Hurricane Irma has passed through the Caribbean and is headed to Florida. It has caused major destruction across the Caribbean.  Only 3 weeks ago my husband and I re-located from Turks and Caicos Islands back to Barbados. Now we find that Turks and Caicos has been severely impacted!

A few weeks ago I looked at leadership lessons we could learn from the minor storm we had in Barbados Leadership in challenging times – what a tropical storm can teach us .  Little did we know that worse was yet to come.

Amidst the destruction I have been heartened to see the support, especially in prayer, of so many.  It is a reminder that love not hate is the only way. Moreover it is God’s way, since we know that ‘God is love

My thoughts and prayers are with all those who have suffered loss and who are now waiting to see what the storm will bring them.  May we also pray for leaders at this time, to have the wisdom to know what to do beyond the Hurricanes.

Leadership is especially important in times of crisis and needs both the ability to stablise and adapt.

For those who want to offer practical help I am re-posting a message from CDEMA, that is the Caribbean Disaster and Emergency Management  Agency, the disaster agency for the CARICOM region.

Let’s continue to pray for these countries, and Florida as they now prepare for Hurricane Jose, estimated now to be a category 3 and following the same pathway as Irma.

God bless.

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Hurricane Irma Relief Efforts – YOU Can Help!

The Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA), as the CARICOM entity established to oversee disaster management within the region, stands in solidarity with our affected Caribbean neighbours. The Regional Response Mechanism (RRM) has been activated to provide support during this greatest time of need.

The impact of Hurricane Irma on several of CDEMA Participating States including Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, the British Virgin Islands, Dominica, St Kitts and Nevis and Montserrat has also moved many of our fellow Caribbean citizens, private sector and the diaspora to reach out to the CDEMA Coordinating Unit (CU) with offers of assistance for the disaster relief efforts.

The CDEMA CU is deeply appreciative and truly humbled by this outpouring of generosity and humanitarian interest to meet the needs of our Caribbean sisters and brothers. In an effort to better coordinate this operation, we would first need to conclude the assessments, which are being undertaken in the affected States to ensure that assistance is being provided where it is most needed. When this information becomes available, the Agency would then be in a better position to direct the public in terms of providing a list of the necessities that are most critical and how such donations could be made.

In the interim, individuals and organisations who wish to make monetary donations to the relief efforts may do so through the Emergency Assistance Fund (EAF).

Please click here to find out how you can donate to the relief efforts