Atlantic Union Conference administrators Pierre E. Omeler, center, and Elias F. Zabala, Sr., left, are with representatives from the East Dominican Conference: Guery Paulino, president, second from left; Junior Felix, executive secretary, right; and Leidi Bastardo, treasurer, at the building site of the Ebenezer church. The unfinished edifice now serves as a primary house of worship after the original church building was severely damaged by Hurricane Fiona. [Photo courtesy of Pierre E. Omeler]
Hurricane Fiona was the first hurricane since Hurricane Jeanne in 2004 to directly hit the Dominican Republic. Fiona roared onto the area on September 19, causing major flooding, forcing more than 12,000 people to evacuate their homes, and leaving hundreds of thousands without power. (Reuters, “Hurricane Fiona Slams Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico; Three Dead,” September 20, 2022). The devastation also impacted Adventist families, churches, and institutions. “The people who had the least lost everything,” said Pierre Omeler, Atlantic Union Conference president, after a visit to the area with Elias Zabala, Jr., Atlantic Union Conference treasurer, to assess the damage in the storm’s aftermath.
Administrators from the Dominican Union Conference, Paulino Puello, president; Teófilo Silvestre, executive secretary; and Winston Hiciano, treasurer, met with Omeler and Zabala to discuss how the Atlantic Union could aid them as they rebuild. “Thirty-one Adventist churches suffered damages, and 227 Adventist families were affected in that area,” Omeler said. Omeler and Zabala also met with the leadership and pastors from local conferences hardest hit by Fiona and both Adventist and non-Adventist families during their visit. “A woman named Dorcas, who is also the Dorcas leader for her church, reported water up to her waist,” Omeler said. “She lost everything in her home! Thankfully, her house was brick, so the structure stood firm, but she lost all her belongings.”
The Category 2 storm, packing maximum wind speeds of up to 110 mph, ripped the roofs from several churches, leaving the pews, hymnals, and other ministry materials vulnerable to the pouring rain. Insurance coverage for the churches will only replace the roof, Omeler explained. “Those are people who already did not have much. They do not have ways of helping themselves. If they do not get outside help, it will take some of those people years and years—if ever—to replace these items.”
For over a decade, the Atlantic Union Conference and the Dominican Union Conference have partnered as sister unions to conduct numerous evangelistic and mission-related activities. Additionally, the Atlantic Union has assisted in raising and building several churches in the Dominican Republic. With this history, Omeler emphasized the commitment of the Atlantic Union Conference administration to continue ministering to the country through various outreach endeavors and will work with the local conferences and local churches in the Dominican Republic as they direct and communicate their needs.
Ellen White penned these words found in Gospel Workers (1915 edition), p. 465: “To show a liberal self-denying spirit for the success of foreign missions is a sure way to advance home missionary work; for the prosperity of the home work depends largely, under God, upon the reflex influence of the evangelical work done in countries afar off. It is in working to supply the necessities of others that we bring our souls into touch with the Source of all power.” This statement motivates the Atlantic Union Conference in its various endeavors outside our territory. “When we help others who are in need and are unable to help themselves, we are blessed in return,” said Omeler. “It is our hope that the more we support mission endeavors in areas not a part of our union, the more God will bless the mission endeavors here at home.”
