Church Leaders Minister to Gisborne and Hawke’s Bay Residents as Cyclone Gabrielle Recovery Continues

Leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints toured the Gisborne and Hawke’s Bay regions of New Zealand last week, ministering to members and friends of the Church and visiting with government officials in areas that were devastated by Cyclone Gabrielle in February.

Church leaders have been monitoring recovery efforts since the cyclone slammed into New Zealand 12-15 February 2023. The Church supported initial recovery efforts with a humanitarian donation and volunteer efforts.

Elder Peter F. Meurs, General Authority Seventy and Pacific Area President of the Church, traveled to Nuhaka and Gisborne, 4 August, to survey the damage in the area. They then visited Wairoa, Napier, and Hastings on 5 August.

Elder Meurs was accompanied on this tour by Elder Jared V. Ormsby, Area Seventy; and President Maui Aben, stake president (leader of congregations in Gisborne, Nuhaka and Wairoa).

As the Latter-day Saint leaders met with Māori and other community leaders they learned of vast damage and unmet needs in the region expected to cost NZ$500 million in the Gisborne/East Coast area, and NZ$2 billion in Hawke’s Bay.

The Church leaders listened carefully to community representatives and offered the support of the Church to help in recovery and rebuilding efforts.

“We told the leaders of these impacted communities that if they find recovery initiatives that are really working, we, would be really interested in seeing if we can expand those efforts, and make them more effective,” Elder Meurs said.

“We know it’s a challenge right now to find the skilled workforce to push many of these efforts forward, but we can help with the people power, and supply the resources needed to push many of these efforts forward. That is the biggest thing we can do to help at this moment in time.”

“Despite the concerns over recovery work yet to be completed, there were many success stories shared as well. In the Wairoa area, community leaders praised local Church members and full-time missionaries, who were at the forefront of the clean-up in the early days following Gabrielle.

“The leaders here were so grateful for the efforts of our members and missionaries, who showed up at the properties of those most effected, with willingness to dig in, to bend their backs and shoulder the efforts to clean up the silt that was left behind in flooded homes and do a lot of the other work of cleaning up this community,” Elder Meurs said.

“It was this willingness to show up, to help each family one by one, that was the big success of the Wairoa response,” he continued. “There’s still much more to be done, but the community leaders said it was amazing the way people responded and worked together to start putting things back together again.”

As Elders Meurs and Ormsby visited with members in devotionals throughout the region, they encouraged them to continue reaching out to their fellow members and friends impacted by Gabrielle. They encouraged all to help in the rebuilding of people’s lives in the wake of this disaster by spreading the joy of the teachings of Jesus Christ and ministering one by one.

“The essential nature of the doctrine of Jesus Christ is that as we have faith in Him. We will develop greater strength and courage to make the changes we need to then align our lives with Him,” Elder Meurs stated.

“As we keep His commandments and put aside those things that are stopping us from becoming like Him, we can realize the blessings of His Atonement and repent, and again feel His Spirit and the Holy Ghost in our lives.”

DOWNLOAD

Elder Meurs challenged members of the Church throughout the region to identify one person they know and love, who needs to feel again the love and spiritual embrace of the Saviour in their lives, and to reach out to them and invite them to follow Jesus Christ.

“Invite them back to partake of the sacrament ordinance with you, where they can remember the Saviour, receive the blessings of His healing and redeeming power, and receive the promise of His spirit to be with them," Elder Meurs said.

Elder Ormsby offered similar words of encouragement. "As we follow the Holy Spirit, we can have peace in our lives and that, to me, is what truly offers long-term resilience when times are hard."

"When we do that, it will be revealed to us who we really are. We will know where we are going in our lives. We will know that God will help us, that the Holy Spirit will speak to us, and he will guide us no matter what comes our way."