The Episcopal Diocese of Northern California--spanning from the Oregon border to the Bay Area and from the Pacific to Nevada--is well-acquainted with disasters like wildfires, floods, and earthquakes. More years than not we watch as these extreme events deal devastating damage to our communities, with climate change increasing both their frequency and severity.
St. Luke's has partnered with the Mission for Disaster Resilience in the Diocese of Northern California and with other Episcopal churches in the diocese to offer tangible resources ready to deploy to those recovering after a disaster strikes, through a program called Project (Re)Start.
Participating churches commit to preparing standardized bins of basic necessities people need for setting up a home after having been displaced. Each church focuses on a certain area (bedroom, bathroom, kitchen, cleaning, etc.) to ensure we don't have overabundance or scarcity of certain supplies. The focus on St. Luke's is on bathroom supplies such as soap, shampoo, toilet paper, disposable razors, towels, sanitary products, and so on. Each bin is designed for a family of four, and they are given free of charge.
When a disaster occurs, the Mission for Disaster Resilience immediately coordinates with local authorities on the ground to determine what needs are present and reports this information to the Project (Re)Start Coordinators at participating parishes. The parishes with needed supplies report back what they can provide and the Mission for Disaster Resilience begins coordinating delivery efforts by land or air once the immediate danger in the affected area has passed.
Since St. Luke's got involved in this project, we have assisted in ongoing recovery efforts for those displaced by the Camp, North Complex, and Caldor fires, among others. We also provided acute relief for those displaced by the 2022 Ferndale earthquake. We are honored to do our part in helping our neighbors near and far rebuild their lives after tragedy, and to offer them hope for the future.
St. Luke's regularly accepts donations of items on our list of bathroom needs. Please speak to Amanda Jackson to learn more about what supplies we currently need. We also accept monetary donations for the purchase of supplies. If you are interested in volunteering to deliver supplies to local collection points for distribution, please speak to Mark McMillen.