LU Send Now Deploys to North Carolina

More than a dozen Liberty University students and LU Shepherd leaders gathered outside of the Indoor Track Complex Thursday preparing for their short-term deployment to Jacksonville, North Carolina, to provide aid and relief to victims devastated by Hurricane Florence.

The team is being deployed by LU Send Now and will be partnering with Samaritan’s Purse. The group departed Thursday, Sept. 20, for the six-day trip.

The team is deploying amidst growing reports of the death toll rising to at least 37 individuals and major interstates and highways in North Carolina remaining closed, according to the Weather Channel.

LU Shepherd Leah Summers is one of the coordinators for the trip. While she has led other LU Send Now trips in the past, this will be her first trip providing flood relief. She is looking forward to connecting with those affected by the storm and witnessing what God has in store for the students.

“You kind of go into the day (saying), ‘Alright Lord, whatever you have in store today, use me to share your love and meet people where they are,’” Summers said. “That can be different every day.”

For some students, this is the first trip they are taking with LU Send Now, while others are returning volunteers with varied experience in working with the outreach..

Sophomore and North Carolina native Savannah Alligood knew she wanted to be a part of this trip as soon as she heard that a hurricane was headed towards her home state. This will be her first LU Send Now trip, and it is personal for her because she knows families affected in Jacksonville, North Carolina.

“(Jacksonville) has a special place in my heart, and I’m just ready to encourage and serve my home state,” Alligood said.

Other team members, like seniors Cody Wiley and Rebecca Hall, are returning LU Send Now trip attendees. Leading up to the day of the trip, Hall spent time fasting and in prayer to prepare her heart for the short-term deployment.

“The Lord just revealed to me that we can’t boast in the things of this world because they’re temporary, but we boast in Christ,” Hall said. “So, we’re just going to go show those people that Christ is the ultimate prize in this world and going expectant of what the Lord is going to do.”

While the mission of LU Send Now is to provide immediate relief, team members ultimately search for opportunities to share the gospel with those affected.

“The end goal is always to share the gospel,” Wiley said. “That’s why we serve. That’s why we help people.”

All of the students agreed that it can be hectic planning for a trip on such short notice, but having the understanding of professors at Liberty provides a huge relief. Each student commented that their professors were very accommodating and willing to work with them.

The Liberty Champion will continue to follow this story in the next issue, which hits the shelves out Oct. 2.

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