Disaster responder Mike Yoder pauses to pound in a nail while touring the UMCOR West Depot shortly after it opened in Salt Lake City.
Mary Gaudreau

When the Time Arises

By Klay S. Williams*

June 21, 2012—The idea of responding to one’s calling and purpose in life is not so much about waiting for a sign as understanding the message your heart pulsates—becoming aware of the purpose you already are living.

Mike Yoder has spent most of his life in disaster-related situations. On Palm Sunday 1965, for instance, Yoder and his family, then living in Indiana, lost friends and loved ones to a tornado. He became a volunteer firefighter.

Years later, when he was ready to move on, he asked a question that would lead him to another world and the next steps of his purpose. He simply asked God, “What work have you asked me to perform?”

For more than 12 years since, Yoder has served the North Georgia Annual Conference of The United Methodist Church as its Disaster Response coordinator, initiating and preparing disaster-response operations for the conference.

“I tell the story that I had a talk with the Lord and the Lord told me to be an… enabler. I had no idea what He meant. I discovered that He wanted me to teach people how to help others,” he recalls now. “I thought this disaster business would be a good thing to do, so I have been learning how to get more people involved so North Georgians can help their fellow person when the time arises.”

Reflecting on his many years of service to the North Georgia Conference, Yoder says, “The greatest lesson that I have learned is that when a disaster happens, people come from everywhere to help. But this can create a lot of problems unless we all are trained and properly educated in disaster response.”

UMCOR’s assistant general secretary for US Disaster Response, Rev. Tom Hazelwood, whom Yoder calls friend, has led training in support of North Georgia’s disaster response. “Without Hazelwood and volunteers, trainings would not be a smooth operation,” Yoder says. “More people in the conference are being trained and we could not do it without UMCOR.”

Yoder will leave his post as Disaster Response coordinator in June, but he will continue to serve on the conference’s Disaster Response Committee, forever campaigning for United Methodist churches in his area to become prepared disaster responders.

Mike Yoder’s passion and calling to help others has served the North Georgia community well. His faithfulness and dedication to his call serve as a reminder for us to boldly do the same.

Your gift to US Disaster Response, UMCOR Advance #901670 will help UMCOR prepare church and community members to respond needs in the aftermath of a disaster.

*Klay S. Williams is a writer and contributor to www.umcor.org.