Humanitarian Efforts - Need a Woman's Touch

[amethyst333]

Hi,

Usually I just read posts and threads. Recently a relative in another state needed some help on the level of Helping Hands. It took me FOUR days to find the correct priesthood to contact to let them know the problem.

Then I had to talk the stake president into helping. I had to assure him I was a member of the church, with my ward and stake. All I wanted was help for someone I could not physically get to, who was heartbroken and exhausted with trying to deal with cleaning out a damaged home. I realize men and women communicate differently. I felt like I was speaking a foreign language with the stake president - and I would know! I speak four languages other than English.

When a priesthood holder tells me that, for liability reasons, bishops may not want to lend help, I can sort of understand. But, we sent people into Joplin, Mo, and it was still tornado season. Were they not being sent into possible harm?

Had I gone through the stake relief society president, women would have been at that house within an hour!

Thanks for letting me vent.:)

[Dravin]

When a priesthood holder tells me that, for liability reasons, bishops may not want to lend help, I can sort of understand. But, we sent people into Joplin, Mo, and it was still tornado season. Were they not being sent into possible harm?

It wouldn't surprise me for the Church to be (self) insured for projects like Helping Hands but not for ward or stake level projects not part of said program. Additionally a proposed project may be a large enough potential health hazard to those volunteering such that leadership puts a kabosh on it insurance or no.

Had I gone through the stake relief society president, women would have been at that house within an hour!

Not if she shared the Stake President's concerns.

Edited July 28, 2011 by Dravin

[Guest gopecon]

When you talk about a "damaged home", there can be concerns about the health and safety of the volunteers who would be going in. If that's the case, sending a crew of untrained men may not be a safe or responsible thing to do. I don't know how you described the problem to the SP, but if it sounded bad enough, he might have been reluctant to put people in harms way. (If it was unclear, he could have sent an EQP over to assess the situation.)

We've had people request help with trees that they wanted to get cut down. Due to the size of the trees and the close proximity to houses we had to decline the request and recommend that they seek trained professionals to help.

[amethyst333]

What I wanted was for a priesthood leader to at least go to the house to see if help can be rendered. My relative was already in that home cleaning away. I had viewed pictures of the damage on FB, and we are not talking Hazmat, or I would have called them myself.

As I explained to the SP, "If you had a relative in a distant state in distress, and you could not get to them, wouldn't you do everything in your power to get them help?" He did agree with me on this point. I did explain what I had seen in pictures, but needed him to see for himself.

My father was a bishop when I was a child. When my siblings and I would complain about him helping all these people we didn't know, because they were either inactive or nonmembers, he had a good explaination: "My responsibility is to every soul within our ward boundaries."

I have been the Relief Society president, and sometimes my information was gathered before the bishop knew there was a problem. In this case, I would have gone to the house right away to see the damage, documented the damage on my camera, and then contacted the bishop/stake president.

There was also some interesting conflicts on this issue, with two people hesitating to help, and two others contacting me and stating they would be over to see what could be done.

Dravin and Gopecon are too young to remember this, and may not even heard of it, but friends of mine, Relief Society presidents in Britain, drove across Europe to help people in eastern Europe who needed help. They left Britain, rented a van in France, got the goods they needed and away they went. The church didn't send them. At the time they left Britain, a photographer with National Geographic had been taking pictures of members. He tagged along with the women. When he didn't check in with NatGeo, they contacted him to ask where he was. "I'm helping Mormon women give aid."