Mr Kannan kutty, 45, has terminal cancer. His wife is a labourer. She and one of his sons work any job they can find to earn money. Their other son is a student.
Already struggling to have enough funds for cancer treatments and living costs, the family was affected by the heavy monsoon flooding in 13 of the 14 districts in the Kerala region of India in September 2018.
India’s armed forces carried out the largest aerial search and rescue operation in the country’s history. Some 633 000 people are in 2 971 relief camps as of October 2018. The death toll is 450 plus 325 missing.
In partnership with Mennonite Central Committee India, Gilgal Mission Trust (GMT, a Mennonite World Conference member church) organized relief distribution in Palakkad district.
The GMT team worked for more than a month to identify the neediest people to receive relief– irrespective of race, caste, creed, colour or religion. They worked around the clock to distribute supplies to 500 families.
In Kalpathy, where Mr Kannan kutty lives, the Church of God campus provided the site for distribution.
Local councillor Udayakumar, GMT president, Mennonite Christian Service Fellowship of India (MCSFI)and MCC officials presided over the distribution day, giving out relief supplies to 75 households.
Long-term challenges remain for Mr Kannan kutty and his family. However, relief supplies from GMT offer him and his family some hope in daily life in the aftermath of the flood’s destruction.
GMT brings disaster relief to families like Mr Kannan kutty’s because “God’s Word reminds us to look on the fields for souls because God is not willing that any should perish,” says GMT president Paul Phineas.
—Mennonite World Conference release