On the morning of Sept. 13, the eye of Hurricane Ike made landfall in Galveston, Texas. Although the storm registered as a Category 3 on the Saffir-Simpson hurricane scale,  its path of destruction left 143 dead and a costly price tag of $27 billion to clean up.

Above the din of bulldozers and chainsaws, hard at work clearing the debris, congregants of the First Baptist Church of Navarre heard the cries for help from Texas residents seeking answers and aid.

“We’re part of a program of disaster relief in the Florida Baptist Convention,”  said Jim Pennington, pastor of the church.  “Anytime there’s a natural disaster, we are trained to go and provide assistance.”  They were joined by volunteers from churches in Milton and throughout Florida.

 

 

For more on this story, see the Oct. 2 issue of the Navarre Press or subscribe online.