Where It All Began

Serving Mrs. Trudy and Discovering a Calling

As members of Cedarcrest Church, Nellie and I joined a mission trip to Panama City Beach, Florida, in the aftermath of a devastating hurricane. It was a church-wide effort—over 100 volunteers and their families came together to bring hope, healing, and help to those who had lost so much.

We were split into teams and sent out across the community. Our team was assigned to help a woman named Mrs. Trudy. Her home had been surrounded by fallen trees, some dangerously close to her house. Yet despite the damage to her own property, Mrs. Trudy was spending her days cooking meals for other volunteers. That kind of selflessness left a deep impression on us.

For several days, we worked hard to clear the trees from her yard, including one large tree that was leaning close to her home (we even caught it on video!). It was exhausting but deeply rewarding work—and it was in those moments, sawdust flying and sweat pouring, that something changed.

This was where the passion for disaster relief work was truly birthed in David.

That experience marked the beginning of something much bigger. Since then, David has joined multiple disaster relief deployments—chainsaw in hand, faith in action, answering the call to serve wherever the need arises.

What started as one trip with our church has grown into a lifelong mission. And it all began with one woman, one home, and one opportunity to say, “Here I am, Lord. Send me.”