A U.S. CHINOOK HELICOPTER CREWMAN surveys earthquake damage in Las Colinas, Santa Tecla, one of the locations where Texas Baptist Men are now serving. (RNS/Reuters)

Texas Baptist Men are cooking now in El Salvador
___By Ken Camp
___Texas Baptist Communications
___A dozen Texas Baptist Men disaster relief volunteers have established two emergency food service centers in El Salvador, providing hot meals for residents who were left homeless by an earthquake and landslide.
___Upon arriving in El Salvador Jan. 20, a three-member advance team--Gary Smith of Dallas, Eddie Fonseca of Canyon Lake and Harry Campbell of Killeen--purchased and assembled equipment for field kitchens.
___They were joined by nine other Texas Baptist Men volunteers Jan. 21--Larry Burks of Plano, Robert Childress and Don Wall of Paris, Santos Gaitan of Mathis, Gus Green and Travis Maynard of Whitesboro, Jerry Hamilton of Houston, Jered Sellers of Plains and Robert Thomas of Grand Saline.
___They divided into two six-member crews to set up field kitchens in separate locations.
___One crew, led by Smith, established food service in an isolated, mountainous area. That team was serving meals to about 2,000 people twice a day by mid-week. On the second day of operation, 35 people who were standing in the serving lines made professions of faith in Jesus Christ.
___The other Texas Baptist team, directed by Sellers, set up a field kitchen and serving line in Santa Tecla, at a soccer field where displaced people are living in a tent city. The team was serving about 4,000 people at each evening meal.
___The Texans are working with Southern Baptist International Mission Board representatives Mark and Pam Grumbles and Larry Elliott. In a message to Ted Lindwall of Church Starts International in Guatemala, Pam Grumbles described the earthquake's severity.
___"The house was shaking, and things were falling out of the cabinets and off the shelves," she wrote. "Glasses and cups, knickknacks and other minor things were breaking. The earthquake lasted 50 seconds. We were literally afraid that the house would fall."
___John LaNoue of Lindale and Bryan Finley of Kerrville met in El Salvador last week with the IMB strategy team to survey damage, evaluate long-range needs and develop a long-term Southern Baptist response.
___The disaster relief response by Texas Baptist Men in El Salvador came immediately after volunteers concluded two weeks in Northeast Texas, where they served 51,200 meals to victims of an ice storm.
___To contribute to the Texas Baptist disaster relief effort, designate checks "disaster relief" payable to "Baptist Executive Board" and send them to the Treasurer's Office, Baptist General Convention of Texas, 333 N. Washington, Dallas 75246-1798. Designated offerings also may be given through local churches cooperating with the BGCT.
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The Baptist Standard