DISASTER RESPONSE

Children’s Disaster Services (CDS), responded in Aroma Park, Ill., a suburb of Kankakee, March 17. The CDS volunteers served at a Multi-Agency Resource Center (MARC) supporting the community following a tornado that passed through Aroma Park on March 10. CDS also responded in Union City and Three Rivers, Mich., March 20-21 at MARCs supporting those communities following a tornado that passed through the cities. In Union City, an EF3 tornado damaged or destroyed approximately 70 homes in the area, 3 people were killed, and 12 more were injured.

In Aroma Park, through communication during coordination calls with the National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (NVOAD) and state or county COADs, CDS connected with emergency management to offer care for children of those impacted and who were coming to the MARC. The assistance center was open Monday, March 16, and Tuesday, March 17, from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. CDS volunteers cared for children ages infant through age 15 while their parents received help and information on how to move forward after the destruction of their homes.

Brethren Disaster Ministries is continuing work at a rebuilding site in Letcher County, Ky., with new builds and repairs of homes damaged during the July 2022 flooding event. In 2026, our district’s volunteer week is shifting to the summer, late August/early September.