taken.
Cooking(!) and helicopter touching down on the "Hope"
Damage in Gretna and New Orleans
Kia dealership and a message from a shop owner.
Street Scene in New Orleans and a looted Best Buy.
Wings Of Love
Ministry
"Serving People Who
Serve God"
3818 E Libra Pl, Chandler AZ 85249 (480) 917-3608 email to: info@wingsoflove.org www.wingsoflove.org