The West’s Hurricane Katrina has hit. My sister, who lives in Fort Collins, has said the scene is surreal. Churches packed with families, helicopters still rescuing people from the mountains, entire towns ravaged with water.
Perhaps one of the biggest tragedies is the media. It’s on the homepage of cnn.com one day, but on to another story the next. Yet the destruction and the human need is still growing. Covering disaster, it seems, is not as popular as covering efforts to rebuild.
But rebuilding is what now needs to happen. Here are three ideas anybody can do to help:
- Give personally. If you live in Colorado, go and volunteer to help flood victims. Offer to begin the arduous process of gutting homes and businesses to rebuild. Give groceries, loan your car, open you home to victims. If you’re outside of Colorado, give to one of many local charities on the ground.
- Volunteer with your whole office. Talk to your boss, and in the next two weeks, take a day to volunteer in Boulder, Greeley, Fort Collins, Estes Park or several mountain towns. Gut basements, rebuild homes, clear debris. See if God doesn’t smile on your act of generosity.
- Donate one day’s profits to the relief effort. If you’re in a leadership position at work, consider taking 100% of one day’s profits and donating it all to relief efforts. Watch your sales climb.
Sometimes applying your faith to your work requires creativity and imagination. Sometimes it’s obvious.