CALIFORNIA LCMS MEMBERS PUT SPIRITUAL FIRST AID™ TRAINING INTO PRACTICE

Driving to the Wildfire Resource Hub in Pasadena, California, in late January, St. John’s Lutheran Church volunteer Heather Wilkins didn’t know what to expect. She prayed, “Lord, I don’t know what I’m going to be doing or what will happen, but I know You do.”
 
Heather was among nine St. John’s members, fresh off learning Spiritual First Aid™ (SFA) at an LCC Rapid Training workshop, who volunteered at the Emotional/Spiritual Care area of the Resource Hub, which was supplementing two Disaster Recovery Centers of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
 
The Wildfire Resource Hub brought together 45 agencies from government, disaster response, medical, financial, and religious — all vetted by Voluntary Organizations Active in Disasters (VOAD) — to provide direct services to those impacted by the Southern California wildfires: hygiene kits, an extra pair of eyeglasses, food, air purifiers, and so much more.

“I was shocked at how big it was — the line to get help was wrapped around the building, several hundred people had been waiting since 4 in the morning,” Heather said. “There is just so much need.”
 
With such great demand, the St. John’s volunteers were deployed to encourage and engage people waiting for hours, asking “How are you holding up?” or “What assistance would be most helpful to you?”
 
“So many people just wanted to talk,” said Jodi Rahn. “They showed us before and after photos on their phones. They wanted to share their stories with us as a way of releasing stress.”

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Active listening is a key aspect of Spiritual First Aid, helping those affected by trauma feel heard and process the flood of emotions, as well as assessing their true needs.
 
“They’re going through a process. It’s not a one-and-done circumstance. Their trauma is compounding,” said Jodi, who said the SFA training was a refresher from her experience as a community service officer. “SFA equipped us to ask the right questions and interact in compassionate ways — a touch on the shoulder, an offer to pray, offering to help find resources.”
 
Rev. Tim Deviler, campus pastor at Orange Lutheran High School, agreed.
 
“SFA expanded upon the training I received as a hospital chaplain,” he said. “It prepares you for encountering people with a variety of emotional states and be there for them.”
 
Ellen Koldewey, also a member at St. John's Lutheran, added that she was touched by the response she encountered.
 
"The people in line who had waited for hours were so appreciative. They were so grateful to have someone listen and express concern for them," she said. "They had so much loss, but what they hungered for was community. They really wanted to be with each other and know they were not alone."

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For LCC to continue to provide training for crisis response in California and elsewhere, we need help from faithful, generous donors like YOU who are willing to support and serve.
 
Help us continue to BE THERE to bring HOPE FOR THE HURTING with your financial gift to the Southern California Fire Response fund.
 
“The support you can offer right now will go directly to helping families and LCMS congregations in Southern California affected by the fires,” said LCC CEO Rev. Chris Singer.

HELP LCC BRING HOPE FOR THE HURTING—SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA FIRE RESPONSE