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| Photo by APTS student Aiden Diaz |
Where are we again? And where is the power and water?
Like much of Texas, the second week of February brought six inches of snow and ice to the Austin Seminary campus. Unlike much of Texas, Austin Seminary was blessed to keep water and power for much of that time. (Many thanks to the Physical Plant team who chased after burst pipes for days!) Seminarians are people eager to help, and our office soon got emails from students hoping to host family members or friends who had been stranded without power or heat in the midst of the coldest period any Texan could remember. Soon seminary apartments and empty visitor rooms were filled with off-campus students, faculty, and friends and family of our students. Students donated food and money to the food pantry. Aiden Diaz, the community care senator, had the idea for the Seminary to buy hamburgers the first night Whataburger was open after the storm. He and Sam Innanen trekked through the snow and ice to deliver those burgers on Texas Toast to the community. Fun was also had amidst the stress and anxiety as students Ash Brown taught seminary children how to snow board and Emily Grace Clark hosted evening marshmallow roasts with a portable cooker. In the midst of an unbelievably stressful week, students engaged with each other with love and care.
– Sarah Gaventa, Dean of Students
We asked the community, Where did you see the Kin-dom of God in the ice and cold?
We asked the community, Where did you see the Kin-dom of God in the ice and cold?
• I love this question. Here on the seminary campus the Kin-dom was very apparent. I saw it in neighbors sharing groceries. I saw it in the children sledding and roasting marshmallows together each day and in the parents witnessing and sharing in that joy with them.
• The kin-dom of God was on the Seminary facebook group, where students were sharing with each other and supporting each other.
• In those who dropped off food needs and cravings at the drop of a hat. In the maintenance staff for keeping this place running. In all of those who shoveled the sidewalks. In the warm food shared with us. And SO much more.
• In my husband’s doctor at Seton Hospital who did not go home the whole week so that she could make sure her patients had continuous care when other doctors and nurses could not get to the hospital because of ice and snow. I could not get to the hospital to see Stan. I could see the kingdom of God in the human kindness and concern of everyone at the hospital. Stan’s doctor took the time to call me several times despite everything else she was responsible for
• In the neighbors who gave us eggs. I asked for 2 eggs so I could make stir-fry. We received 8 so not only did I make stir-fry, but we had eggs for breakfast the next day!
• Neighbor delivering wheelbarrow full of wood to neighbors who had no heat or power and a 17-month-old child. Neighbors shoveling walks and driveways for elderly neighbors and checking on needs. Neighbors volunteering to do grocery runs for those of us at the bottom of the hill without 4WD vehicles. Neighbors checking on water and food supplies and sharing. Neighbors pushing stuck cars out of roadways. Teaching others how to drip faucets/pre-empt water issues by stockpiling water in tubs/buckets/pots and pans
• Neighbors helping neighbors, as they repaired burst pipes and removed downed trees and branches.
• In the compassion of Leah, my Instacart shopper, who went out of her way to find us something to eat when the shelves at HEB were all but empty. My family did not have much food left after five days of being without power. The store did not have milk, or eggs, or butter, or meat. “Well, now, wait a minute,” Leah texted me. “They do have a brisket. There is only one left. But I think it’s kind of expensive … do you want it? I’ve put it in my cart to save it for you until you decide. just let me know." You can bet I bought that brisket. It kept our teenagers happy for a couple of days until we could get restocked. We had extra sandwiches for neighbors.
• Beloved community repeatedly reaching out via email, phone, and social media/text to affirm safety, needs, and care.
• Our church opened up to anyone that needed heat, water, etc. during the week, with staff people staying overnight, and it was a good reminder to me of what the church can be when we don’t let ourselves get bogged down. For someone who has struggled to view fellow Christians with love lately, this was refreshing and needed.
• When he learned that we were without water, my husband’s co-worker got in his SUV and drove on icy roads to deliver some to my family … neighbors were also helping neighbors all week long through our Facebook group and BuyNothing group, sharing water, food, warm places to sleep, and even volunteer plumbing services.
• Welcoming the Stranger: A family in my neighborhood, who had moved in two months earlier, had a baby three days before our street lost power. Even though the next-door-neighbors did not really know the new family, they invited them to stay with them since they had a generator and could keep the new baby and his big sisters warm.
• A neighboring apartment complex had a busted pipe on Tuesday and had to turn off their water for all their buildings. At a house down the street, the owners put out a hose and a sign that said “Water” so their neighbors could get water without having to drive.
• Helping neighbors and really listening to the stories of others after the fact.
• We lost an oak tree to the ice that first night. A neighbor offered his help and we were able to get it off the fence, out of the street, and cut into manageable pieces. Then, we were able to share some of that wood with a new friend, who took it to his elderly neighbor who was without power. It was a classic case of one door closing and another opening, and good Samaritans coming out of the woodwork.
• In the warmth and kindness of friends who took us in and shared their water and power with us.
• The amount of organizing that took place to reach the needs of people throughout the city was deeply inspiring. During that week, my phone was constantly buzzing with messages—half of which were expressing needs for water, food, and shelter for vulnerable Austinites; and the other half of which were quickly and effectively meeting most of those needs. If that wasn't the Kin-dom on Earth, I don't know what is.
Invitation to Online Vigil, Worship
We invite you to worship with us during Holy Week, April 1-3. Triduum (The Three Days) includes Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and the Saturday Easter Vigil. This year’s online Vigil includes "The Hole in the Heart of God: A Paschal Vigil in Text and Poetry," pairing the scripture readings with poetry by Professor Paul Hooker. Thursday and Friday worship is at 11:10 a.m. CDT; the Saturday Vigil is at 7:00 p.m. (CDT). Mark your calendars!
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