Helpful Reminders in Disaster Relief Response

I was able to work with a crew cleaning out at a house on Saturday and several things came to mind from a pastoral care perspective that I wanted to share. This is not anything new, but thought it just needed to be shared, especially with crews beginning to come in from out of town and out of state.

Taking photographs – Pictures are being taken by the team leaders for the purposes of documenting what is being done at each of the homes we are working on. Caution should be exercised by other members of the team in taking photos for their personal use. This could be perceived as an invasion of privacy, particularly if the pictures are of the home itself and the photos are taken without the permission and knowledge of the homeowner. Teams should be asked to use discretion, and if possible, ask the homeowner before taking pictures.

Handling what comes out of the house – Enthusiasm abounds when it comes to tackling the cleanup, but it should never be forgotten that these are people’s homes and their possessions, and though we see water-soaked furniture, mud-covered dishes and clothing, it also represents a lifetime for many of these folks and we need to handle things respectfully at all times. Side note: the gentleman we helped on Saturday had just lost his wife of many years the week before the flood. As I was walking back to get another load, I found a garbage can that someone had filled with items of clothing, shoes, etc., that were most likely his late wife’s. This 89-year-old man will never be able to go through the healing part of his grief by going through his wife’s things and deciding for himself what to keep and give away. That decision was made for him by the flood. So, teams need to put themselves in the homeowner’s places and handle things as respectfully and lovingly as possible, given the conditions.

Casual remarks – Again, enthusiasm abounds, but care needs to be taken so that off-hand remarks are not taken the wrong way and seem insensitive to the homeowner’s circumstances. Something said off the cuff may be a light-hearted attempt to alleviate some of the pressure of the situation, but may be very hurtful if overhead and misconstrued by the homeowner.

-Vicki Standley, Director of Pastoral Care, First United Methodist Church in Marion