While Seventh-day Adventist Churches in Turks and Caicos are pending insurance damage assessments from hurricanes Irma and Maria, church leaders and members have kept busy helping their own and reaching out to those in need across the islands of Providenciales, Grand Turk and South Caicos.
“In Providenciales where I live and where the bulk of the church membership resides, some 90 percent of the homes were damaged by Irma,” said Pastor Michael Smith, president of the Turks and Caicos Mission. Pastor Smith’s roof collapsed, windows were blown off, and mud was everywhere. “It’s like that for almost everyone, with two hurricanes hitting one after the other,” he said.
All ten Adventist Churches across the three islands sustained damage and members are worshiping elsewhere every week. Two large Adventist churches in Providenciales are worshipping at Maranatha Adventist Academy Church—a structure that was built by Maranatha Volunteers International and the only one that sustained minor damages, said Smith. Other churches meet in rented halls, or outside churches.
The hurricanes knocked down more than 1,200 electric poles and restoring power has taken time in Turks and Caicos, reported Smith. After more than a month since Hurricane Irma, power is slowing being restored.
