Sheds of Hope – Where Do We Start?
1. DETERMINE POLICIES AND LEVEL OF INVOLVEMENT
“Weep with those who weep.” Romans 12:15
Disasters take us all by surprise, so it is essential to plan now how you would like to be involved with Sheds of Hope. This will give you time to work with any committees, groups, or governing bodies to establish any necessary policies so that you can respond quickly when the time comes. It also helps us to be more efficient during a disaster, as we can contact you directly with a specific need.
What is a Level of Involvement? It’s based on your location.
If a disaster happens within 100, 200, or 300 miles of your church, we invite you to pre-build sheds and get them ready for transportation. It’s up to you to decide the radius (100, 200, or 300). The larger the radius, the more opportunities you may have. Note: Beyond 300 miles is a bit far for us to transport the sheds economically, but you can always send teams to help set them up.
If a disaster happens within 50 miles of your church, rather than preparing sheds, we encourage you to make plans to allow Sheds of Hope teams to bunk at your church, or to allow your parking lot be used as a staging area. You might also allow the presbytery to place a shower trailer on your property for use by Sheds of Hope volunteers.
Next …
2. SET ASIDE THE $$$ FOR BUILDING AND DEPLOYING SHEDS
$1K = 1 Shed; $2K = 2 Sheds; $3K = 3 Sheds
If you are outside the 300-mile radius, instead of using the funds to build sheds, you might choose to get involved by using those funds to send a team to set-up Sheds of Hope that were built by other churches. This is a policy decision, so it’s good to decide this ahead of time.
Next …
3. TRAIN THE PEOPLE
Contact us to schedule a training event, or to join with other churches in a combined event. For a Pre-Built Shed, you will need 8 People for 8 Hours of training. For a Pre-Cut Shed, you will need 3 People for 3 Hours of training.
Now, wait for the call … when a disaster strikes, it takes about two weeks for teams to be allowed into the disaster area. You will use that time to pre-build the sheds you planned to build so they will be ready for delivery to the disaster site within two weeks.
Things you can do now to be ready …
4. PREPARE FOR ACTION IN THE CALM BEFORE THE DISASTER STRIKES
a. Recruit a Leader and Communicate the Opportunity to the church
c. Order one Shed-in-a-Bucket for each shed you plan to build (Coming Soon – Everything you will need to fasten a shed together.) These buckets can be stored at the church and opened when you get the call to build your shed(s).
d. If your church is within 50 miles of a current disaster, and you were planning to build sheds in the area, you can sign up to be part of our:
Two-Year Follow up Plan
• A shed and a family may be assigned to your church
• Paint the shed within one month of set-up, and if possible paint more than one shed during the same morning. Allow 1 hour per shed (Youth can paint a shed, but always have at least 2 adults with them)
• After you have painted your allotted sheds for the day, gather all the volunteers and families and have a lunch/dinner together. Example: bring Chick-Fil-A sandwiches and drinks for everyone and have the families share their stories and specific prayer requests. Take note of any follow-up needs and see that necessary actions are taken.
• Your church will be responsible for these families over the next two-years.
• You will go back to re-level and fix anything broken at 6, 12, 18 and 24 months from the set-up date and see how the families are doing. Each time, repeat the opportunity to have a meal together, have them give an update on how things are going, and ask for prayer requests. Note each of the prayer requests and remind them of any answered prayers, as your church has been praying for them.
Last, but not least! …
5. CONTACT US
Contact Us Directly Through Our Contact Form
John Browne
MNA Disaster Response Specialist, Sheds of Hope
Mission to North America
Sheds of HOPE 