When disaster strikes, David Canther, founder of Active Christians That Serve World Relief, is usually one of the first to respond.
The interdenominational faith-based disaster relief group, affiliated with Northland Church Distributed in Longwood, Fla., was on the ground assisting victims just days after Hurricane Katrina ravaged the southern coast in 2005 and an earthquake hit Haiti in 2010.
The team of volunteers, made up of high school- and college-aged young adults, along with adult members of First Response Teams, were eager to respond after destructive tornados struck communities near Birmingham and Tuscaloosa, Ala., in April.
The ministry trains young adults to clear debris, serve hot meals from their mobile kitchens and give emotional and spiritual care to victims of the disaster. In Alabama, ACTS fed 19,400 hot meals and trained numerous youth response teams that were deployed from area high schools and colleges.
“We try to follow the Christ model of service. Jesus’ first response was always to meet the needs of those who were hurting around Him,” Canther says.
