Recent Work

One of our counselors, supported by materials from GDR, has been in weekly contact with a counseling center in Odessa since the fourth day of the fighting. He advises and supports those who are debriefing and assisting victims. The staff at the Odessa Springs Counseling Center have been able to decompress and maintain their high level of assistance and compassion during the war because of this support.

GDR began supporting Calvary Chapel Network and City To City in Svitlovodsk in June 2023. The church plant there has been assisting internally displaced people (IDPs) since the beginning of the war. They have been doing this work for over 24 months, serving a refugee population of over 8,000 who have settled in the town of 50,000. Most are unemployed and homeless. The church is the only provider in the city of regular monthly food packages for these families, as well as hygiene supplies. This outpouring of care for the IDPs has come at great personal cost to the church members. This was apparent from our initial Zoom contacts with the leaders there. We formed an assessment team and were the first Americans to visit their church since the intense fighting started.

After the assessment in June, GDR began developing training specifically for the churches in Ukraine. This training focused on burnout prevention and resilience building. The training and fundraising were completed for a return in January 2024. We expanded our focus to include other Calvary Chapel churches in Ukraine as well as the counselors from Odessa. The training was well received, and we continue to provide online support.

Our GDR team worked with City to City in Antayka, Hyat Province. We provided an assessment team and advised several NGOs while there. Before departing for Turkey, we conducted extensive online intelligence gathering and talked to organizations on the ground to generate a clear picture of the situation. Situation analysis is one of our specialities.

Assessment is a key to providing the right support at the right time, in a culturally-appropriate way. GDR fields its own assessment team to ascertain what resources already exist as well as the capabilities of the groups we are working with. In Turkey, this involved reconnaissance of the disaster zone and sit-down meetings with group leaders and local victims.

Often victims refuse to leave the disaster zone. Closeness to their former homes can bring mental relief. They may want to be able to retrieve belongings, or only have a legally tentative hold on the property. In this case, we visited with a family who were staying nearby so their son from Germany could find them when he came to help.

Global Disaster Response has a deep connection to Honduras. After Hurricane Mitch hit in 1998, our responders began reconstruction of individual homes on the island of Gunaja. This led to long-term efforts in many areas, including outreach and dentistry. We now work on the island and the mainland with a variety of ministries.

Over the past two years, GDR successfully conducted our first comprehensive international Disaster Response Training program. We partnered with Ascenso, a ministry group based in Comayagua, to enhance their disaster response capabilities. Through a combination of onsite and remote training sessions, we equipped a team of responders with the skills needed to effectively manage disasters in this hurricane-prone region.

Our work with local groups and ministries allows us to bring our skill sets: construction, medical clinics, community health and crisis support. The local workers can then integrate it with their specialties. In addition, we create a sustainable solution, working with partners on the ground long after the disaster has passed.