Cover se C tion


Knee-Deep in Water and Ministry


Two Rivers Baptist Church lends a helping hand in a time of crisis


By Kathy Chapman Sharp W


hen the rain began to fall on May 1, 2010, most Nashville residents thought it was just another wet weekend for the record books. In fact, 116 members of Two Rivers Baptist Church gathered that morning and despite the inclement weather, were still able to pull off a “Servolution” Day—a church-wide community service effort that involved cleaning up local schools as well as cleaning projects that served handicapped and elderly residents. But as the rain continued to fall over a 48-hour period and more than 13 inches of water pushed streams, creeks and the Cumberland River over their banks, everyone knew it was more than just a rainy weekend. As roads and houses began flooding, Nashville residents quickly realized they were fully involved in a disaster situation.


According to the National Oceanic and Atmo- spheric Administration and the Corps of Engineers, it was a flood that could only be described as a


22 Fall 2010 • onmission.com


“1,000-year rainfall event.” And, it wasn’t just one area of Nashville that was affected by rising water— parts of the city that were previously not considered floodable were indeed under water.


In fact, water rose so quickly on Interstate high- ways that people had to abandon their vehicles and be rescued by boats and helicopters. Some didn’t make it and drowned in the standstill traffic. Local television stations on the scene recorded images of boats on the city’s major highways as well as the surreal image of a portable school building floating on the interstate “river” and exploding upon impact with vehicles stopped by traffic and water. In the city of Nashville alone, 10 people died.


As the waters of the Cumberland River crested at its highest level in over 80 years, Nashvillians watched, heartbroken, as their city was devastated.


A HuB of ACtivity


As Two Rivers staff members Melissa Leaver, min- ister of adult ministries, and Aaron Loy, minister of


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