October 1, 2026
INDIANAPOLIS (BP) – Indiana Baptist storm recovery coordinator Don Morris was already praying when emergency management called. Morris’ wife Beth, who works with the coroner, had told him of a home damaged by a fallen tree in Jennings County just north of his pastorate.
The tree trapped a 4-year-old boy and a younger sibling in bed. The older child was killed.
“Don, can you get a team out here right now with saws?” asked emergency management. “I jumped in the truck,” Morris told Baptist Press, “threw my saw in, grabbed some stuff. Made a couple of phone calls as I was driving, and I’d lined up a piece of heavy equipment and another sawyer. We drove out to the site. They were continuing to try to get the child out while we were en route.”
Just as Morris arrived, he learned the paramedic had been able to extricate the boy’s body from the home. But Morris, pastor of Vernon Baptist Church in Vernon, still had work to do.
“Since I’m a chaplain, I was also able to offer my services to the family and to the first responders as a chaplain,” Morris said. Disaster relief “is really multifaceted. When we arrived, they were just bringing the boy’s body out of the home.”
The little boy is among seven fatalities from high winds and floods that struck Indiana on Aug. 11, the day the boy died, responding agencies reported. While historic rains of a foot or more have subsided, water is still standing in several counties, Indiana Baptist Disaster Relief told Baptist Press on Monday.
At least a dozen churches in Northwest and North Central Indiana were damaged, two by high winds and others by flood waters, IBDR Director Butch Porter told Baptist Press. Trees fell through some churches and 2 feet of water rose inside others, but damage assessments can only be completed after the water recedes. Rivers crested, and at least one levee failed. Some roads and bridges were heavily damaged.
Several states have committed to help with disaster relief responses expected to span at least a month, including volunteers from Baptist conventions in Minnesota-Wisconsin, Michigan, Kentucky, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Georgia and Alabama. IBDR is setting up several response centers to serve a six-county area where much of the damage occurred, with dozens of counties impacted.
“We’ve already made some arrangements to get materials, shockwave, out to some of the churches,” Porter said. “We’re setting up distribution centers in a six-county area for shockwave (disinfecting and cleaning) and for flood recovery.”
At least 400 homes will need assistance, Porter estimated. The storms will potentially impact Indiana’s preparation for the 2027 Southern Baptist Convention Annual Meeting, Porter said.
“Indiana will continue for the 2027 SBC, and I don’t see that it’s going to make any changes,” he said, other than churches possibly having to reassess resources in order to repair facilities or attend the meeting. Porter and others expressed appreciation for help from the Southern Baptist family.
“To my knowledge, this is the largest (weather) event Indiana has had in a very, very long time,” Porter said.
Andy Moore, associational mission strategist for the Northwest Indiana Baptist Association, noted wind damage that left a hole in the side of Trailside Community Church in Portage. The damage is representative of the region that Moore said suffered five windstorms, Moore said in encouraging Southern Baptists to help.
Chris Kellermeyer, associational mission strategist for the Crossroads Baptist Association in Indianapolis, said none of the 90 churches in the association were damaged. Crews are on standby to begin clearing mud from homes after the water recedes.
“Everybody’s wanting to help,” Kellermeyer said, “but you just have to wait at this point.”
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This story appeared in Baptist Press.
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