Lifespring Church January 2018 Send Relief team in Puerto Rico
On September 20, 2017, Maria struck Puerto Rico as a Category 4 hurricane with sustained winds of 155 miles per hour. Maria devastated the island leaving nearly everyone without electricity, running water, cellphone service, or access to food sources. The storm, the worst to hit the island in more than 80 years, caused an estimated $95 billion in damages leaving most people homeless or nearly so. Even before Maria, Puerto Rico already suffered from high unemployment and poverty rates, along with many suffering from food insecurity.
Puerto Rico is an island territory of the United States, located in the Caribbean Sea, known for white sand beaches and beautiful blue seas.
Bill and I love Puerto Rico. We had taken several vacations there early on in our marriage, both alone and with our friends Tim and Kelly. I have spent hours upon hours on Isla Verde Beach, under a coconut tree, reading Nicholas Sparks romance novels. Good times-I highly recommend it!
Bill and I also have friends who have family in Puerto Rico. Crystal and Jonathan couldn’t get ahold of some of their family members for two weeks. Thankfully, they were all physically well, but very busy dealing with repairing their homes, as well as lack of communication and clean water.
I first heard about Send Relief when our church, LifeSpring Church in Bellevue, Nebraska, showed a short clip during a Sunday morning service in late 2017. Send Relief is a ministry of the North American Mission Board. Send Relief focuses on meeting needs and changing lives by strengthening communities, responding to crises, caring for refugees, protecting children and families, and fighting human trafficking. The clip showed the desperate need for Jesus’ hands and feet on the ground in Puerto Rico for the hurricane recovery effort. I shared with my husband that I felt called to help in Puerto Rico. Of course, it’s “easier” to send a check. I’ve done that many times before. But this time was different. I really believed that Jesus wanted me to actually go to Puerto Rico. Yikes! The evening news was constantly showing the absolute devastation of the entire island. Hard, physical work I can handle; lack of clean water…I don’t know about that!
The following week I confessed my thoughts to my Bible study group. As it turned out, our pastor, Steve Holdaway, personally knows the pastor in charge of Send Relief (of course). Before I knew it he had rounded up a group and we were all set for a January mission trip to Puerto Rico!
Send Relief had purchased a campus outside the capital city of San Juan. The buildings were basic, but a loud generator provided the much appreciated electricity! We had water for showers in our dormitories, although it was not hot or potable. Volunteers at the campus spent hours every day treating water to provide for our drinking needs. I just kept thinking that it was four months since the storm and almost no one had electricity or safe running water. Wow. That’s a long time.
Every morning we all met in the common area for prayer and a devotional, followed by breakfast. We were then separated into teams and given our assignments for the day, along with a van driver. We always ate a sack lunch on the worksite, and returned everyday just before dark to gather together for dinner and prayer.
Lacking an official distribution system, the government of Puerto Rico turned to the local churches to identify the need and distribute the donated food and water.
On Sunday our team attended a local church service. Following the service, we helped serve a hot meal and then handed out boxes of food and water to the congregants and others in the community. The local pastor explained to us that no one in the area currently has the means to cook a hot meal, but they know they can come to the church for hot meals.
Worship service and food distribution at a local church
La Perla is a neighborhood located outside the walls of Old San Juan. Historically, it was built by and for slaves who were not allowed to live inside the city. Later, it was occupied by the poor and came to be known as a dangerous place. La Perla is now struggling through the restoration process. We enjoyed our afternoon grilling hot dogs for the community and encouraging the local church.
View of La Perla and the Atlantic Ocean from the walls of Old San Juan
One entire day was spent roofing and painting homes.
The inexperienced, yet willing roofing crew 
Obviously, discussing the next best step….
The entire grounds of this church and neighboring homes were covered in limbs and debris. All hands on deck!
Looking good now! 
You got this, Jen!
This house is owned by a member of the Puerto Rico National Guard. Called to active duty immediately after the hurricane, he had to leave his wife and small children behind in this damaged home. His wife was so appreciative of our assistance.
I trust their assessment…
This is an island, so, of course, we did squeeze one afternoon at the beach!
Has Puerto Rico recovered from Hurricane Maria? Well, no, to add insult to injury, Puerto Rico experienced a 6.4 earthquake on January 7, 2020. Following Hurricane Maria, Puerto Rico suffered the longest blackout in U.S. history, leaving most without electricity for the better part of a year. Running water has mostly been restored, albeit with frequent interruptions in service, and the water quality is still questioned by some. And, of course, then came the Covid 19 pandemic. Three years later, with the death toll at 2975, thousands of homes still uninhabitable, and even more jobs gone, possibly forever, hundreds of thousands of Puerto Rican’s (who are U. S. citizens) have fled to the mainland. But still, those who remain carry on.
How can you help? First and foremost you can pray. You can donate or apply to go on a mission trip through Send Relief, or the organization of your choice. A fun way would be to spend your tourist dollars there by taking your next vacation in beautiful Puerto Rico! When you go, don’t miss the Castillo San Felipe del Morro, El Yunque National Forest, and the bioluminescent bay kayak tour. I also highly recommend spending hours upon hours under a coconut tree on Isla Verde Beach with a good book!
