The Rev. Dr. R. Osbert James, pastor of the Presbyterian Church in Grenada since 2002, speaks about the impact of Hurrican Beryl on his homeland with Rev. Edwin González-Castillo, Director of Presbyterian Disaster Assistance. Photo by Rich Copley
Providentially, the Rev. Dr. R. Osbert James was attending the 226th General Assembly as an Ecumenical Advisory Delegate rather than being at home in Grenada, where he is pastor of the Presbyterian Church in Grenada.
Hurricane Beryl, which was upgraded to a monstrous Category 5 storm on Tuesday, struck Carriacou the day before. Carriacou, an island of Grenada, saw at least three people killed, according to an Associated Press report on Tuesday.
“It’s difficult not being there,” James said Tuesday morning at the Salt Lake Convention Center. James was accompanied for an interview with Presbyterian News Service by the Rev. Edwin González-Castillo, director of Presbyterian Disaster Assistance. “I’m not hearing anything official,” James said. “All I’m hearing is what I see in the chats.”
Partners in Jamaica “told us they were bracing for the impacts” and have “provided preparedness trainings in several communities in Jamaica,” González-Castillo said. Those workshops were based on workshops PDA provided to CANACOM, the Caribbean and North America Council for Mission, and its partners.
González-Castillo said PDA is also reaching out to partners in Haiti, the Dominican Republic and other countries in Beryl’s path.
James said he’s been in touch with partners in the Conference of Churches in Granada, which the Presbyterian Church in Grenada belongs to, and has seen some of the news coverage, including videos of Beryl’s impact. It’s reminiscent, James said, of Hurricane Ivan’s devastation 20 years ago.
Commissioners and Advisory Delegates paused during a Tuesday morning plenary session at GA to pray as Hurricane Beryl was set to slam into Jamaica. Co-Moderator the Rev. CeCe Armstrong asked God to “camp angels all around those who are aligned with this natural disaster. Whatever is to come, you are still God all by yourself. We trust you and we believe you are already working it out.”
“We pause, actually, to say thank you for doing those things that you find necessary in spaces and places where the most help will be needed,” Armstrong prayed.
Map of the projected path of Hurricane Beryl, as of July 2, 2024. Map from the National Hurricane Center, Public Domain.
Map of the projected path of Hurricane Beryl, as of July 2, 2024. Map from the National Hurricane Center, Public Domain.
The Presbyterian Church in Grenada began in the early 1830s. Its origin, James noted, came from Scottish Presbyterians, “who came to Grenada and wanted a church of their own.” Its roots are tied with the United Church of Canada and the Presbyterian Church of Trinidad and Tobago. James has served the Presbyterian Church in Granada since 2002. For most of those years, he’s led churches in three locations on the island in the Lesser Antilles.
González-Castillo said he knows James because he was in Grenada last year to provide resilience training, where preparedness training was also given.
“Grenada is not usually affected that much by hurricanes,” James said, “but when we do, we are affected badly.”
On Sunday, the government of Grenada put a state of emergency in effect. People were asked to stay indoors, James said. The Presbyterian Church in Grenada helped found a school and MacDonald College on the island, and there have been reports of damage at the college, he said.
James and his wife have one of their two children, a daughter, still at home in Grenada. As she was not feeling well, she slept through the hurricane, he said. Power was restored Tuesday, which enabled his family to once again access water.
On Tuesday, González-Castillo thanked the Rev. Dr. Valdir França and Tracey King-Ortega for connecting him with James.
“Twenty years after Ivan, they’re still recovering,” González-Castillo said. “It’s a dire situation in many of these countries.”
PDA is prepared to offer a solidarity grant of up to $10,000 to aid Grenada, González-Castillo said. Solidarity grants provide immediate assistance for needs including food security, mattresses, water and cleaning products. How that money is spent is up to the recipient, González-Castillo said.
PDA says it’s monitoring the storm as it continues toward Jamaica and has been in touch with partners in its path to offer prayers, solidarity and resources.