A month after Hurricane Ida, Gulf Coast communities are still clearing debris from yards and repairing damage to buildings. The Baptist Student Union at William Carey University has sponsored two trips for students who wanted to volunteer to help homeowners in Louisiana.

Students partnered with Carterville Baptist Church in Petal on a trip to Covington, La., on Sept. 25.

William Carey student Zach Parks is a member of the church and was already scheduled to travel with its disaster relief team. He was joined by BSU volunteers Seger Moore and Isaac Watson, both of Meridian, and Noah Clark of Canyon, Texas.

“Isaac, Noah and Seger were a great addition to our team. With their help, we were able to complete three jobs and make significant progress on a larger job,” said Ken Stuart, who led the volunteers from Carterville Baptist Church.

“We had the opportunity to minister to the homeowners, including an 84-year-old widow, a school teacher and two elderly couples. We had a great day with Godly men serving others. Thank you for connecting these fine young men to us.”

WCU volunteers said the opportunity to serve was a blessing.

Seger Moore: “Words cannot describe the deep joy I received helping spread the Gospel of Christ through service to others. I will never forget the incredible gratitude displayed by the hurricane victims. Without a doubt, it was an extremely moving and unforgettable experience.”

Noah Clark: “I have a heart to serve people in need. I enjoyed serving these people because they had no hope at that time. But we came in and gave them hope. To see the impact we had on them is truly a life-changing moment for me.”

In the days just after the hurricane, an earlier group of volunteers from the WCU Baptist Student Union helped clear debris from yards in Hammond, La., as part of team from Samaritan’s Purse Disaster Relief. Collectively, the 25 students and staff members put in 140 hours of community service over the Labor Day weekend.