Southern Baptists Create New Protocol to Speed Disaster Response
For years, Southern Baptists in the United States have worked to provide disaster relief in times of trouble. Now the organization is working on a plan to write a new protocol for mobilizing initial responders to crisis situations overseas.

In an article in the Baptist Press, Mark Kelly says the disaster relief coordinators for three dozen Baptist state conventions approved a new six-point recommendation on the protocol at a roundtable meeting last week.

“This new agreement between the North American Mission Board and Baptist Global Response has pushed us way ahead,” Jim Didlake, disaster relief director for the Mississippi Baptist Convention, said as he presented the proposal. “What we see here is something we have hoped for for a long time, and that is a real plan to respond to disasters overseas.”

Under the new plan, Baptist state conventions will compile a roster of “initial responders” who will be given intensive training for crisis intervention. A major change in the new plan is that initial responders from two or three states will be on call for immediate response during designated months of the year.

“Southern Baptists have a very efficient protocol for responding to disasters in the United States, with the North American Mission Board serving as a hub to identify needs and match volunteer teams from churches and state conventions that have the right skill sets,” Kelly says. “Southern Baptists have been recognized by the American Red Cross and federal emergency management leaders for the crucial role played by volunteers in the aftermath of disasters like that on the Gulf Coast in the aftermath of hurricanes in 2005.”