Great Plains Conference Disaster Fund

During the Rev. Hollie Tapley’s 8 ½ years as disaster response coordinator for the Great Plains Conference, she’s worked with Kansans and Nebraskans whose homes have been devastated by tornadoes, floods, wildfires, hailstorms, straight line winds and ice storms. 

“Any natural disaster that would affect a homeowner,” she said. 

Tapley estimates that $800,000 worth of assistance has been provided, mostly in building materials and hardware, to those homeowners, since she began in early 2015. 

But now it’s the conference’s disaster response fund that’s in need of aid. 

The once-robust fund is down to about $29,092, according to Angie Gleason, controller and interim conference treasurer. 

Tapley said that if a disaster of any size hits the conference, volunteers will still be able to deploy to assist however they can.  

“We can go out and help,” she said. “But if 50 homeowners have their homes affected by a medium or major storm, 20,000 bucks is not going to help us help them to begin their process. We can go put a tarp up and do debris removal, but when it comes to providing the financial assist to them, to get them back on their feet, we won’t be able to do it.” 

Bishop David Wilson is set to record a video next week asking for assistance for the fund. Donations can be made through a secure server on the conference website, by mail or by text donation. Information on all those methods is available through the Disaster Fund page on the conference website. 

While “Tornado Alley” seems to have moved to the south and east over the past few years, Tapley said that thankfully there has not been a major disaster in Kansas or Nebraska since 2019. 

“While we’ve not had the major disasters, we’ve had some what could be considered medium or minor disasters that we’ve helped with that didn’t make the news,” she said. “The past two or three years it’s been smaller, little things. Because of where we’re located as a conference, we don’t get the media coverage.” 

This summer alone has included flooding in southwest Kansas, tornados in central Nebraska, and fires in homes and apartment complexes. 

“Even though we haven’t had ‘the biggie’ this year, there was one night in late June or July where the western central part of Nebraska had 50 tornados,” Tapley said. 

Martin Leeper, chair of the disaster response committee, said it has been difficult to keep up with requests for funding. 

“We want to help people when we can, because one of the ways to help people is to give to someone who’s rebuilding their house or making it a safe place to live,” said Leeper, pastor of pastor of Crawford-Whitey Warring Memorial and Harrison Memorial UMCs in the Nebraska panhandle. 

“Since the first of the year it’s been close to $60,000, we’ve given out just for hail damage. The storms are continuing to come,” he added. “They need a fix for a truly safe house.” 

Tapley said the estimate for repairing two roofs damaged by hail recently was about $15,000 each. 

“We don’t want to leave them hanging,” she said. 

Although the United Methodist Committee on Relief, or UMCOR, does provide funding for conferences, the process takes time when homeowners need an instant response. 

The Great Plains Conference’s early response team, or ERTs, has a reputation of being among the first to arrive at the scene of disasters, cleaning out the debris and installing new, safer material. 

Tapley said she doesn’t want to tarnish that reputation. 

“Because we are a ministry of compassion and care, we take it as our responsibility to help those who are troubled and helpless, as the scripture says,” she said. “The funding helps us to provide hope and healing and the presence of the Great Plains United Methodist Conference, at the darkest time of people’s lives. 

“If we have a medium or larger disaster, it’s going to wipe out our materials and our tools pretty fast,” Tapley added. 

Although there are no official goals, Tapley said, she would like to see the fund up to $200,000-$250,000. 

“The climate is changing,” she said. “Even though Tornado Alley has changed and shifted – for now – the prediction is for worse wildfires in our area, and it’s only going to be a matter of time, with the winds that blow through Kansas and Nebraska, it’s going to wipe out another community.  

“My prayer is that we’re ready, so when we get that call, we can go take an area assigned to us and take care of those individuals, those survivors,” Tapley added. “For at least part of their response and recovery time, they don’t have to worry about being ripped off or somebody not doing their job.” 

Tapley said disaster response is the most active display of the hands and feet of Jesus Christ and doesn’t want financial limitations to bind those good works. 

“I don’t want to get to a point where I have to say, ‘Sorry, we cannot.’” 

Contact David Burke, content specialist, at [email protected].

The Great Plains Disaster Response Team was on the ground in Andover, Kansas, as the sun rose showing the destruction from the EF-3 tornado on April 29. First responders from Sedgewick and Butler counties activated their search and rescue phase.

By Sunday afternoon, our team was charged with overseeing the Volunteer Reception Center, which would be located at the Andover UMC. By late Monday all areas affected were deemed safe. Tuesday morning, our team arrived at the church at 6 a.m. ready to greet and register volunteers from all over the state. At the end of two weeks, our team had registered 1,613 volunteers and also spent time working in the field helping homeowners.

Approximately 105 homes were destroyed in Andover with 205 homes in Butler and Sedgwick counties receiving major, minor or affected damages. There is much work to be done in both communities. Watch for your opportunity to provide a helping hand!

We would like to thank the Andover UMC for their wonderful hospitality and turning over the facility to our team to use. Your gifts of goodies that kept us going was very much appreciated. Blessings on each of you.

--Rev. Hollie Tapley, disaster response coordinator