Between August and November 2017, crisis-trained chaplains from the Billy Graham Rapid Response Team (RRT) deployed to multiple tragedies throughout five states. Here they offer emotional and spiritual care in Texas after Hurricane Harvey's landfall in late August.
In Houston, Texas, the fourth-largest city in the the U.S., the damage after Harvey was extensive. The work of law enforcement officers in the city and nearby areas was key to recovery efforts.
Just two weeks after Hurricane Harvey, another storm—Hurricane Irma—hit Florida and more chaplains were deployed. Here they minister in Naples in September. Irma tied as the second-strongest hurricane ever recorded in the Atlantic Ocean, according to news reports.
U.S. Navy officers who assisted with efforts in Key West, Florida, stopped to pray after Hurricane Irma.
From the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay hotel in Las Vegas, a gunman rained down rapid gunfire on nearby concertgoers on Sunday, Oct. 1, leaving 59 people dead and over 500 injured. It was the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history. RRT chaplains offered comfort to locals, first responders, witnesses and victims' families.
Chaplains deployed to Las Vegas were onsite to listen to, pray with and simply be present with those coping in the aftermath. “It doesn’t dismiss the pain and it doesn’t answer all the questions, but it does bring comfort and hope in someone’s life after they experience great loss," said RRT's International Director Jack Munday. "And people need to know that God loves them and desires to be with them in such a time as this.”
Also in October, firefighters battled one of the most destructive wildfires in California's history. The northern California fires killed dozens of people, destroyed many homes and burned tens of thousands of acres. Billy Graham chaplains comforted those grieving loved ones, as well as the loss of homes and businesses. They also ministered to first responders.
The first RRT chaplains on the scene of the wildfires live in Santa Rosa and were able to quickly offer the hope of Christ to their own neighbors. Here the entire group gathered for a photo during a break in ministry.
Crisis-trained chaplains listened, talked and prayed with people in New York City after a deadly truck attack shook the area on Oct. 31, killing eight people. Here young people stop to talk with a chaplain.
As they huddled in prayer near a makeshift memorial for New York City victims, chaplains offered a good witness for Christ in the community.
Crisis-trained chaplains ministered in Sutherland Springs, Texas, in the aftermath of a deadly church shooting in early November. When the church reopened as a memorial, roses were placed on white chairs in memory of those slain.
Each of the 26 lives lost in the Nov. 5 church shooting were represented by a wooden cross at this memorial. Many stopped by to pay their respects, some even taking a moment to share their stories and pray with the chaplains. If you were to die tomorrow, are you certain of your destiny? Find out more about the hope of heaven through faith in Jesus Christ.
California's second-largest fire on record—the deadly Thomas fire—erupted in early December and has destroyed hundreds of thousands of acres and more than a thousand homes. Chaplains deployed to Ventura County, California, to offer encouragement and fellowship to both displaced residents as well as firefighters and first responders.
A group gathers in prayer for a family that faced the Thomas fire. Please ask God to comfort and help those impacted by the fires in California and all of the tragic events this fall.
