According to Roger Bailey, South Texas disaster relief coordinator, making contact with local pastors has been a timely process because many areas have been out of cell phone service and the district office in Houston only regained use of its phones two days ago.

Bailey says initial contacts indicate that a number of churches sustained relatively minor damages during the storm, mostly due to high winds and flooding.

While some churches may be repaired in just several weeks, Bailey estimates that most churches will need at least two to three months to repair the damages. Currently, many churches are waiting on the approval of insurance adjusters before they can get to work.

"We need people who will volunteer and help," says Bailey. "We have two, maybe three churches that did not have insurance that we will need to repair totally by donations and volunteer help."

Individuals and teams interested in volunteering can contact Bailey at rbailey@stxag.org or (713) 455-1221.

Many church members living in towns right on the Gulf, such as Bay Cliff, Crystal Beach and Bridge City, lost homes or possessions. Starting today, residents of Galveston, the island city devastated by Hurricane Ike, were able to return to their homes.

Bailey reports that First Assembly of God in Galveston sustained only minor damages. The church building is now being used to set up a Red Cross shelter for the island. The shelter will be manned and supplied by the Red Cross and several AG ministers are serving the area as disaster relief chaplains.

In response to the disaster, the South Texas District has coordinated food distribution and is connecting pastors with people who can donate food and other supplies to distribute in their communities. The district will also be assisting pastors with their salaries during this time of need.

To date, Convoy of Hope, the Assemblies of God partner in disaster relief, has distributed approximately 4 million pounds of relief supplies, valued around $3 million, to communities affected by Hurricane Ike.